Venetian Jewish.
Shylock is a fictional character in William Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice (c. 1600). A Venetian Jewish moneylender, Shylock is the play’s principal antagonist. His defeat and conversion to Christianity form the climax of the story.
Does Shylock like Christians?
He has a bias against Antonio as a Christian and hates him even more for Antonio’s practice of lending money without interest, undermining Shylock’s usury business. Shylock wants revenge for years of Antonio’s mistreatment. Antonio hates people of the Jewish faith and always speaks badly about Shylock’s merchant deals.
What Shylock calls Christians?
Shylock retaliates by insulting the Christians, “These be the Christian husbands. I have a daughter./ Would any of the stock of Barabbas/ Had been her husband, rather than a Christian!” (IV. i. 286-288).
What religion does Shylock’s daughter want to follow?
Jessica is the daughter of Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice ( c. 1598). In the play, she elopes with Lorenzo, a penniless Christian, and a chest of her father’s money, eventually ending up in Portia and Bassanio’s household.
Is Shylock a villain or a victim?
He is a victim of his religion, and a victim of his greed and overwhelming need for revenge. Shylock is definitely the most villainous character in the play, and only a few elements can show him as a victim overall, even then, his victimisation only seems to be a consequence of his own actions.
How does Shylock treat Christians?
Shylock is demonstrated as an Elizabethan caricature of a Jew and is therefore treated as one. He has a hatred of Christians and lends money out of interest (this is something that Elizabethans had unacceptable views on).
What kind of lender is Shylock?
Shylock is a Jewish moneylender in Venice. He is unpopular with other characters who accuse him of practising usury. This means lending money with outrageously high rates of interest .
How did Jessica betray Shylock?
Jessica runs away from home, steals ducats and jewels from her father, and converts to Christianity.
Why does Jessica leave Shylock?
Jessica, left alone, confesses that although she feels guilty for being ashamed of her father, she is only his daughter by blood, and not by actions. Still, she hopes to escape her damning relationship to Shylock by marrying Lorenzo and converting to Christianity.
What was the name of Shylock’s wife?
Perhaps an overlooked “missing mother” in Shakespeare’s work is Leah, the deceased wife of Shylock and mother of Jessica in Merchant of Venice. The only mention of her in the text comes when Jessica sells a ring given from Leah to Shylock, an act that helps cement Jessica’s abandonment of her father’s Jewish culture.
What does the name Shylock mean?
Other scholars emphasise that, although the name echoes some Hebrew names, “Shylock” was a common sixteenth-century English name that would have been familiar to Shakespeare’s fellow Londoners, and the name is notable for its Saxon origin, meaning “white-haired“.
Was Shylock treated fairly by the court?
Yes, he is treated fairly in the sense that when he arrives in the court and makes his case, he insists on the letter of the law. He will accept no other form of “payment” for Antonio’s debt to him other than what his contract (bond) states.
Is Shylock a villain or a hero?
Without that, the court case would not of happened and Portia, Bassanio, Antonio and all the others would not have been united as friends after the court scene. So Shylock is the hero and villain in the story and he is probably most described character as the whole story basically revolves around him.
How was Shylock insulted by Antonio?
Antonio insults Shylock in several ways. He calls him a “cur” which is a dog, and he does it in public in front of other businessmen upon whom Shylock depends for his own livelihood. He curses Shylock’s religion and ethnicity by mocking him and consistently mentioning what he sees as idiosyncrasies of Judaism.
Is Shylock a citizen of Venice?
As a Jew, Shylock is not a citizen of Venice, so if he attacks a citizen, he’ll be sentenced to death, and all his property will be taken by the state.
Who gave the turquoise to Shylock?
When Shylock’s daughter Jessica elopes with the Christian Lorenzo, she steals a turquoise ring given to Shylock by Leah before they were married, and swaps it ‘for a monkey’ (3.1. 118–22). Although it is not a wedding band, the ring is a poignant symbol of Shylock’s love and his daughter’s betrayal.
Is Shylock a good father?
Shylock, the least successful parent, combines the other two fathers’ worst characteristics without any of their redeeming ones—he is a domineering yet oblivious father who fails to show his daughter the love she needs.
Who married gratiano?
While Bassanio courts Portia, Gratiano falls in love with and eventually weds Portia’s lady-in-waiting, Nerissa.
What is Jessica’s opinion of Shylock?
Jessica abandons her father, Shylock, and her Jewish identity in order to marry Lorenzo and convert to Christianity. She makes it clear that she is unhappy living with Shylock, saying things like “our house is hell” and “though I am daughter to his blood / I am not to his manners” (II.
Who has robbed Jessica’s House of tediousness?
(i) Who has robbed Jessica’s house of tediousness? Answer : Launcelot has robbed Jessica’s house of tediousness, meaning that his presence made the house more lively and interesting.
How many ducats did Jessica take from Shylock?
He says that in Genoa she spent 80 ducats in one night and in Venice she bought a monkey with a very expensive ring.
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