The Shakespearean romantic comedy The Merchant of Venice takes love, deceit, and revenge to whole new level, demanding a pound of flesh from a publicly benevolent figure. Merchant of Venice tickets do not cost a pound of flesh, but do beg the question (especially on the eve of a run on Broadway in the fall of 2010), is the play anti-Semitic?
The Merchant of Venice revolves around the story of impoverished noble Bassanio and his desire to marry Portia, a woman he would love whether she was a wealthy heiress or not. Bassiano cannot afford to pay for the trip to travel from Venice to Belmont to proclaim his love, so he turns to his friend Antonio, a wealthy merchant. Antonio has most of his wealth tied into an expedition to the new world though.
Still, he offers to pay for a bond if a lender can be found. That lender is Shylock, a Jewish merchant whose money-lending business has been decimated by the Christian Antonio's interest-free loans and who has been slighted, spat on and insulted for his religious belief, by Antonio. Shylock's bitterness is only reinforced once he discovers Jessica, his own daughter, plans to convert to Christianity as she plans to marry the outside her faith. Inspired by his enmity, Shylock demands a pound of flesh from Antonio if the bond is not repaid by a certain date.
News of Bassiano's marriage brings joy, but news of ships lost at sea bring cause a calamity. Bassiano, a disguised Portia, and the Duke of Venice do their best to hurry back and spare Bassiano his fate, a fate that would be his ultimate demise. In the end, all is well for every character but Shylock, who is distraught, suddenly poor, and a converted Christian.
William Shakespeare wrote the Merchant of Venice between 1596 and 1598, but the play is perhaps more popular today than it was in his own time. In modern times, the play acts as a conduit for debate. Shylock is surely a bitter man hell bent on revenge, but he is also a man condemned for his religion, insulted at many turns and forced to convert to the very religion vexing him from the beginning of the romantic comedy.
This sentiment is best articulated in Shylock's speech in Act III, Scene I. To paraphrase, "hath not a Jew eyes, is a Jew not hurt by the same weapons, if you prick a Jew, do we not bleed?"
