On the surface, the main difference between the Christian characters and Shylock appears to be that the Christian characters value human relationships over business ones, whereas Shylock is only interested in money. The Christian characters certainly view the matter this way. On numerous occasions in the play Shylock claims that he is only creaming the lesson taught to him by his fellow Christian citizens this is a theme of hatred throughout the play.
The character of shylock is a very difficult as well as a complex character that is very difficult to understand on numerous occasions in the play. We come to know Shylock as an audience as a very sly character right in the beginning of act one scene three when he says "If you repay me not on such a day, in such a place... let the forfeit be nominated for an equal pound of your fair flesh to be cut off and taken in what part of your body pleaseth me." Here we come to know how Shylock declares his profound disgust towards Antonio as who would want a pound of flesh in return? This can only be explained by the logged hatred towards Antonio. We then come to know about Shylocks delusive character when he says to Antonio "A pound of mans flesh is not so estimable, profitable neither as a flesh of muttons... I say to buy his favour I extend this friendship". Here Shylock says that a pound of man's flesh is not as profitable to him as a pound of beef or mutton and that he only does this to seek friendship. To my judgement I think that this is clearly not the case, in fact I think that he wants to only seek revenge from Antonio. Furthermore this shows that Shylock is a schemer who can only think badly towards others. Additionally the fact that Shylocks own daughter runs away and says "Farewell; and if my fortune be not crossed I have father, you a daughter lost". Here Jessica blesses her good fortune and says if her good fortune comes to her Shylock has a lost a daughter and she has lost a father. This quote is enough in my opinion for the audience to regard that Shylock is a rejected, alienated and boycotted by everyone not only in Venice but also in his own home. Moreover we have seen that Shylock cares more about money than relationships. "I would my daughter were dead at my feat, and the jewels in her ear!" This quote to my perception tells us that Shylock worships money more that his daughter as to which father in the world can think like that? On the other hand Shylock has also been seen as an unmerciful character who just can not give mercy. "Thou art come to answer a stony adversary, an inhuman wretch, incapable of pity, void and empty from any dram of mercy". Here the Duke says to Antonio that Shylock is a barbarous and an obdurate that just doesn’t even have a drop of mercy. In my opinion I think that shylock wants his revenge so much that he has forgotten that he is a human. Shylock is also seen to be very stubborn “if every ducat in six thousand ducats were in six parts and every part a ducat. I would not draw them I would have my bond". This quote said by Shylock says a lot in my opinion about the stubbornness of Shylock. He is portraying his anger in the court in the form of stubbornness and refusing thrice the money offered to him telling us that he is an unmerciful, heartless and a ruthless character. Shylock's opening speeches in the court express his will to have his pound of flesh because he wants to and nothing will stop him, "You'll ask me why I rather have a weight in carrion flesh than to receive three thousand ducats. I'll not answer that, but say it is my humor". This line confounds audience's expectations because everyone is looking at Shylock and expecting him to be merciful but instead he states that he will have his pound of flesh. Shylock is determined to have his pound of flesh because although three thousand ducats would be of more use to him than the flesh, it would be a major victory for him to lawfully kill a Christian in front of the people of Venice who hate him.
