Watch the film version of Act 2 and answer these questions:
Scene 1
Morocco is the first suitor to try his luck. What is he told before he is to choose?
Scene 2:
Lancelot Gobbo, the clown, wants to leave Shylock’s service, why?
His father brings a present to his son’s master. Why is prose used?
What does Gratiano want form Bassanio?
Scene 3:
Describe what happens. What does Jessica feel about the situation?
Scene 4:
A group of masqued men are on their way into the Ghetto: who and what are they doing here?
Scene 5:
Describe what happens in this scene.
Comment on Jessica’s words (p. 53, ll. 54 – 55)
Scene 6:
What happens in this scene?
Comment on the difference between the play and the film: why does the film let Shylock come home and find his house empty?
Scene 7
Back at Belmont: What makes Morocco make up his mind which casket to choose?
Comment on Portia’s words on p. 61, ll. 78 -79. Are the same words used in the film?
Scene 8:
Solanio makes fun of Shylock. (Find his lines on p. 63, ll. 12 – 22) Comment on his words. ll. 25 – 26: what does Solanio realize? Why would the fact that Jessica has eloped make matters worse for Antonio? ll. 26 – 49: What does Antonio feel when he says goodbye to Bassanio? Compare Antonio and Shylock: how do they react when they lose someone near and dear to them?
Scene 9:
The Prince of Arragon (-nowadays Aragon, a province in northern Spain) : Comment on his reasoning with himself before he tries his luck.
What was Shakespeare’s intention when letting Arragon and Morocco choose?
Who is introduced at the end of the scene?
Do Portia and Nerissa have an idea of who it may be?
Act 3, Scene 1 ll. 1 – 18: what is the news on the Rialto? ll. 19 – 30: comment on the exchange of words between Salarino /Solanio and Shylock. ll. 31 – 57: we’ll deal with this together. ll. 65 – 103: a) Describe how Shakespeare has structured the conversation between Shylock and Tubal. b) Describe Shylock, his words and his feelings. c) Comment on Shylock’s reaction to the news about the ring. d) What comfort does Shylock find in all this? e) Discuss how the fact that Jessica has eloped makes Shylock even more vindictive. (hævngerrig)
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
His pessimistic view in human morality was already present when he was young. “Houses were fair, they gave you what you deserved. Which, unfortunately, was more than one could say about people. (P.79)”.…
- 656 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Shylock, the hated Jew, makes his living through the practice of usury and uses deception when Antonio asks to borrow money from him. Shylock agrees to lend Antonio three hundred ducats if Antonio is willing to sign a bond that would allow Shylock to have "an equal pound of [his] fair flesh"(I, iii, 145-146). He expresses the bond "in a merry sport"(I, iii, 141) and uses this bond to also show that "[he] would be friends with [Antonio], and have [his] love"(I, iii, 134). Though Shylock's description of the conditions in the bond makes it seem as if Shylock does not mean harm, his intentions are to harm and humiliate Antonio. Antonio says that "[he] neither lend[s] nor borrow[s] by talking nor by giving of excess"(I, iii, 57-58) and is willing to do that for his dear friend, Bassanio. At first, Antonio is not blinded Shylock's friendly pretence, aware that Shylock "is like a villain with a smiling face [and] a goodly apple rotten at the heart"(I, iii, 96-97). However, in the end Antonio accepts the terms of the bond. The cruel use of deception from Shylock is to help fulfill his intention of revenge against Antonio.…
- 871 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Shylock begins a long speech in the original script “Yes to smell pork…news on the Rialto?” Here a tone of aggression is suspected due to the use of an asyndeton (a list of repeated phrases lacking the use of a connective). This allows the performing actor to recreate Shylock’s anger by having to read the lines quickly expressing the build-up of his temper. His calmness is soon diverted back by Shylock changing the topic with a question “What news on the Rialto?” This stops his…
- 838 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
i. The speaker in "To His Coy Mistress" seems like a respectful man, who is articulate, this is important because it is his main strength which he uses to lure her to him.…
- 760 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Additionally, Miranda’s doubts about the existence and authenticity of love are revealed in his conversation with Perico Serramadriles: “A medida que pasa el tiempo más me convenzo de que el amor es pura teoría” (p. 285). This underlines the sad reality of the meticulous organisation of society in which disturbing ulterior motives drive the formation of relationships and love is a façade used for personal gain. This is particularly prominent in Lepprince’s callous pursuit of María Rosa Savolta for social power: “Lepprince me comunicó que se casaba” (p.…
- 2908 Words
- 12 Pages
Powerful Essays -
17. What does Bassanio’s reluctance to allow Antonio to agree to Shylock’s bond reveal about him?…
- 2284 Words
- 10 Pages
Powerful Essays -
including • • • • • • • Life and Background of the Author List of Characters Critical Commentaries Character Analyses Critical Essay Essay Topics and Review Questions Selected Bibliography…
- 32754 Words
- 132 Pages
Powerful Essays -
10. Lines 159–168: Describe the tone in this passage. Which words led you to that conclusion?…
- 408 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
thy praise.(PORTIA FOR THE FIRST TIME IS TALKING ABOUT BASSANIO, AND RATHER THAN STATING IT AS A WOMAN IN LOVE SHE SAYS IT IN A ‘OH YES HIM’ KIND OF WAY)…
- 989 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
