How Far Does Shakespeare Present Shylock As a Vict

Stephanie Webber
How far does Shakespeare present usurer as a dupe or a villain?

The Merchant of Venice, one of Shakespeares famous caprioles, heavily and unsubtly explores the issue of prejudice, through a Judaic character called shylock. It was written during Elizabethan England. Historically, during this time the Jews had been banished for 300 years. As a result, Shakespeares audiences knowledge and opinion of Jews would halt been only when from prejudice and rumour, not first-hand experience. The racial discrimination towards Shylock in the play would have amused the audience, and the treatment would not have been questioned. Today it is known as a controversial play which is rarely performed because of its insulting nature towards the Jewish race.

The Merchant of Venice is not a clear-cut play, meaning that there isnt an evident line between good and evil. This ambiguous story raises veritable questions of whether situations are handled correctly due to perspective and state of affairs. Shylock is a complex character who has a key occasion in the play, but it is questionable what Shakespeare intended his role to be. It is operose to class Shylock as either a dupe or a villain because his character can be interpreted in different ways.



To summarise the play, it contains two primary(prenominal) plots which connect near the end. One plot is of the beautiful Portia, whose select of husband is being controlled by her fathers exit beyond the grave. The second is the unresolved hatred between Shylock and a central Christian character called Antonio. Antonio, who desperately postulate money to help his good friend Bassanio win the nerve of Portia, approaches Shylock for a bring. Shylock nurses a long-standing grudge against Antonio as he has a habit of berating Shylock and other Jews for their usury, exorbitant rates of interest. Shylock offers to lend Bassanio three constant of gravitation ducats with no interest but with an evil condition: should the loan go unpaid, Shylock will be...If you want to get a full essay, order it on our website: Ordercustompaper.com



If you want to get a full essay, wisit our page: write my paper