- The Merchant of Venice
William Shakespeare
- Literature Notes
- Major Themes
- Play Summary
- Character List
- Summary and Analysis
- Act I: Scene 1
- Act I: Scene 2
- Act I: Scene 3
- Act II: Scene 1
- Act II: Scene 2
- Act II: Scene 3
- Act II: Scene 4
- Act II: Scene 5
- Act II: Scene 6
- Act II: Scene 7
- Act II: Scene 8
- Act II: Scene 9
- Act III: Scene 1
- Act III: Scene 2
- Act III: Scene 3
- Act III: Scene 4
- Act III: Scene 5
- Act IV: Scene 1
- Act IV: Scene 2
- Act V: Scene 1
- Character Analysis
- Critical Essays
- Major Symbols and Motifs
- William Shakespeare Biography
- Famous Quotes
- Film Versions
- Essay Questions
- Cite this Literature Note
Critical Essays Major Themes
Explore the different themes within William Shakespeare's comedic play, The Merchant of Venice. Themes are central to understanding The Merchant of Venice as a play and identifying Shakespeare's social and political commentary.
Reality and Idealism
The Merchant of Venice is structured partly on the contrast between idealistic and realistic opinions about society and relationships. On the one hand, the play tells us that love is more important than money, mercy is preferable to revenge, and love lasts forever. On the other hand, more cynical voices tell us that money rules the world, mercy alone cannot govern our lives, and love can evaporate after marriage.
The play switches abruptly between these different attitudes. Shakespeare organizes the shifts between idealism and realism by associating the two concepts with the play's two locations. Venice is depicted as a city of merchants, usurers, and cynical young men. Belmont, in contrast, is the land where fairytales come true and romance exists.
he Merchant of Venice begs the question, does mercy exist in the world? Between religious intolerance and personal revenge, the play seems devoid of a merciful being.
However, against all the odds, Portia does manage to bring about some mercy in Venice. When Shylock faces execution for his crimes, Portia persuades the Duke to pardon him. She then persuades Antonio to exercise mercy by not taking all of Shylock's money from him. Here, Portia's presence turns the proceedings away from violence and toward forgiveness. Portia does, therefore, succeed in transmitting some of her idealism into Venice. Act IV ends with the suggestion that idealism can sometimes survive in the real world.
Throughout the play, and as of Act 3, Scene 4, Launcelot Gobbo is still trying to reconcile his affection for Jessica with his belief that all Jews are devils. This theme continually recurs in the clown scenes, and it seems as though Shakespeare is deliberately making fun of the Christian's attitudes toward the Jews.
The function of a clown is to misunderstand people and undermine their assumptions by asking simple, obvious questions. By highlighting the confusion of biblical texts, and raising pragmatic questions about the conversion of Jews, Launcelot, in his clownish ways, demonstrates the absurdities and complications that arise from the automatic damnation of a religious faith. Ultimately, he prevents the play from simplifying life too much. Beneath the apparently clear-cut cultural divisions in the play is an awareness of the complexities of real life.
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Merchant of Venice
By william shakespeare, merchant of venice themes, the importance of money.
The Merchant of Venice is a play that is fundamentally about the exchange and value of money as compared to other things, like love and relationships. The play initially posits Shylock as a character who only cares about his money, while portraying the Christian characters as more dedicated to their families, love interests, and filial relationships. However, these paradigms are challenged throughout the play and are eventually upended by the fact that Shylock demands the pound of flesh over any amount of money – suggesting that he is more committed to justice and vengeance than he is to wealth. While critics are right to point out how extensively the play presents its Jewish characters as stereotypes, there are multiple instances in the play that call that complicate Shylock's character and call that reading into question.
Cycles of Antagonism
Throughout the play, Shylock argues that his vengeful behavior was essentially inherited from the way Antonio treated him in the past, suggesting that he learned how to be hateful and ruthless from the very people over whom he currently has power. While one cannot necessarily absolve Shylock of his behavior, his insistence that he is simply acting in accordance with what he has experienced raises larger questions about villainy, culpability, and the cyclical nature of hatred. That Antonio demands nothing more of Shylock than a conversion to Christianity at the end of the play suggests that this vicious cycle might finally end through mercy and understanding.
There are a number of close friendships portrayed throughout the play: between Bassanio and Antonio, Gratiano and Bassanio, and Portia and Nerissa . These friendships hold great power over individual characters' decisions, and are in many ways valued above romantic entanglements. Antonio, for example, willingly indebts himself to Shylock on Bassanio's behalf, even after having financially supported his friend many times before. Portia and Nerissa act as accomplices in their own, separate scheme to free Antonio from Shylock's demands, and Gratiano remains loyal to Bassanio throughout the play. These relationships, the play suggests, are stronger than the appeal of money or fortune – a philosophy that Shylock, the play's "villain," frequently appears to reject.
Financial Precariousness
The central conflict of the play revolves around money, and a number of characters are presented as wealthy or financially successful (Antonio, Portia, and Shylock, most notably). However, as the events of the play unfold, wealth starts to become more of an abstract idea and is eventually portrayed as rather fickle and unpredictable. Antonio, for example, begins the play as a wealthy merchant but ends the play unable to pay back his loan to Shylock. Furthermore, nearly every wealthy character in the play is plagued by a sense of sadness or lack of fulfillment. As such, the play takes on a skeptical tone toward money and the pursuit of wealth above all else, suggesting that things like friendship are more certain and long-lasting.