As well as the negative Character of Shylock, Shylock has also been seen as a good and a loving character. "...Scorned my nation, thwarted my gain, cooled my friends, heated my enemies-and what's his reason? I am a Jew ". This quote said by Shylock shows us that Shylock has a good reason for hating Antonio. He says that Antonio has turned his friends into rebels, enemies, he has said ill about the Jews and all because he is a Jew. To my perception I believe that Shylock has every reason to hate Antonio because he was just as bad to him. In contrast to Shylocks remorseless character Shylock says "I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor. I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys." Shylock says that he would not have traded the ring of Leah for a whole forest of monkeys how could Jessica do that? In my opinion this was one of Shylock's precipitous features in his character to the audience, that Shylock has actually got feelings for others and that he really loved Leah. Shylock unknowingly paraphrases his reason for abundance towards Antonio that "Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections...?" Shylock here saying that does a Jew not have hands, organs, feelings just like Christians so why are we treated like this, so when Shylock does something why does it seem to the Christians that it’s bad? I think that Shylock has been mistreated and the Christians did treat the Jews as in humans and show that Shylock cared about other Jews as he referred to them as “hath not a Jew”. Never the less when Shylock has lost his claim to the bond in the court the Duke says "that thou shalt see the difference of our spirit...for half thy wealth, it is Antonio's; the other half come’s to the general state". Here the Duke firstly says that now Shylock can see the difference between Jews and Christians however he then commands that half his wealth would go to Antonio and the other half to general state. In my understanding a neutral audience would be thinking if there is a difference between them and the Jews then why have they taken only Shylocks property away, why not Antonio's because he was the reason why it all started? So the out come here is that they haven't also shown mercy so they shouldn't expect Shylock to show as well. This clearly once again shows the separation in the society of the Elizabethan era. "Signior Antonio, many a time and oft in the Rialto you have rated me about my moneys and usances. still I have borne with it... for sufferance is our badge" Here Shylock has said that Antonio has rated him, insulted him in front of everyone in the market but still he has endorsed it with composure this shows us the calm and a positive character of Shylock. We also come to know how the Jews have always indulged their mortification with patience so in my opinion I think Shylock is the one that has to bare with injustice every time as he has faced problems in his life only because he is a Jew. "Ay, ay, three thousand ducats". Here shylock had agreed upon the sum of the three thousand ducats. This shows that Shylock did initially wanted to forget everything in the past and make a new start with Antonio. So this corroborates the fact that Shylock had feelings and that he tried to be good with the Christians as we can fairly say that at that specific point he had no greed and no anger in him as he didn't know that Antonio's ships would wreck on the sea and later would not be able to give the sum back.
Shakespeare’s use of dramatic devices were seen when Nerissa's and Portia's sudden arrival increases the tension because the audience thought that there was nothing that could save Antonio considering Shylock was so determined to have his pound of flesh. "From both, my lord Bellario greets your grace". Now that a possible solution has arrived the audiences know a little bit about Portia’s plan and are wondering if she will turn up. The audiences are ultimately wondering if the plan will work if she does turn up. When Nerissa was presenting the letter to the Duke, Shylock on the other hand was whetting his knife and later said “I have them ready" meaning that he has got his scales ready, the juxtaposition of these two scenes happening at the same time is very effective. This is because you have got Nerissa trying to stop Shylock from getting his way, which is the solution, but at the same you have got Shylock preparing to carry the forfeit out. I think Shakespeare uses these two dramatic devices together because it creates tension and the hearts of the audience's would be throbbing in those days because Antonio is a Christian and all the sympathy would be with him. However a gratifying scene was also created when Portia and Nerissa both disguised themselves as men this was found to be humorous to the audience. Shakespeare used asides in his play like when Jessica says "Farewell; and if my fortune be not crossed I have father, you a daughter lost". Here Shakespeare has used an aside to remind the audience and tell the audience about Jessica's perspective towards her father. "These be the Christians husbands! I have a daughter; would any of the stock of Barabbas had been her husband than a Christian." Here Shylock says that he would rather let a condemned criminal marry his daughter than a Christian. Here Shakespeare using his aside has exhibited Shylocks feelings and what he thinks to the audience. To end his scenes Shakespeare used rhyming couplets. “In this there can be no dismay; my ships come home a month before the day”. Here Antonio has said that nothing can go wrong because his ships comes home a moth before the day he has to return the money back to Shylock. To my speculation I think that Shakespeare used rhyming couplets so that he could make the audience aware that the scene had ended.
