“The Merchant Of Venice is a play by William Shakespeare. The main character, Bassanio makes many choices throughout the play that revolve around his choice to marry Portia and marry for money rather than love. The theme in this play is greed. The reason why wealth is so prevalent in the play is that there was not much else to do in the Elizabethan era. The characters all have something to prove whether they decide that is money or love. The entire crux of The Merchant of Venice comes down to Portia’s two suitors, Bassanio and Antonio.
The first scene establishes this conflict by having Portia publicly humiliate Shylock, who says he has come to collect a debt from Antonio only to find out that it is actually Bassanio’s debt instead. Later in the play, Portia convinces her husband to let her help with the situation with Shylock about paying his 3,000 ducats within 3 months or else losing a pound of flesh each month until the debt is paid off.
Not wanting to lose more money and possibly his life, Bassanio goes to a moneylender, but when he is unable to come up with the money in time Antonio offers his own fortune. The rest of The Merchant of Venice revolves around the relationship between Portia and her two suitors, as well as Shakespeare’s portrayal of greed. ” Antonio showing no interest in wealth is a good example for readers to identify how they feel about materialistic pleasures in order to show their individuality.
The theme is shown through evil characters such as Shylock who want everything in the world and cannot be fulfilled until they get it. The quote from The Merchant of Venice “I pray you remember The bond thou hast signed;” helps prove that everyone has pride unless they are willing to do things that go against what they fought for in the past. The theme of greed is also seen when Bassanio leaves Portia to marry another woman with a bigger dowry and Portia has no problems with it because she does not desire materialistic pleasures and instead desires love.
The quote “Disgrace not Prosper; if he will not lend, Give him foul words, but lend not;” shows how Portia can be heartbroken on the inside, but still remains strong on the outside even though she wants Bassanio back for herself. The idea of wealth being prevalent throughout The Merchant of Venice , along with Antonio’s lack of interest in money helps keep the ideas of desiring more than what you have or desiring anything at all. The theme of greed is seen throughout The Merchant of Venice because it is a common human desire to try and have more than others or money at all costs.
The quote ” The merchant of Venice ,” helps show the idea that money can be exchanged for anything, even love which brings us back to the theme of greed once again. “The Merchant Of Venice” was first published in 1600 by Simon Purdue, one year after Shakespeare’s death. The play takes place in Venice, Italy where The Prince of Morocco wishes to marry Portia. Bassanio wishes to marry Portia as well but does not have enough gold coins needed to receive her hand in marriage.
Bassanio must choose between gold coins or love when he chooses his bride. The action takes place in one location, The Prince of Morocco’s house. The theme in The Merchant of Venice is greed. The idea that money can buy anything appears throughout the play when Portia tells Nerissa that she would give up her dowry to be Bassanio’s wife. The quote “The merchant of Venice” helps convey the idea that both Portia and Bassanio are willing to break their promises to marry each other if it means receiving more money for themselves.
The moral implications behind the action shows readers how quickly people will exchange something for materialistic gains rather than love. ” William Shakespeare created many themes through his plays including greed which is shown throughout The Merchant Of Venice . The entire crux of The Merchant of Venice is whether or not The Prince Of Morocco will receive Portia’s hand in marriage. The action takes place in The Prince of Morocco’s house where The Prince Of Morocco must choose between gold coins or love when receiving Portia’s hand.
The quote “The merchant of Venice” helps show the idea that both The Prince of Morocco and Bassanio are willing to give up what they love for money rather than receiving something materialistic because it represents love. The greed theme comes into play once again when Antonio decides to offer his entire fortune to Bassanio because he does not have enough money to repay his friend Shylock so he can continue living life without any more debt. “
Although The Merchant Of Venice was written hundreds of years ago it still reverberates with modern audiences because its overall message has not changed since it was originally published: Money can change people, for better or worse. The story of The Merchant Of Venice is one about greed, love, and lust. The characters are categorized as people who show their true selves when put to the test, showing both their virtues and vices. The first character introduced in The Merchant Of Venice by William Shakespeare is probably Bassanio, Antonio’s friend that chooses Portia as his bride.
When Bassanio first meets Portia he shows no desire for wealth but instead shows ardent interest in “herself”. However this changes when Shylock demands a pound of flesh from Antonio which would leave him dead if he does not repay his debt to the moneylender by three months time. When faced with death, Antonio asks his friend Bassanio for a loan so he can repay Shylock. The audience is then introduced to Antonio’s love for money with this line, “My ships come home a month before the day/Why, then she’ll marry me a month before term’”.
The irony of this quote is that one cannot tell if Antonio is being serious about marrying Portia because he loves her or if does really want to marry her in order to save his life. The only thing that stops Bassanio from lending Antonio the money is when he learns Portia has set out conditions in which she will be won in marriage: The man who wishes to win Portia must choose correctly among three caskets- gold, silver, and lead.
The caskets contain a golden portrait of Portia, a silver goblet which was originally her grandfather’s but has been broken in half and repaired with solder, and a leaden picture of a knight whose eyes are painted on. The man who chooses the gold casket wins Portia because it contains her portrait while the other two choices contain false images that do not portray hair color or facial expressions of the bride-to-be. The right choice is left to Bassanio who chooses correctly by looking at Portia’s age through the thin layer of varnish that covered over paint on the leaden casket which reveals an image resembling his beloved fiancee.