Prejudice is perhaps the single most significant motivation behind many characters' actions throughout the play. The most obvious form of prejudice in the play is Anti-Semitism, or prejudice against Jewish people. Antonio refers to Shylock as a "dog" multiple times in the play, and some characters equate Shylock's ruthlessness and miserly attitude with his Jewish identity (a common stereotype). Shylock, too, maintains prejudices about Christians and is appalled to learn that his daughter Jessica has chosen to marry a Christian man. That Shylock is forced to convert to Christianity at the end of the play, then, is a significant punishment despite its relatively minor consequences: the Christian characters seem to "prevail" in the end of by stripping Shylock of his Jewishness. Though contemporary readers with undoubtedly perceive the entire play as Anti-Semitic, The Merchant of Venice also interrogates the phenomenon of prejudice more generally, suggesting that prejudice functions in a perpetual cycle that must be broken. Whether the characters in the play actually break this cycle remains a debate among readers and scholars alike.
Revenge was a popular theme on the early modern stage. It appeared most frequently in tragedies, and in the early days of the theater was even granted its own character (Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy , for example, features Revenge as a choral character who comments on the action of the play). The Merchant of Venice is a comedy, but it still features a character who is hellbent on seeking vengeance for the wrongs done against him. While readers might sympathize with Shylock initially after learning of the abuses he has suffered at the hands of Christians, he soon becomes blinded by his desire of revenge above all else. Indeed, it is his pursuit of revenge rather than justice that eventually leads to his loss when Portia discovers the loophole in his contract with Antonio.
Christianity and Judaism
While prejudice between Christians and Jews plays a central role in the play, Shakespeare actually provides Biblical precedent as an explanation for why these characters cannot see eye to eye. During the trial, many of the Christian characters expect Shylock to be merciful toward Antonio – a philosophy embodied by Jesus Christ in the New Testament. As a Jewish person, however, Shylock abides by the Old Testament, which features a markedly less merciful God keen on exacting punishment for man's disobedience. While the play ultimately celebrates the merciful (and therefore Christian) approach through Antonio, the fact that Portia must explain mercy to Shylock showcases how his ruthlessness is due, in part, to his own religious beliefs and not simply to his prejudice against Christians.
Merchant of Venice Questions and Answers
The Question and Answer section for Merchant of Venice is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.
Explain Portias tactics. Why does she appear to support Shylock at first?
When Portia arrives in court, she asks, "Which is the merchant here, and which the Jew?" (4.1.169). Indeed, given the confusion so many people have with the title, it is often this very question which is asked. Scholars have tried to attribute her...
Describe merchant of venice as romantic comedy
While the story hits upon the tragic element of despair, The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare, is a comedy because lovers are separated, characters are in disguise, and the story has a happy ending.
ACT III SCENE 3: What do you think Shylock means when he says, “it is my humour”?
This could be defined as "this is what I feel like doing".
Study Guide for Merchant of Venice
Merchant of Venice study guide contains a biography of William Shakespeare, literature essays, a complete e-text, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.
- About Merchant of Venice
- Merchant of Venice Summary
- Merchant of Venice Video
- Character List
Essays for Merchant of Venice
Merchant of Venice literature essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Merchant of Venice.
- The Victorious Woman in Measure for Measure and The Merchant of Venice
- Father-Daughter Relationships in The Merchant of Venice
- Mercy and the Masquerade: Trial and Performance in The Merchant of Venice
- Christianity and Judaism in The Merchant of Venice: Imperfect Faith
- The Anti-Semitic Question in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice
Lesson Plan for Merchant of Venice
- About the Author
- Study Objectives
- Common Core Standards
- Introduction to Merchant of Venice
- Relationship to Other Books
- Bringing in Technology
- Notes to the Teacher
- Related Links
- Merchant of Venice Bibliography
E-Text of Merchant of Venice
Merchant of Venice E-Text contains the full text of Merchant of Venice
- List of Characters
Wikipedia Entries for Merchant of Venice
- Introduction
- Plot summary
- Earlier sources
- Date and text
The Merchant of Venice
William shakespeare, everything you need for every book you read..
The Venetians in The Merchant of Venice almost uniformly express extreme intolerance of Shylock and the other Jews in Venice. In fact, the exclusion of these "others" seems to be a fundamental part of the social bonds that cement the Venetian Christians together. How otherwise would the ridiculous clown Launcelot ingratiate himself with the suave Bassanio ? Or why would the sensitive Antonio tolerate someone as crass as Gratiano ? It is possible to argue that Shakespeare himself shares his characters' certainty that the Jews are naturally malicious and inferior to Christians because of Shylock's ultimate refusal to show any mercy at all and, as a result, his pitiful end.
Yet there are also reasons to think that Shakespeare may be subtly criticizing the prejudices of his characters. Shylock's fury comes not from some malicious "Jewishness" but as a result of years of abuse. For example, though he is criticized by Antonio for practicing usury (charging interest on borrowed money) Jews were actually barred from most other professions. In other words, the Christians basically forced Shylock to work in a profession that the Christians then condemned as immoral. Shylock insists that he "learned" his hatred from the Christians, and it is Shylock alone who argues that all of the characters are the same, in terms of biology and under the law. Viewed this way, The Merchant of Venice offers a critique of the same prejudices that it seemingly endorses.
Prejudice and Intolerance ThemeTracker
Prejudice and Intolerance Quotes in The Merchant of Venice
Home / Essay Samples / Literature / The Merchant of Venice / The Merchant Of Venice: Theme Of Love And Loyalty
The Merchant Of Venice: Theme Of Love And Loyalty
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