Before anything else, Shylock is a Jew in a predominantly Christian city. Members of the two faiths dislike each other (largely due to historical disagreement), and at this time in history it is hardly surprising that the Christians take advantage of their numerical supremacy. In the street they openly mistreat Shylock by spitting and swearing at him because there is nothing to stop them. It is quite possible that he would have been spat upon and sworn at whatever his status and personality, and would certainly have been disliked by the vast majority of Christians. Today this is obviously considered very wrong and racist so we feel naturally sympathetic towards Shylock. However, Shylock agrees to lend Antonio the three thousand ducats he wants anyway, free of interest. This favour may be seen as a simple gesture of good will, a way for Antonio to become indebted to him (assuming the money is repaid) or, if it is not repaid, the more sinister reason of Shylock wanting Antonio to have to pay the penalty – originally, Shylock claimed, chosen ‘in a merry sport,’ or in good spirit – a pound of Antonio’s flesh to be cut out at Shylock’s choice. The first two of these reasons would add to our sympathy; the third would possibly indicate an almost evil side to a Jew seeking revenge on the people he hates.
Shylock’s loss of his servant Launcelot to a Christian does not add any great feelings of sympathy towards him, but does perhaps add a bit to the understanding of Shylock’s entire anti-Christian attitude, and also possibly indicates that Shylock’s household is not an enjoyable place to work. The elopement of his daughter Jessica with a Christian, however, generates mixed emotions. On one hand, Shylock loves her and she is very dear to him; she is arguably the thing he loves most in the world. However, there is evidence to suggest she had good reason to leave. She knew that if she told Shylock of Lorenzo (her Christian lover) he would not allow them ever to meet again, let alone marry. Shylock lives a life based on strict Jewish law and morals; perhaps too strict for Jessica, as shown in Act 2 Scene 5 when Shylock hears of the party in the street that night from Launcelot. He is going to dine with Bassanio, so he orders Jessica to lock up the house and to stay inside until he returns. He uses his house as a metaphor for the Jewish religion, wanting it to stay pure and unspoilt; ‘Let not the sound of shallow foppery enter my sober house.’ To a certain extent it seems unfair that he loses his only daughter because of his reliance on his faith, just because she does not hold quite the same views. However, it is possible that Shylock treats Jessica badly too; he uses strong language when instructing her to remain inside the house. Losing his daughter to a Christian is hugely humiliating for Shylock, so on the text given we have to sympathise with him.
Jessica took with her a lot of Shylock’s money and now even children mock him in the street – ‘All the boys in Venice follow him, crying, his stones, his daughters, and his ducats.’ It is understandable how Shylock hates Christians because they seem never to have done anything for him or even just left him alone; they have always provoked him and taunted him. However, when he hears that Antonio’s ships are sinking and what that means, he seems almost to become insane, realising he can finally take his revenge on the faith that has ruined him. Speaking of the penalty to Salerio, Shylock says, ‘If it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge.’ He has completely set his mind to having his ‘bond,’ and it seems like nothing will stop him from killing Antonio. He claims that if it were a Christian seeking revenge on a Jew he would do exactly the same, so he is only following a Christian’s example. This may be true, but there still seems no justification in killing a man for not paying back a debt.
Shylock has gone too far in trying to avenge his servant, his daughter, his money and his dignity, so by the end of Act 4 more incomprehension than sympathy is felt towards Shylock. However, Shakespeare has created a character for whom the reader/viewer’s feelings swing from one extreme to the other throughout the play, but whose actions nearly always have some justification, however questionable it may be. You cannot help but wonder if things might have been different for Shylock and Antonio in a predominantly Jewish city.
