The Merchant of Venice discussion essay

Submitted By jkatel7
Words: 1075
Pages: 5
Open Document
The Merchant of Venice
Discussion Essay

Racism has been an issue all throughout history and still is an issue during present day. The Merchant of Venice is a play written by William Shakespeare and is supposedly a ‘comedy’ about a money lender who seeks revenge on a merchant over an unpaid loan. All throughout the play there are many themes that are recognised and one of these major themes is racism. Some examples of how racism is displayed in the play are, the different views on Christians and Jews when it comes to money and wealth, how skin colour affects how people view you and how even though people are of different race and religion they are still all human.
In The Merchant of Venice, Judaism and Christianity are not only religions but are viewed as racial (and even national) identities also. In the play, Shakespeare makes a strong stereotype of how money is viewed when in the possession of Jews and Christians. Not just in the play but throughout history Christians are viewed as being generous and careless with their money, unlike Jews who have accusations made about being blood-thirsty money lenders who care more about money than people and their social relations with them. This deception is still made in current times with Jews seen to be money handlers. Even though the stereotype of money being of upmost importance to them isn’t very common today, some people still see them to be this way. The same stereotype goes for Christians being generous and putting people first however, some people think that Christians and churches are frauds and want people’s money for themselves. A new stereotype is the stereotype of the way Muslim people are viewed when it comes to money with some people believing that they want money to use for weapons so that they can use them against us however this has only began to rise with the increase of Muslim terrorists. Stereotypes of money no matter what religion are still common today with some new stereotypes and some that have passed.
In The Merchant of Venice, skin colour (known as ‘colourism’ a term coined by Alice walker in 1982) is another thing that people are prejudice towards. In the play people jump to assumptions and have strong views on people of different skin colour, particularly white people looking down on those of darker complexion. A prime example of prejudice towards those of different skin colour is when Portia says “If I could bid the fifth welcome with so good heart as I can bid the other four farewell, I should be glad of his approach; if he have the condition of a saint and the complexion of a devil, I had rather he should shrive me than wive me” (ACT 1, SCENE 2). In this scene Portia is saying she would never want to marry the Prince of Morocco, even if he were a saint, because of his dark skin colour that she says is “of the devil”. In the Elizabethan times (Shakespeare’s day), people of dark complexion were discriminated against and were seen to be associated with the devil and evil. As a result of this discrimination they were treated poorly with white people being of greater significance to them and also resulted in them having no rights and being seen as outcasts and evil. It’s only been in the past one hundred years that this discrimination has begun to change and ease. Today prejudice and discrimination is still carried out towards those of darker complexion by few with some still believing that they are more superior to the darker skinned people, however many people support equality for all no matter what skin colour, race, sexuality or religion.
The Merchant of Venice is filled with prejudice acts and stereotypes towards those of different race. Though the play is filled with these negative examples, one of the strongest scenes and most famous passages from the play is when Shylock says “He hath disgraced me, and hindered me half a million;
Show More

Related Documents: The Merchant of Venice discussion essay

Summer Reading Essay

what they read on their own than are most students in high school, for example. College instructors assign readings, not necessarily explicated in class, for which students might be held accountable through exams, papers, presentations, or class discussions. Students in high school, by contrast, are rarely held accountable for what they read independently. This discrepancy in task demand, coupled with the vast gap in text complexity, may help explain why only about half of the students taking the ACT…

Words 2933 - Pages 12

Seekers: Italian Renaissance Essay

their accomplishments. Part Five The Liberal Way In part five, the author paints the modern world in a Liberal Age. To fully understand, the author suggests looking at six important people. First, Niccolo Machiavelli wrote The Prince, an essay on his views of an ideal government. Also, John Locke interprets the limits of human knowledge and like others before him, believed that the foundation of knowledge is experience. Voltaire gave a new meaning to the ideas of civilization. Jean-Jacques…

Words 2639 - Pages 11

Middle Ages and Europe Essay

MEDIEVAL EUROPE: FROM THE FALL OF ROME TO THE RENAISSANCE A BACKGROUND READING LINKING CLASSICAL TO MODERN TIMES From approximately 200 B.C. to 476 A.D., the "civilized" areas of Europe and the Near East were dominated, ruled, and imprinted with a lasting influence from the Roman Empire. At its greatest extent, the Roman Empire stretched east to include Greece, Turkey, Syria, Mesopotamia and Persia; it stretched south to encompass Africa north of the Sahara from the Atlantic to Egypt; and, it stretched…

Words 6558 - Pages 27

Mr Barnaby Bax Essay

Greenblatt et al, eds, The Norton Shakespeare International Student Edition. Second Edition (New York: W. W. Norton & Co, 2008). Ben Jonson, Volpone ed. Brian Parker and David Bevington (Manchester: Revels Student Edition 1999). A good selection of essays is also available at a reasonable price in Russ McDonald (ed.), Shakespeare: An Anthology of Criticism and Theory 1945-2000 (Blackwell, 2004). This book is not a set text, but it is worth considering purchasing it. 1. Aims and objectives of…

Words 9832 - Pages 40

History Of Sojourners In Canada

The Origins: Questions for Essay and Presentations TOSKA: When did the members start arriving in Canada? th Although Italians have prominently been part in the history of Canada as far back as the 15 century, there were still relatively few Italians in Canada. Those who did come during this time were more like “sojourners” rather than settlers. PPT SLIDE: The Earliest Italian Contact before steady migration 1497: Giovanni Caboto (John Cabot), an Italian navigator from Venice, explored and…

Words 4125 - Pages 17