All communities run successfully with qualities of fairness and equality. The well-being of the citizens depends on the support and guidance they receive from those with power and influence in their society. When the people become corrupt and start having intentions that do not contribute back to the community, the society will fall apart and be unable to maintain balance and stability. In William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible the reader sees examples of injustice inflicted on the victims within the plays through the people with power within the community. The Christians in The Merchant of Venice mock Shylock the Jew countless times while the high court in The Crucible believe citizens are practicing witchcraft without a proper testimony. In both situations, the Christians and the court see themselves doing the right thing and believe they are contributing to the society when in reality, they break apart the community by persecuting those that are different. The victims in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible suffer from injustice as power being placed in the wrong hands leads to the formation of biased decision, the limited free will of citizens and severe punishments.…
- 1684 Words
- 7 Pages
Better Essays -
Shakespeare utilizes Shylock’s character as an antagonist to Antonio to demonstrate how dehumanization happens to both the perpetrator and the victim. This commentary begins in the first scene of the play, when Antonio asks Shylock to lend money for Bassanio’s journey to impress Portia. Even before he meets Antonio, Shylock remarks “how like a fawning publican he looks!/[Shylock] hates him for he is a Christian” and that he “will feed fat the ancient grudge I bear him./ He hates our sacred nation” (1.3.36-43). Because of the history of resentment between Christians and Jews, Shylock’s comment shows that “feeding the fat” to the “ancient grudge” against Antonio is seemingly “normal”, and that he is unwilling to stop fueling this “ancient grudge” between religions. Antonio contributes this same of idea of sticking to status quo when Shylock mentions how “[Antonio] calls [him] a misbeliever, cut-throat dog” (1.3.106-107). After Shylock lists these atrocities and is bewildered on how Antonio still “needs [his] help”, Antonio makes it clear that he is “as like to call thee so again/To spit on thee again, to spurn thee too” (1.3.107, 125-126). Shakespeare makes an interesting choice to use the word “spurn”. One may think that it is easily replaceable with “hate”. However, Shakespeare uses the word to show that Antonio does not…
- 1530 Words
- 7 Pages
Better Essays -
Shylock cannot be considered the most villainous character in this play, for he shoulders much undeserved ridicule for his religion. Nearly every character in Shakespeare’s famous play behaves in malevolent or unjust ways at one point in the story, whether it is predominantly as selfishness, cruelty, or vindictiveness. But does this pronounce them villains? Whilst Shylock is portrayed as a villain in more than one aspect, does this not warrant that Portia, being unjustly biased and unlawful, also be given the title of villain? Should not Shylock’s daughter Jessica be labelled a villain for her deceptive and larcenist actions and Antonio for his bigotry and obstinacy? And what of Bassanio; does he not selfishly and irresponsibly borrow money from Antonio, unable to afford to repay him, in order to further his personal wants? Each of these characters exhibits wanton villainous behaviour, with some performing more acts than others. They execute deceptive and vengeful acts in different forms, with most also being prejudiced in one way or another. Shylock could well be the ‘supposed’ villain of Shakespeare’s play, for he is Antonio’s enemy, and Antonio, being quite obviously the plays most prominent and most famous character, is quite possibly made out to be the main character of the play, rather than Bassanio, or even Shylock himself. The title page of the first quarto of ‘The Merchant of Venice’; ‘the moſt excellent Hiſtorie of the…
- 3954 Words
- 16 Pages
Good Essays -
Bassanio, despite being busy chasing Portia, has a few moments in which his words and actions prove to push the homosocial boundary. One such moment is when he states he would “rather dwell in my necessity” (The Merchant of Venice 1.3.152) than let Antonio enter a contract with Shylock that would allow him to be physically harmed. Perhaps the biggest indicator of Bassanio’s feelings occurs later in the play when he receives the letter from Antonio informing him of the contract expiration and Antonio’s imminent demise. He immediately sets out to try and save Antonio, ignoring the fact he is married to Portia and marriage is supposed to be two people who mean everything to each other. This moment becomes even more potent when Bassanio later gives up his ring, the physical symbol of his relationship with Portia, out of gratitude to the lawyer for saving Antonio’s life. His willingness to forsake “life itself, my wife, and all the world” (The Merchant of Venice 4.1.283) is a subtle declaration of homoerotic…
- 1836 Words
- 8 Pages
Powerful Essays -
The main conflicts among the characters in the stories were between Antonio and Shylock, and Abigail and the Proctors. In The Merchant of Venice characters that were impacted by lies, gossip, rumours were Antonio and Shylock. Antonio owes Shylock 3000 ducats by a certain time, or Shylock will be able to cut a pound of Antonio's flesh. In the play Salerio and Solanio discuss about how Antonio’s ships have rumoured to sink at sea.”Why, yet it lives there unchecked that Antonio hath a ship of rich lading wrecked on the narrow seas” .With that rumour Shylock is now able to get the revenge he was destined to receive, which made his and Antonio’s relationship even worse.…
- 429 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In the play The Merchant of Venice Shylock, a rich Jewish moneylender in Venice agrees to loan Bassanio three thousand ducats on Antonio’s guarantee. Shylock is made to be the villain in the Merchant of Venice because of some of the things he does. But even though he may not have been the only one in the wrong, he is still guilty of the deadly sins of, avarice, envy, and wrath.…
- 483 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays