Merchant of Venice Essay The Depression of Antonio

The Depression of Antonio in Merchant of Venice In the Merchant of Venice, we see a truly anti-Semitic play by Shakespeare. However, we also see a tale of money (greed and generosity), love (heterosexual and homosexual), and emotion (joy and sadness). The play revolves around Bassanios love for Portia. Bassanio needs money to play the suitor to Portia in style. His friend who loves him, Antonio, agrees to give him the money, but, because all of his money is invested in his merchant ships he must take a loan from the greedy Jew Shylock. Shylock loans him the money in exchange for a pound of his flesh if he does not pay the loan back on time. Bassanio wins Portias hand, but, before they are joined together, Portia will†¦show more content†¦However, if we explore the play more closely, we see that there are some valid external reasons that may be adding to Antonios imbalance of humors. One of these is that he is suffering from the existential dilemma to a degree. In a world of appearances, he realizes how difficult it is to find real meaning and the truth. As he warns Bassanio regarding Shylock, Mark you this, Bassanio,/Th devil can cite scripture for his purpose./An evil soul producing holy witness/Is like a villain with a smiling cheek-/A goodly apple rotten at the heart:/O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath! (Shakespeare 206). Thus, Antonio is searching for something higher or more spiritual than the world of materialism and superficial appearances he views all about him. His speech above mirrors the speech of Bassanio when he discusses how the world of appearances is deceptive and often conceals the truth underneath. As he says, The world is still deceivd with ornament (Shakespeare 216). This is why he chooses the plain lead casket which is the correct one with Portias picture. However, Bassanio represents another source of Antonios sadness. Antonio is deeply in love with Bassanio and, though their loves as friends is mutual and profound, Bassanio chooses Portia as his wife. Yet, this never stops Antonio from helping his friend or trying to do as much as he can for his true happiness. As he tells Shylock with regard to the loan,Show MoreRelatedStereotyping of Jews Essay1277 Words   |  6 Pagesinstance, Jews were limited to the types of occupations they could hold. They were banned from farming and entering guilds, so many of them became merchants and money-lenders (Singer). Since both these occupations dealt with the exchange money, dealing loans, setting prices, and charging interest, people began to stereotype the Jews as scheming merchants who demanded money from their customers, but refuse to give back the money they owed to others. Since then, the Jews have been popularly characterizedRead MoreLangston Hughes Research Paper25309 Words   |  102 Pagesrestaurants, theaters, and trains. If blacks were permitted to enter a facility, they had to use a separate entrance and sit in a separate section. Langston became an avid reader. His favorite magazine was Crisis, published by W.E.B. Du Bois, whose essays urged African Americans to preserve their heritage and to reject integration into the white community. Langstons favorite newspaper was the Chicago Defender, which published stories about racially motivated lynchings and other injustices. His favorite