Vicky Przybysz Ms. Innes-Murphy ENG 1DA 15 May 2014 A Lifelong Masquerade: The Role of Women in The Merchant of Venice In William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice‚ the expectation and role of women to be passive is highlighted in the way they are regarded by men as weak‚ and the juxtaposing irony of their power. Since the beginning of time‚ women have assumed the natural role of caregiver and mother‚ and women in the Elizabethan era were no exception. Elizabethan women were subservient to
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Jessica and her father Shylock. The reason he fails to really know her is because Shylock is very protective over Jessica and wants to have complete control over her. A parent cannot make the living environment of their children hostile or resemble a prison because it will not only make the child resent their home but it will make them resent their parent (Thomsen 77). Shylock does this because of his selfish lack of understanding and pushes Jessica away. Not only does Shylock have his priorities wrong
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toward the end of the reign of King Richard I‚ England is in the grip of turmoil. The king is far from the country‚ having been imprisoned by the rulers of Austria and Germany on his way home from the Crusades. In his absence‚ the throne is held by Prince John‚ but the real authority lies in the hands of the nobles‚ who have used Richard’s absence as an excuse to fortify their own power at the expense of the monarchy’s. This state of affairs has aggravated relations between the two groups of people
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take care of the house while Shylock goes to the dinner party he had been invited to‚ but when he is gone he take out her “mask” and shows her real face‚ a selfish face and taking advantage of the situation‚ she steal her father jewelry and ducats as her go with Lorenzo. This shows how Jessica can have an extreme change‚ betraying her father‚ the ne that raised her alone. Furthermore‚ appearance and reality are also shown in Antonio’s words referring to Shylock. “He is a villain with a smiling
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owed Shylock by the Venetian courts (Act IV‚ scene i) is a prime example of the protagonist receiving satisfactory closure. In the drama building up to the court scene‚ Antonio’s best friend‚ Bassanio‚ had cut a deal with the devil as he borrowed money from the shrewd Shylock‚ with the stipulation that repayment would either be in ducats or a pound of Antonio’s flesh (Act I‚ scene iii). When Antonio’s business enterprise came crashing down abruptly‚ he had no means by which to repay Shylock‚ thus
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christians‚ and they were forced to wear red hats that showed them that they were separate from the citizens. They are forced to live in the Ghetto‚ which is just a group of building where only Jews live. Solanio and Salerio‚ both Christians‚ refer to Shylock as “the dog jew” which is just Shakespeare saying that they are treated like mutts‚ which in turn supports the stereotype that jews were animals (2.8.14). Another stereotype was that jews were greedy. When Jessica‚ Shylock’s daughter‚ runs away with
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The two novels‚ Christopher Marlowe’s ‘The Jew of Malta’ and William Shakespeare’s ‘The Merchant of Venice’‚ the main characters are Jews‚ a characteristic that makes the comparison of the books easier. However‚ the way the characters are presented has made the two stories have deep and active anti-Semitic notions and messages. Right from the beginning of the play‚ we can see some clear negative stereotypes towards Jews. Barabbas is undoubtedly portrayed as a man who loves money to an extent that
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Historical Context The historical context of The Merchant of Venice turns‚ for the most part‚ on one question: the status of Jews in Shakespeare’s England. Jews had lived in England throughout the Middle Ages; they were treated then as property of the King‚ and were permitted to stay in England‚ over the protests of the Church‚ only by his "good graces." In fact‚ English kings allowed the Jews to remain in England largely for financial reasons: practicing trades‚ particularly money-lending‚ that
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for Christians to treat non-Christians as subhuman‚ only because the Bible blames them for the death of Jesus Christ. Shylock is stripped of his name and instead referred to as “the Jew”‚ “dog Jew” and “currish Jew”. Nowadays‚
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Prejudice Prejudice is no foreign matter to any of us. Prejudice is easy to see‚ subsequently making it an easy subject to write on because of the surplus of examples. However‚ there is a second layer of prejudice that many people don’t think of. Prejudice is one recurring theme that can be found in absolutely every unit we’ve covered this semester. It present in The absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian‚ To Kill a Mockingbird‚ Defiance‚ Schindler’s List‚ and The Merchant of Venice. In The
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