"It is money, above all, that produces conflict and concord throughout the play." Discuss the truth of this statement with close reference to The Merchant of Venice.

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Term 3 Literature Assignment: The Merchant of Venice

Name: Wong Yun Sheng Calvin [2O/23]

Question 2: “It is money, above all, that produces conflict and concord throughout the play.” Discuss the truth of this statement with close reference to The Merchant of Venice.

I shall first begin my essay by concentrating upon the conflicts between friendship and love in The Merchant of Venice. Looking at I.i., conflict has already begun between the 2 realms of friendship and love as signified by Antonio’s sadness. He is upset that Bassanio has transferred his affections for him to a woman, Portia. Bassanio is a gallant. He does not work, but gains money from his family inheritance. However he states that he has spent too much of it away, and explains his “plots and purposes” (I.i.133) to get his money back. He explains that he needs Antonio’s help to achieve them. Unwittingly however, he drags Antonio down into a conflict between Antonio and Shylock later on in the story.

Another conflict has also been pointed out within this scene, which is the conflict between love and money. Bassanio explains to Antonio that the route to riches for him has already been found. Portia, a lady in Belmont has been “richly left”, having inherited a large sum of money from her dead father. She is thus a magnet for poor noblemen, such as Bassanio, for Renaissance law states that the husband is the ruler of the wife. Therefore when a man marries a wealthy woman, her money passes into his control. Because many men will be after Portia, Bassanio believes that he will need the help of Antonio’s money to impress her. Strangely, Bassanio is supposed to be the play’s romantic hero. Shakespeare, however, makes it clear hat Bassanio’s chief aim in marrying Portia is to obtain her wealth because his “chief care” is to pay off his “great debts”. (I.i.127-128) Although there is some mention of romance here (Sometimes from her eyes/I did receive fair speechless messages), notice, when Bassanio describes Portia as beautiful, how quickly he turns to compare Portia to the Golden Fleece. The Golden Fleece was a precious treasure in Greek mythology, and Like Jason sailing to Colchis in search of it, Bassanio sails to Belmont in search of Portia. One cannot help noticing that Bassanio’s fight for Portia is nothing more than pure romance.

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I.iii brings to us the first sign of conflict between Antonio and Shylock, foreshadowing the horrendous event that is to happen later. Bassanio attempts to secure the money he needs from Shylock, a usurer, or a moneylender that charges high rates of interest. Notice the evident religious conflict here. Shylock is enjoying the power he now holds over Antonio and Bassanio, for he knows that they are relying on him now, and no matter how rude he is, they still need him. When Bassanio offers to let Shylock dine with them, he refuses, and in the process says that Christian ...

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