The Merchant of Venice: Summary- On The Merchant of Venice-Day 03

The Merchant of Venice: Summary- On The Merchant of Venice-Day 01

Letters for Graduation-Semester VI

The Merchant of Venice: Extract 1- The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice: Extracts-Letters- The Merchant of Venice-Day 29

Mark you this, Bassanio, The devil can cite Scripture-The Merchnat of Venice

 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.

 

In Belmont is a lady richly left,-Extract 1. Act I Scene (I)-The Merchant of Venice

 Extract 1. Act I Scene (I)

In Belmont is a lady richly left,
And she is fair, and, fairer than that word,
Of wondrous virtues. Sometimes from her eyes
I did receive fair speechless messages:
Her name is Portia; nothing undervalued(170)

To Cato's daughter, Brutus'  Portia.
Reference to the Context: These lines occur/have been taken from ‘The Merchant of Venice’, Act I, Scene(i) written by William Shakespeare. Bassanio is speaking to Antonio, his friend. We already know that both are very good friends. Bassanio needs money, so he is making background to borrow it from Antonio. He wants to go to Bolmont to impress Portia to make his life-partner. Antonio had also asked Bassanio to tell about the lady he was so much interested in.

Explanation: In the above lines, Bassanio is trying to explain the qualities that Portia possessed. First, he tells him about a ‘huge amount’ she had inherited from his father. Second, Bassanio appreciates her beauty by calling her ‘fairer’ than the word ‘fair’. Third, she is a virtuous lady. After that, Bassanio tries to prove his point that it was not his one-sided infatuation. He had received ‘speechless messages’ from her. 

It means that her facial expression also show that she also likes Bassanio. Lastly, he tells Antonio her name. He says that she is Portia. He also adds that one cannot undervalue her to Cato’s daughter and Brutus’ wife Portia of antique, who was the Roman heroine. By referring to the Roman Portia, he brings about the point that Portia of Belmont is no less rich and virtuous than Portia of the antique world.

The Merchant of Venice: Questions & Answers- On The Merchant of Venice-D...

The Merchant of Venice: Questions & Answers- On The Merchant of Venice-D...

The Merchant of Venice: Questions & Answers- On The Merchant of Venice-D...

The Merchant of Venice: Questions & Answers- On The Merchant of Venice-D...

The Merchant of Venice: Questions & Answers-Short Answer-Type Questions ...

Antonio’s Character-The Merchant of Venice-Qs & Ans.

  Antonio’s Character

Antonio is the central character in the play, ‘The Merchant of Venice’. He is the person around whom most of the story of the play revolves. He certainly possesses the qualities of head and heart. So he is claimed to be the hero of the play. But that is really a question of debate.

Let’s discuss Antonio's character and try to find out what qualities and shortcomings he has in his personality.

His character's first and foremost (chief) tragic trait is his melancholy nature. In the very beginning, the readers come to know about his sad nature. In the opening scene, he is in the company of his two friends, Solanio and  Salarino. After some time, Gratiano also reaches there. They all try to guess the reasons behind Antonio’s sadness. Even Antonio does not know the reason behind his sad mood.

 It is said that he is sad because all of his investments are at stake. After all, in the sea anything could happen to his ships. It is also said that Antonio might have fallen in love with someone and that might be the reason for his sad mood. But Antonio rejects all these speculations (guesses) about the reasons for his sad mood. Finally, he tells his friends that God has given every person a certain role to perform on the stage of this world. He has been given a sad role to perform in his life. So he is in a sad mood.

As the play advances, the readers come to know about the adverse (unfavourable, unpleasant) impact of his melancholy nature on his personality. He remains disinterested in his life. It seems that he has lost all his excitement that may bubble up the character of a young man. This is the reason why he is unable to enjoy a joke, nor is he able to create it. He is also not able to join the events like merry-making as torch ­light, masked processions in which his friend takes great pleasure.

He is a static character throughout the play. He does not show any considerable growth. He remains the same up to the end of the play. But one thing great has been done by him and that sets the ball of the action of the play to roll fast to reach its logical conclusion. He signs the dangerous bond that enables his close friend Bassanio to get a loan of three thousand ducats from the avaricious (/ˌæv.əˈrɪʃ.əs/ greedy) moneylender of Venice, Shylock. Antonio’s act of signing the bond is really a great event in the play and it is because of it the whole attention of the readers is focussed on him. It is also because of this that Antonio becomes the central character in the play.

But despite this big flaw in his character; William Shakespeare has endowed (gifted) him with certain qualities that make him really a great character in the play.

He is the esteemed merchant of Venice and is known for his honesty, kindness, faithfulness, and generosity. He gives loans to the people of Venice without interest though he is not a moneylender. He saves people from the clutches of Shylock. He also gives a loan to his friend Bassanio. It is his loyalty to his true friendship with Bassanio that makes him sign the deadly (dangerous) bond.

He is the most popular and respected man in Venice. His friends often speak of his kindness and goodness of heart. Gratiano calls him the royal merchant. Solanio finds no words to explain his goodness of heart. Portia also feels proud of helping such a good person. Bassanio is not far behind his friends speaking of his kindness.

But still, his hatred for Shylock based on his religion lowers (belittles) his esteem (regard, respect) in the eyes of modern readers, who believe that there should be no room in our minds for the thoughts that divide one human being from the other based on race and religion. On several occasions, he has degraded (dishonoured, insulted) Shylock publically and even spat on his clothes.

To conclude, we may say that Antonio is indeed a great character in this play. He is the Merchant of Venice. He wins the hearts of the people of Venice through his acts of kindness. He is in sharp contrast to Shylock, who becomes his staunch (strongly loyal) enemy due to his generous (liberal, kind) nature. As far as Antonio’s hatred for Shylock as a Jew is concerned, that is due to the social setup to which he belonged. There was a bitter feeling against the Jews in those days. And it may be because Shylock was also not a good human being. His own daughter was also against him.

 

Portia's Character-The Merchant of Venice-Graduation-Semester VI

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