Customer Reviews

The Merchant of Venice: William Shakespeare (New Casebooks)

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Shylock is the only sympathetic character in the play. Modernity has altered the villain in "The Merchant of Venice" from Shylock to the entire cast of characters EXCEPT for Shylock. Any sense of comedy in the play died for those with a sense of religious tolerance, and Shylock comes off as merely oppressed. I found Act 5 almost nauseating after the forced conversion. That, coupled with the happy racism makes a perversion of decency and happy endings. This play is a tragedy. The recent movie version done starring Al Pacino turned it into a tragedy, and amazingly, a play written as a comedy seems to work very well as a tragedy.

Antonio gladly spits upon Shylock and calls him a dog, but stunningly, when Antonio finds himself in a financial pinch he goes to Shylock for money. More brash is Antonio's promise to act the same in the future: "I am as like to call thee so again, / To spet on thee again, to spurn thee, too." (1.3.127-28) From this point on, sympathy for Antonio is paralyzed in a modern reader's mind, from reminders of past images, from slavery and anti-Semitism, where the dehumanizing of a group of people is accepted by a society. The entire text afterward reads like an indictment of humanity, as if Shakespeare is making the Elizabethans laugh at their own behavior.

In perhaps the best argument in Shylock's defense in the trial, he point out the fact that those who speak of mercy own slaves. "What judgment shall I dread, doing no wrong? / You have among you many a purchased slave." (4.1.89-90) Shylock, as fanatical as he is over the pound of flesh, is asking for only a pound of a man, when the slaveholders own the entire person. The play is littered with prejudiced remarks that clearly show how animalistic Shylock was to them.

Every conversation involving Shylock has ridicule from the Christians, without remorse or a feeling of comedy. The Christian children are taught to mock Shylock, they run after him in the street. The merchants spit on him, the Duke reviles him, his daughter renounces her religion and robs him.

Still an amazing story, with a few of the best on mercy and prejudice ever written.

For many people who enjoy classical literature, whether Greek tragedy or Shakespearean comedy, it comes down to which version of the work is the best. I have read the Merchant of Venice many times, and was looking to read it again. However, there are well over 50 versions to purchase on Amazon alone.

My review, then, focuses not so much on the play itself, but on this Signet edition. Whichever side of the "Shylock shows Shakespeare as a racist" issue you are on, the reality to me is that this is wonderful literature. That being said, I highly recommend this particular version for several reasons. The introduction to Shakespeare, his time, his language, the theater, and other areas is well written. While perhaps not new information to Shakespeare buffs, I think people reading Shakespeare for the first or second time would find it extremely enlightening. There is also an 18 page introduction to MoV that is like a Cliff's Notes version with some insight as readers prepare to absorb the beautiful language ahead.

With respect to the play, this edition does not bog the reader down in defining every other word, but rather only those words that are completely foreign to the modern speaker, or that had a completely different meaning 400 years ago. After the play are some excellent essays that may help enighten those readers who are wondering about Shylock and his portrayal. I also enjoyed the history of dramatic performances and who played whom in past productions.

The New Folger Library delivers again. I will not buy any Shakespeare from any other publisher - Signet Classics or anyone else. Folger has the best version hands down with its useful words and phrases on the left-hand page to help you out if necessary and give you a deeper understanding of the many references to outdated historical religious figures Shakespeare includes in The Merchant of Venice.

A "Comedy"? I know technically its a comedy, but nonetheless with the less than comical themes of greed, morality, and anti-semitism, its hardly a laugh riot. Au contraire, it is Shakespeare's tour de force amongst his many enchanting comedies - much more potent and provocative than Midsummer Night's Dream. It's a shame it is banned in many high schools and colleges throughout the U.S. due to its supposed anti-semitism. A must read for any Shakespeare enthusiast.

"A pound of flesh is the bond."

What scholars today call "The Problem Plays" seem to me to be problems more for us because of our changed sensibilities from those of Elizabethan London rather than problems in the plays themselves. "The Merchant of Venice" is called anti-Semitic by eminent scholars such as Harold Bloom. In our post-Holocaust age and our sensitivity to stereotypes of all sorts, Shylock bothers us in a way not dissimilar to watching the great Al Jolson perform in blackface. That is, it is clearly the work of a great entertainer, but it jars us, makes us wince, and we are (justly) unable to watch with the same enjoyment as the audience for whom the work was created.

