Extract 2: Act 1, scene III
Mark you this, Bassanio,
The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.
An evil soul producing holy witness
Is like a villain with a smiling cheek;
A goodly apple rotten at the heart;(100)
O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!
Reference
to the Context: The above lines occur in the Act I
scene III of the Merchant of Venice written by William Shakespeare. These
lines are spoken by Antonio to Bassanio.
Both of them are in Shylock’s house. They are talking about loan of three
thousand ducats to be taken from Shylock. But Shylock demands a very high rate
of interest. To justify this, he, he quotes (gives) an example from the Bible
he says that profit is a blessing as long as one does not steal it.
Explanation: Antonio tells Bassanio that a devil-like person can also
cite (quote/give) an example from a religious book like the Bible to gain
profit. He wants to serve his selfish motive of convincing others to show that
he is not doing any wrong by charging high rate of interest. An evil-minded
person using holy books to justify his wrong action is like a villain with a
smiling face. He is like an attractive apple that is rotten at the very core.
Antonio expresses his surprise as to how people, to quote Hamlet, ‘may smile
and smile’ and are villains from inside.
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