The historical and cultural dissemblance between Christians and Jews could be seen on multitudinous occasions. The courtroom scene is one of the most important scenes because everyone is on stage and it is the penultimate scene of the play. “Get thee gone, but do it.” Here the Duke is saying to Shylock that go away but do sign the papers. In my opinion the Duke using derogatory language towards Shylock shows us the attitudes of Venetians towards Jews as the Duke spoke in an ungracious way to Shylock as he referred to him as a “thee”. Moreover Nerissa and Portia dressing up as men’s to save Antonio shows us that women’s were not recognized as equal to men in the Elizabethan times, as to why would they if they were recognized as equal? I also think that maybe if she revealed her true self her arguments might be dismissed because she is a woman and not recognized and she did not want to risk losing the case. This shows us how much our society has changed over time when compared with the Elizabethan society. The main theme in the play of Merchant of Venice was the rivalry between Christians and Jews. “I will buy with you, sell with you, talk with you…; but I will not eat with you drink with you, nor pray with you.” This quote said by Shylock saying that he would do everything with the Christians except that he would never eat, drink or pray with them. This shows us the estrangement of Christians and Jews in the Elizabethan society as it shows that they could never be equal and same.
Although there were differences there was also superstition as well in the Elizabethan society. In act two scene five Shylock says “There is some ill a-brewing towards my rest, for I dream of money bags tonight.” He says that he can not rest peacefully tonight as he has dreamt of money bags. This shows us the superstition of the Elizabethan society. In my opinion if this was said by someone today, society would just laugh at the person however, in the Elizabethan society it was taken very seriously. Shylock then says to Jessica that “What are there masques? Hear you me, Jessica lock up my doors; and when you hear the drums… stop my house’s ears, I mean my casements let not the sound of shallow foppery enter my sober house”. He says that when you hear the drums lock the casements, doors so that the sounds of the Christians can not enter his house. This shows how the superstition was looked at in the Elizabethan era as Shylock thought of Christians as devils trying to spread evil. To my conjecture I visualized that the Elizabethan society was uneducated, contemptuous and illiterate and that they believed in everything the people said. Today’s society is educated, mannered and liberal that thinks twice before they do anything.
The Duke uses phrases such as “That thou but leadest this fas 0hion of thy malice”, “thou art come to answer a stony adversary, an inhuman wretch” to describe Shylock and his actions. Shakespeare uses this language to show how alienated Shylock is from the rest of the people in the courtroom. He also refers to Shylock as “Jew” and also refers to him as “thou” instead of using his name, as if he is not good enough to have a name. The language used by Shakespeare in the play shows Venice's disgust towards Jews and it also makes Shylock look all alone, fighting a battle against a city which despises him and his religion.
After analyzing the character of Shylock and reading the play my perspectives about Shylock are mixed. Firstly I realized that Shylock was a person who was badly damaged by the prejudice, abundance and the separation provided by the Christians towards his people. Shylock to my conception was a character who had a heart and had affections; a person who tried his best to live with the situations however was always protested by the Christians. On many occasions in the play I agreed with what he said “Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections… if you poison us do we not die? And if you wrong us do we not revenge” Here Shylock says that are we not same as you Christians? Are we not humans? So if you do something bad to us can we not do the same? I think that Shylock has made a fair point. In my opinion everyone is equal regardless of their ethnic or race or even religion. However on the other hand I think that Shylock was also a cruel man. “I would my daughter dead at my feat, and the jewels in her ear!” He spoke ill of his own daughter, which father in the world would say like that? He preferred money more than his daughter, affections and love as this in my opinion could be a possible reason why Christians despised him. Collectively I have all my sympathy with Shylock as I think that he had suffered injustice throughout the play morally and socially. My inclination is that the play has relevance to the modern audience because it shows a change in attitudes over time. It also shows how one event like the holocaust can completely change our attitudes. Women’s today can see how lucky they are to live in a society which respects their opinions and lets them speak their minds. There are also lessons to be learnt such as not to make bonds that you cannot fulfill and that if you behave maliciously towards people it will catch up with you, they will treat you in the same way if the tables turn.
