Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice and antisemitism as shown in the Essay

Shakespeares The merchant of Venice and antisemitism as shown in the treatment of bring shark - turn out ExampleBut unlike Marlowe, Shakespeare endowed his villain shylock with some very human qualities that evoke much sympathy. (Glock, 144-50) The result is an ambivalence toward moneylender that makes his role one of the to the highest degree dramatically complex and compelling among all of Shakespeares characters, and one that reinforces the sense of this work as a problem play. (Oldrieve, 87)Next to Hamlet, The Merchant of Venice is Shakespeares most frequently performed play. The reason for its apparent popularity may be in part because it is perennially a required text set for national examinations that students in British secondary schools take. It is less popular in the United States because of the anti-Semitism that the play incorporates, although many producers, directors, and actors pass argued that while the play contains elements of anti-Semitism, it is not in itse lf anti-Semitic. Recently, some scholars have tried to show that, on the contrary, Shakespeare explores ways to reconcile the age-old antagonisms between Christians and Jews.( Glock, 144-50)Shylock, of course, is not the only important character in The Merchant of Venice, which takes its title from Antonio, the Venetian merchant who borrows from Shylock to help his friend, Bassanio. Portia, the rich heiress whom Bassanio courts, is an new(prenominal) major character, and the relationship between her and her suitors also raises important moral issues. Unfortunately, in the history of anti-Semitism, Shylock has since become a symbol for a heartless, money-grubbing Jew. Heartless he may be in act 4, but earlier he offers Antonio a loan at no interest in an attempt to win his friendship (1.3.134-37). Usury is the lending of money at interest. It was considered to be inappropriate for a Christian to do this, and as a result, Jews who were in the business of usury were looked down upon. A ntonio, who lends money freely, appears to be the charitable Christian, in contrast to Shylock, who preys upon the hardship of others in fiat to further increase his own material wealth. The perception created by Antonios argument is that Shylock hates someone for their following a Christian virtue, which implies that Shylock is against Christianity.The demonization of Shylock proceeds by three stages Shylock is stripped of his name. In the entire play his referred to by name only three times in the trial run scene, the Duke twice identifies him by name, and Portia does so once. In the course of the rest of the play he is called the Jew or dog Jew(II,viii,14) or currish Jew(IV,I,133-34). Shylock is reduced to something other than human. Gratiano curses Shylock with O, be thou damned, inexecrable dog(IV,i,128) Shylock is equated with the devil. In (II,ii,24-28), Launcelot Gobbo identifies Shylock as a kind of devil, the devil himself, and the very devil incarnation. The images of Jews as blood-thirsty murderers of Jesus who snatch innocent Christian children for slaughter in bizarre Passover rituals seems to provide a potent back-drop for the demonic traits heaped upon Shylock in The Merchant of Venice.Shylock is characterized nearly throughout the play as an evil, murderous man. This image of him is supported by the excessive bloodlust that Shylock exhibits. (Rosen, 89-93) The audience is made to hate Shylock early on. In Act 1, scene 3, Shylock tells