Despite the enormity of the Holocaust, in which six million Jews perished in Europe under the Nazis, anti-Semitism continues today. Some groups deny that the Holocaust actually happened. Others uphold Adolf Hitler as a hero, preach his racist propaganda of the master race, and follow his example by engaging in violence and terrorism against Jews and other minorities, such as blacks in America and elsewhere, and Turks in Germany. Jewish cemeteries are desecrated, synagogues bombed or defaced, children attacked and shot in day-care centres. Organisations such as the so-called World Church of the Creator, in America, strongly advocate white supremacy. Although these organisations are limited and slowly decreasing, they are still a problem, not only to Jews, but to other races and religions around the world.
Shylock is a Jew and, at the time the play was written, Jews were the focus of much racial prejudice and repression. In fact the Jewish community in the Middle Ages suffered huge prejudice. Jews were associated mainly with money-lending, as Christians could not lend money at interest to other Christians. Shakespeare’s portrayal of Shylock and Tubal is based on common prejudice and ignorance tempered by his own liberal tolerance. This racial prejudice is relevant within the play because is justifies the behaviour of Shylock. It is this prejudice that sets the plot and is a major theme within “The Merchant of Venice”.
Another key theme is love. There are many relationships in this play and not all are the type that involves the love that a man has for a woman, or vice versa. Bassanio and Portia, Jessica and Lorenzo and Gratiano and Nerissa are all relationships that involve a man and a woman, which are of course relevant to today's society. When one looks deeply into these relationships, they would see parallels to the ones of today. For instance, the concept that all three marriages will probably not last, is a parallel to the number of divorces that are occurring today.
The second relationship that is explored in “The Merchant of Venice” is the type of man to man. Homosexuality is a type of love that happens in any period in time and is even more relevant today, as homosexuality has blossomed even more in the 1990's, creating a large issue. Antonio's "love" may not be the type that we are thinking about, but if this happened today we might see it as homosexuality. Many say that Shakespeare is a homosexual from evidence from his many plays.
The third type is between a man and his money. Shakespeare's portrayal of Shylock is of a cold-hearted man, who only has one true love, his money. He would sacrifice anything for money (even his own daughter). Merchants like Antonio lend money free of interest and put themselves at risk for those they love, whereas Shylock agonizes over the loss of his money and is reported to run through the streets crying, “O, my ducats! O, my daughter!” (Act II Scene VIII).
If you only concentrate on accepting your race and religion, then there is generally hate for the other races and religions, as you have not learnt to accept them as an equal, and so they are treated differently and with contempt. When we hate other religions, it usually means that we get angry, and so if many people around the world become angry and intolerant, then they are biasing the scales of peace and unity. Think about this. There are over 6.5 billion people around the world. There are 19 major religions, which are divided into 270 religious groups. Everyone around the world is unique in at least one characteristic, whether it is looks or personality. If everyone does not learn to tolerate and accept these religions and religious groups, how can the world be what it is today? How can it work if there is not unity and universal peace?
We need to teach school children around the world to accept people’s differences and treat them as an equal, no matter how they differ, whether it is their race, religion, personality, appearance or beliefs. People are beginning to accept other distinctions for who they are and what they preach. We need to emphasise the fact that everyone is and equal and spread it around the world to try to make others to tolerate others. We need community groups and the government to spread the message to other countries and religions, and we need to unite and spread peace. Without tolerance, the world would not revolve, and we would not be where we are today.
As Martin Luther King Jr. once said:
“I look forward confidently to the day when all who work for a living will be one with no thought to their separateness as Negroes, Jews, Italians or any other distinctions. This will be the day when we bring into full realization the American dream -- a dream yet unfulfilled. A dream of equality of opportunity, of privilege and property widely distributed; a dream of a land where men will not take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few; a dream of a land where men will not argue that the color of a man's skin determines the content of his character; a dream of a nation where all our gifts and resources are held not for ourselves alone, but as instruments of service for the rest of humanity; the dream of a country where every man will respect the dignity and worth of the human personality.”
Thank You.
