Character Essay: Shylock

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The character I have chosen is from the play The Merchant of Venice. His name is Shylock. I find this character interesting in the story as we see Shylock as a victim and a villain. “Signor Antonio many a time and oft in the Rialto you have rated me about my moneys and my usances”. Here we see Antonio being cruel and criticizes Shylock. “The Hebrew will turn Christian: he grows kind”. Antonio here mocks Shylocks religion by saying that Jews are not kind. We see Shylock being deceitful “rest fair good singor your worship was the last man in our mouths” we no that Shylock dislikes Antonio from his soliloquy therefore he is being deceitful. This is indicates the villain in Shylock. “my own flesh and blood to rebel!” this is telling us that Shylock is angry and we see him being a villain again. “to bait fish withal if it feed nothing else it will feed my revenge” he is indicating that even if the pound of flesh doesn’t worth anything it will still feed his revenge. “the villany you teach me I will execute and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction”. Here he is threatening Salerio and Solanio and the other Christians that he will do the same to them that they did to him but he will better it. “I’ll plague him I’ll torture him”. Here he is promising to torture Antonio. “I will have the heart of him if he forfeit”. He is determined to kill Antonio if he forfeit. He is also a very lonely man “it was my turquoise I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor I would not have sold it for a wilderness of monkeys”. Here we see that Shylock is a victim and the audience shows a little sympathy towards Shylock. “I’ll have my bond speak not against my bond. Thou calledst me dog before thou hadst a cause but since I am a dog beware of my fangs”. Shylock is very angry and vicious here an we get a sort of animal imagery towards Shylock. “I’ll have my bond I will here not thee
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