Still, this is Shakespeare and Shylock is immortal. When I read through the play, I place Shylock as "the other" rather than as a caricature of the Jewish race. More than that, he is simply a vicious person irrespective of his ethnic ties and origins. I do like Bloom's insistence that this play was written as a dark comedy and was performed as such for centuries. The editor of this edition, John Russell Brown also states this. At some time around the 19th century, Shylock acquired pathos and the play has been performed as a drama ever since.

Does it work as a drama? You will have to answer that for yourself. However, if you insist on a moral drama you will have a great many moral contradictions to settle that do not matter as much if the play is done more for simple cleverness and laughs. Can we really take seriously the casket game that Portia's late father left her as the way she must select her spouse? Does Antonio (the Merchant of Venice) seem a proper embodiment of Christian values?

To me, the play does seem awfully light hearted with all of its darkness given to Shylock. He is a villain with infinitely more substance than Snidely Whiplash, but provides much the same function. He must be hated; he must be spat upon and jeered by the audience to fill his role. And he must lose in the end. Not because others are more virtuous (any serious analysis of the play shows everyone in the play wanting in virtue), but simply because he is the bad guy.

Portia is the wonder of the play. Her glow is so bright that it is obvious she is light to Shylock's darkness. Her defeat of Shylock is acceptable in a comedy, in a serious drama she seems to have gone too far considering what is really involved.

In any case, this play has delighted audiences for centuries and will continue to do so. It is a great read and this critical edition aids the reader's understanding. The opening essay is fine and the appendices showing the various sources of the tale are also interesting in helping us see the genius of Shakespeare in what he developed on his own and how he wove the various components into this masterpiece.

As Harold Bloom says, this has become an unplayable play after the Holocaust. This is only an additional reason why one should read it. The play is fantastic and gives us one of Shakespeare's most memorable characters: Shylock. Whether you see him as villain or victim, Shylock is unforgettable. As is his speech defending the Jewish.

THE MERCHANT OF VENICE is a perfect play, a romantic comedy with a memorable tragic hero and a fairy tale element, as well. Venetian merchant Antonio and his best friend, Bassanio, find themselves in trouble with the Jewish moneylender Shylock over a sizeable unpaid debt. Bassanio had borrowed the money on his friend's credit, and Antonio had been confident that he would be able to repay Shylock. But when Antonio's ships miscarry at sea, and when Shylock's daughter, Jessica, elopes with Lorenzo, a Christian, taking much of her father's gold with her, the moneylender vows revenge: he will insist on his right to extract, in court, "a pound of flesh" from Antonio. Bassanio had used the money to woo Portia, a witty and beautiful lady who lives in idyllic Belmont and who must, according to her late father's wishes, marry whichever suitor chooses the one casket out of three that contains her portrait. One of the caskets is made of gold, another of silver, and the third of lead. Bassanio's realization that the leaden casket is the one with Portia's picture in it proves the old maxim that appearances are deceiving and that "[a]ll that glisters is not gold." In the end, it is Portia who saves the day by impersonating a lawyer in court and using the letter of the law itself to defeat Shylock and save Antonio's life.
Considering the general anti-Semitism of his era, Shakespeare gives Shylock marvelous depth that itself repudiates any charge of anti-Semitism on his part. Shylock's greatest moment is, of course, his speech beginning "Hath not a Jew eyes?" and continuing, "If you prick us, do we not bleed?...If you poison us, do we not die?" Furthermore, Shakespeare makes it clear that the Christians in the play - even including the honorable Antonio and the likeable Bassanio - have publicly insulted Shylock by spitting on him and calling him a "dog." As a consequence, we understand Shylock's hatred of Christians and sympathize with him, even as he mercilessly prepares to take Antonio's life. Only Shakespeare could have so successfully placed such a complex tragic figure at the center of a comedy.

This play can be read as anti-semitic. In fact, it's pretty hard to defend it from such charges. Shylock is a pretty rotten character and the fact that he is jewish is difficult to overlook (particularly since the other characters mention it on pretty much EVERY page). However, I think it is important to mention that the "heroes" of this play do not necessarily have to be interpreted as heroes. They are by no means perfect and there are many subtle (and some not-so-subtle) instances within the text in which their biases against ANYONE unlike them is illustrated. If one reads the play this way, then Shylock becomes more of a tragic figure rather than an absolutely heartless villain. I don't know. My feelings about this are mixed. There are a few funny parts of this play and the language is, as always, beautiful. The theme of putting a price on human beings is one which has been explored numerous times since. Overall, it is enjoyable, but perhaps not so much so as some of the other comedies. Do not read this play without having read a few others by Shakespeare first. It is an excellent play, but not his best and not his most enjoyable either.

