Merchant of Venice #1

A.        So far in merchant of Venice we have discovered a lot about certain characters as well as themes and motifs in the book. Two of my favorite characters are Portia and Nerissa. In the scene where the two are talking about possible suitors I found their witty humor and rude comments funny because they reminded me of high school girls picking dates for the prom. I never thought Shakespeare was as funny as he is until I began to pull apart the meanings and find humor in them. Another character that I enjoyed was Lorenzo. He is so love sick that he wants to break Jessica out of her father’s house dressed as a boy. He is a little pathetic in how he speaks in Elizabethan language but it adds to the scenes in a comedic way. However, a character I don’t enjoy is Lorenzo’s love Jessica. I don’t think she has a very high moral code, the fact that she wants to forsake her father and his religion doesn’t bother me, it is that she does it with no integrity and she steals from him. The way she speaks about it she tries to act like she had to do it but I think she would have been more of a noble heroine for standing up for her love if she hadn’t stooped to such a low level.

            In the commoner scene with Lancelot Gobbo and his father, as well as Bassaino I started to crack up once I realized what they were talking about. The way they worded things and because I couldn’t hear him speak it made it difficult to hear it how Shakespeare meant it to. In other Shakespeare plays I found the commoners funny and witty. As Ms. Robison said in class I they offer good comic relief after intense scenes.

Merchant of Venice Post #2 »« Chap 55-76