for Portia’s hand‚ in which suitors from various countries choose among a gold‚ a silver‚ and a lead casket‚ resembles the cultural and legal system of Venice in some respects. Like the Venice of the play‚ the casket contest presents the same opportunities and the same rules to men of various nations‚ ethnicities‚ and religions. Also like Venice‚ the hidden bias of the casket test is fundamentally Christian. To win Portia‚ Bassanio must ignore the gold casket‚ which bears the inscription‚ “Who chooseth
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Are Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and Jonson’s Volpone devoted to ‘the performance of justice’? Justice has intrinsic links with laws and rules – two motifs that are central to both Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice and Jonson’s Volpone. These include laws of the Venetian state‚ the contracts between business men‚ friends or lovers and Biblical laws. Strict adherence to the law is questioned as to whether or not it truly brings justice as often the varying laws of state‚ love‚ business and
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Shakespeare’s Perspective on Justice To understand Shakespeare’s perspective on justice in The Merchant of Venice it must be clear that they were in the reign of Elizabeth I. During this particular time Jewish people were hated and the Christians believed that they were superior. Shakespeare considered there to be a difference between law and justice‚ he shows that if the law is blindly applied without the Christian idea of mercy and fairness‚ the pursuer will fall. Portia‚ the mouthpiece
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The Merchant of Venice In The Merchant of Venice‚ William Shakespeare portrays Shylock as a covetous Jew. Shylock charges interest to those who borrow money from him when they are in need. Shylock is mercenary. Shylock’s love for objects overweighs his love for his own daughter. This character trait shows that in Venetian times‚ it was a time of greed and selfishness. In The Merchant of Venice‚ Antonio discriminates against Shylock because he is a Jew. Shylock shows us his human moments –this embodies
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The premise of decadence was tremendously popular in late 19th century European literature. In addition‚ the degeneracy of the individual and society at large was represented in numerous contemporary works by Mann. In Death in Venice‚ the theme of decadence caused by aestheticism appears through Gustav von Achenbach’s eccentric‚ specifically homoerotic‚ feelings towards a Polish boy named Tadzio. Although his feelings spring from a sound source‚ the boy’s aesthetic beauty‚ Aschenbach becomes decadent
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Women in "Merchant of Venice" In Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice‚ there are many controversies over religion and friendship‚ but the idea of the play that interested me the most was the role of women. The two women that are in this play take on the role of the saviors of the men who seem helpless and hopeless compared to them. Influences of the Radical Feminist Perspective in The Merchant of Venice Angela Caravella 2006 The role that women play within many Shakespearian plays often highlights
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the Shakespeare’s play‚ The Merchant of Venice‚ these two inextricably bound terms are portrayed unequivocally. There are three main reasons why hatred was such a focal ingredient to the play: the Anti-Semitism‚ the unacceptability of usury and the personal altercations between the focal characters First and foremost‚ the tensions between the play’s protagonist and antagonist take place primarily due to the cultural notion of Anti-Semitism. In spite of Venice being the multicultural and hence multi-religious
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The themes of Shakespeare’s plays are just as relevant to today’s society as they were in his day. Discuss making close reference to The Merchant of Venice. In The Merchant of Venice hate‚ loyalty‚ pride and prejudice‚ love and friendship are just some of the themes investigated with in the play. These themes‚ although were evident in the time of Shakespeare‚ are just as significant and universal today. Shylock‚ the Jew‚ explores most of these negative themes as in the play he is depicted as being
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Merchant of Venice Essay Appearance plays a considerable part in people’s everyday lives. It influences how one is perceived by the people around them‚ thus possibly hindering their interactions with others. This has shown to be an issue throughout history. In the play The Merchant of Venice‚ written by William Shakespeare the issue of judging by appearance is very common. The difference between the reality of who someone truly is and their appearance depends on how others perceive them‚ how
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“The Merchant of Venice” In William Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice‚" there are many themes‚ symbols and words alike which take on a complex and dual nature. Not only can lines in the play be interpreted by the audience in multiple ways‚ they are meant to have multiple meanings. This duality can be seen in the characters as well. Shylock is portrayed as both a victim and a villain and our sense of him evolves as his character is revealed to us as “The Merchant of Venice.” We are
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