Till today, every pen-stroke William Shakespeare made draws respect. This "Merchant Of Venice" is no exception. The story remains tasty despite its age.
However, since this particular edition harbours all the ingredients of Sixteenth Century English, many readers (particularly the young) who are only at-home with the contemporary English may find it hard to digest. In this case, reading the simpler 'Merchant Of Venice' part of "Lamb's Tales From Shakespeare" (adapted by Charles and Mary Lamb) would be nice, before journeying into this one.
Also, it may make more economic sense (for Shakespeare lovers) to add a couple of dollars atop the price of this book and instead, purchase "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare". There are many cheap, lightweight editions of this 'Complete Works'. And with it, you have access to all the Shakespearean works: those Comedies, Tragedies, and Poetries.

I really enjoyed this play, but then again I always enjoy Shakespeare's plays. The man is a genius. Anyway, The Merchant of Venice follows the story of Antonio, a merchant who loans money to his friend Bassanio so that Bassanio may woo the heiress Portia. In order for Bassanio to gain the lady's hand, however, he must correctly choose the right gilded casket, a riddle given to Portia by her late father. He picks the lead casket, which just happens to be the right one. Meanwhile, in order to get the money Antonio asks the help of a Jew named Shylock who is out for revenge because Antonio is a Christian. He makes Antonio promise to give him a pound of his flesh if he does not pay Shylock back. Shylock's daughter Jessica elopes with Lorenzo and this also makes Shylock angry, mostly because Lorenzo is a Christian. Portia and Bassanio get married as do Portia's assitant Nerissa and Antonio's friend Gratiano. When he fails to pay back the forfeit, a trial is held to find out if Antonio deserves to have a pound of his flesh taken out of him and at this trial Portia and Nerissa dress up as a doctor and a clerk to fool their husbands and the other men by asking for their own wedding rings. They succeed in letting Antonio get away with his life and say that the life of Shylock is in the hands of the Duke, who makes the Jew give all his money to Bassanio and Antonio.
I recommend this play to others and also all of Shakespeare's other plays. If you can get into them they are good reads.

As another reviewer mentioned it is a totally different experience to read a play (especially Shakespeare) when you haven't seen it performed. Yet I decided to do just that with Merchant of Venice, and though my opinion would undoubtedly be different if I had seen it performed, as it stands I can only offer my opinion on it as a written work. As I read the work itself I had a difficult time seeing past the blatant anti-Semitism to analyze the work itself. After reading the play however I went back and read the introduction [...] and the introduction pointed out several things that if they are to be believed would help alleviate my dislike of the treatment of the character of Shylock the Jew. First apparently Shakespeare's prime target in making Shylock a sort of villain was really moneylenders in general, people mostly disliked by those making up much of Shakespeare's audience. The fact that Shakespeare made his moneylender Jewish is more of an exotic touch having to do with the play's setting in Venice. Apparently Jews were incredibly rare in England in Shakespeare's time and though the audience would of course know of them the chance that any of the commoners in the general admission area of the Globe had ever seen a Jew themselves is about as likely as them having seen a Moorish prince like the one courting Portia. As to Shakespeare's cruel treatment (or rather the other characters' cruel treatment) of Shylock's faith, Kenneth Myrick explains that during Shakespeare's time Jews were known particularly for their love for the letter rather than spirit of the law, and were disliked for that attitude. Apparently the characters in Merchant of Venice showing animosity towards Shylock and his faith would be similar to characters in a modern day tv sitcom making fun of a fundamentalist right-wing Christian. Which is not to say that that makes the behavior of either group acceptable, but for myself it puts it into a different light than if people were saying the same thing to a Jew today. Anyway when I was able to look past the anti-Semitism of the play and look at its other qualities here is what I thought: Shakespeare is creating with this play a kind of fairy tale. The caskets that challenge the various suitors to Portia, so that only the noble Bassanio might marry her; the villain who in a jealous and vindictive rage plots to end the life of Bassanio's true friend; and the deus ex machina appearance of Portia in drag to save the day and make the villain pay. This last bit is what makes it more interesting than the classic fairy tale, as it is the fairy princess that swoops in to save the hopelessly trapped knights. And in that it has strong and liberating roles for the female characters, Merchant of Venice succeeds. However I must admit that even without the anti-Semitism holding me back a bit, I just didn't find this work as humorous or as well written in general as some of Shakespeare's other play. Certainly his tragedies surpass it in writing skill, and of his comedies that I have read, this is the least humorous. I must qualify that however by saying that this is Shakespeare nonetheless, and even if it can't compare with his other work, he still is one of the greatest playwrights in the English language.