The Merchant of Venice Was Anti Semetic
Nicholas Bouwer
Mr. Koughan
Anti-Semitism in The Merchant of Venice
Anti-Semitism, which has often been called the longest hatred (a comment on the unbelievably long time jews have been prosecuted as the bane of the earth), has recurred in society for centuries. Since before medieval times, Jews have been accused of treacherous acts which include the murder of Jesus, the Bubonic plague, poisoning wells and controlling all monetary aspects in people’s lives with the act of usury. Accusations like these have lasted throughout history because of misunderstanding and the retardation of interpretations of events in history which have led to feelings of fear and hatred. Anti-Semitism, specifically in Elizabethan times, was unbelievably prominent throughout Europe. Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice is a classic example of the anti-Semitic beliefs many people carried during the era. The abusiveness of all the characters towards the lead Jewish role of Shylock gives us insight into the opinions people had about the Jew’s role as a money lender and as a part of the population. As it is very clear that there are deep-rooted anti-Semitic ideas which appear abundantly throughout the play, the dehumanization of the character of Shylock shows that the play is meant to be flatly anti-Semitic. As most of the characters demonstrate great prejudice against Jews throughout the play, the word ‘Jew’ is used by them to give incredibly negative connotations and its repetition is a defining factor in the degradation of the word and the dehumanization of Shylock. As Derek Cohen in his book Jewish Presences in English Literature explains, “The word Jew is used fifty-eight times in The Merchant of Venice. Varients of the word like Jewess, Jew’s, and Jewish are used fourteen times; Hebrew is used twice. There are, then, seventy-four direct uses of Jew and unambiguously related words in the play. Since it can readily be acknowledged that Shakespeare understood the dramatic
Mr. Koughan
Anti-Semitism in The Merchant of Venice
Anti-Semitism, which has often been called the longest hatred (a comment on the unbelievably long time jews have been prosecuted as the bane of the earth), has recurred in society for centuries. Since before medieval times, Jews have been accused of treacherous acts which include the murder of Jesus, the Bubonic plague, poisoning wells and controlling all monetary aspects in people’s lives with the act of usury. Accusations like these have lasted throughout history because of misunderstanding and the retardation of interpretations of events in history which have led to feelings of fear and hatred. Anti-Semitism, specifically in Elizabethan times, was unbelievably prominent throughout Europe. Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice is a classic example of the anti-Semitic beliefs many people carried during the era. The abusiveness of all the characters towards the lead Jewish role of Shylock gives us insight into the opinions people had about the Jew’s role as a money lender and as a part of the population. As it is very clear that there are deep-rooted anti-Semitic ideas which appear abundantly throughout the play, the dehumanization of the character of Shylock shows that the play is meant to be flatly anti-Semitic. As most of the characters demonstrate great prejudice against Jews throughout the play, the word ‘Jew’ is used by them to give incredibly negative connotations and its repetition is a defining factor in the degradation of the word and the dehumanization of Shylock. As Derek Cohen in his book Jewish Presences in English Literature explains, “The word Jew is used fifty-eight times in The Merchant of Venice. Varients of the word like Jewess, Jew’s, and Jewish are used fourteen times; Hebrew is used twice. There are, then, seventy-four direct uses of Jew and unambiguously related words in the play. Since it can readily be acknowledged that Shakespeare understood the dramatic