Olivia K.
How Shakespeare presents attitudes towards Shylock in The Merchant of Venice
Throughout The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare presents the intolerance and inherent
prejudice the Christian characters hold towards outsiders, especially towards the usurer Jew
Shylock.
In this particular extract in which Salanio and Salarino discuss Shylock’s reaction to Jessica’s
elopement, Shakespeare conveys the attitudes of the two Christians towards Shylock through
their statements: how they perceive he feels about money, how they feel about what he
believes, how they disagree with his idea of justice and how they see the relationship he has
with his daughter. The two characters in this scene are shown to take pleasure in mocking
Shylock for his supposedly excessive reaction to the elopement of his daughter, as
Shakespeare has them repeat the exclamatory “O” when they echo Shylock’s exclamations:
they mock his distress and have little respect for his feelings. Shakespeare has them precede
“O my daughter” with “O my ducats” to reveal that they see Shylock as an avaricious man
who cares more for money than his daughter as he puts his gold before her in importance.
This is why they mock him: they believe he cares only for money and to them this is not a
trait to be lauded, instead it is one to scorn for it is not a Christian trait. In addition, the tone
in which Shakespeare has written Salanio’s lines is far from serious and emotional; the way
this is phrased with multiple exclamations and disjointed syntax, and the fact that they pick
out the things he had said which they find amusing, only serves to emphasise the disrespect
they have and is what leads us to infer that they are mocking Shylock. Not only is this
attitude wrong, it is also hypocritical as Shylock is the man to whom the Christians come
when they seek to borrow money and of course they too care about money. Shakespeare also
displays their inherent prejudice and disdain towards Shylock by way of their
dehumanisation of him: they laugh about how the “dog Jew did utter in the streets.” By
having them use this offensive epithet instead of Shylock’s name, Shakespeare is opening our
eyes to the fact that to these Christians, Shylock is nothing more than an animal, an inferior
Jewish animal that doesn’t even deserve to be graced with a name. In the Renaissance
period, in which this play is set, to be a Jew was to be inferior and these Christians are just
the same as those of the time: they are prejudiced against Jews because Jews are not
Christians. Shakespeare has Salanio repeat Shylock’s ‘O my daughter’ to convey that they see
Shylock as possessive as he speaks about his daughter as belonging to him, as though she
were his possession; of course, we once again have to remember that as this play is set in the
Renaissance era in a patriarchal society, it was not unusual for women to be seen as
possessions and objects to be bought and sold. At the end of this extract Shakespeare writes
“let good Antonio look he keep his day, Or he shall pay for this.” This last line does not
consist of the usual 10 syllables. Shakespeare does this because it stands out, is dramatic and
conveys the fear Salanio has: he is afraid of Shylock and all that the vengeful Jew could do to
Antonio now that his daughter has been stolen from him. To them Shylock is a merciless Jew
who will only want what he sees as justice, and it scares them.
These themes and ideas that convey the attitudes of characters towards Shylock are
continued by Shakespeare and are woven through the fabric of the play. Act 1 Scene 3 is a
perfect example of the intolerance and prejudice the Christians have against Shylock. This is
the ‘bond scene’ in which Antonio and Bassanio come to Shylock for a loan of 3000 ducats so
that Bassanio might win the fair Portia’s hand. In this scene it is clear that Antonio not only
holds no respect for Shylock but also appears to abhor him simply because he is a Jew. In
response to Shylock’s biblical allusion about Jacob and how “thrift is a blessing if men steal it
How Shakespeare presents attitudes towards Shylock in The Merchant of Venice
Throughout The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare presents the intolerance and inherent
prejudice the Christian characters hold towards outsiders, especially towards the usurer Jew
Shylock.
In this particular extract in which Salanio and Salarino discuss Shylock’s reaction to Jessica’s
elopement, Shakespeare conveys the attitudes of the two Christians towards Shylock through
their statements: how they perceive he feels about money, how they feel about what he
believes, how they disagree with his idea of justice and how they see the relationship he has
with his daughter. The two characters in this scene are shown to take pleasure in mocking
Shylock for his supposedly excessive reaction to the elopement of his daughter, as
Shakespeare has them repeat the exclamatory “O” when they echo Shylock’s exclamations:
they mock his distress and have little respect for his feelings. Shakespeare has them precede
“O my daughter” with “O my ducats” to reveal that they see Shylock as an avaricious man
who cares more for money than his daughter as he puts his gold before her in importance.
This is why they mock him: they believe he cares only for money and to them this is not a
trait to be lauded, instead it is one to scorn for it is not a Christian trait. In addition, the tone
in which Shakespeare has written Salanio’s lines is far from serious and emotional; the way
this is phrased with multiple exclamations and disjointed syntax, and the fact that they pick
out the things he had said which they find amusing, only serves to emphasise the disrespect
they have and is what leads us to infer that they are mocking Shylock. Not only is this
attitude wrong, it is also hypocritical as Shylock is the man to whom the Christians come
when they seek to borrow money and of course they too care about money. Shakespeare also
displays their inherent prejudice and disdain towards Shylock by way of their
dehumanisation of him: they laugh about how the “dog Jew did utter in the streets.” By
having them use this offensive epithet instead of Shylock’s name, Shakespeare is opening our
eyes to the fact that to these Christians, Shylock is nothing more than an animal, an inferior
Jewish animal that doesn’t even deserve to be graced with a name. In the Renaissance
period, in which this play is set, to be a Jew was to be inferior and these Christians are just
the same as those of the time: they are prejudiced against Jews because Jews are not
Christians. Shakespeare has Salanio repeat Shylock’s ‘O my daughter’ to convey that they see
Shylock as possessive as he speaks about his daughter as belonging to him, as though she
were his possession; of course, we once again have to remember that as this play is set in the
Renaissance era in a patriarchal society, it was not unusual for women to be seen as
possessions and objects to be bought and sold. At the end of this extract Shakespeare writes
“let good Antonio look he keep his day, Or he shall pay for this.” This last line does not
consist of the usual 10 syllables. Shakespeare does this because it stands out, is dramatic and
conveys the fear Salanio has: he is afraid of Shylock and all that the vengeful Jew could do to
Antonio now that his daughter has been stolen from him. To them Shylock is a merciless Jew
who will only want what he sees as justice, and it scares them.
These themes and ideas that convey the attitudes of characters towards Shylock are
continued by Shakespeare and are woven through the fabric of the play. Act 1 Scene 3 is a
perfect example of the intolerance and prejudice the Christians have against Shylock. This is
the ‘bond scene’ in which Antonio and Bassanio come to Shylock for a loan of 3000 ducats so
that Bassanio might win the fair Portia’s hand. In this scene it is clear that Antonio not only
holds no respect for Shylock but also appears to abhor him simply because he is a Jew. In
response to Shylock’s biblical allusion about Jacob and how “thrift is a blessing if men steal it
