Representing Shylock: The Performance History of Shakespeare’s Jew as an Indicator and Instigator of Cultural Change

Since its earliest performances, The Merchant of Venice garnered attention for its depiction of Shylock, the greedy Jewish moneylender who takes the protagonist of the play to court, demanding a pound of flesh. Over the centuries, depictions of this character have varied as much as the critical and popular reception to him. In the hands of each actor who newly embodies the character, Shylock can take the shape of a grotesque antisemitic caricature or a sympathetic anti-hero speaking truth to power. While Shylock began as a comic villain whose defeat allows the comedic resolution, almost all modern directors, actors, and audiences are forced to reckon with the cruel antisemitism voiced by the play’s protagonists. In tracing the performance history of this character from the turn of the 17th century, to the Third Reich, to his most recent incarnations, this research resists reducing Shylock to any single interpretation. Instead, this essay argues that Shylock serves as a reflection of the place and time in which he is performed, both an indicator of cultural attitudes and a potential instigator of cultural action towards oppression, justice, and representation of those deemed outsiders.

Gender Roles in The Merchant of Venice and Othello

Literature enables authors to express various societal matters. Shakespeare provides a wide range of information from the Elizabethan era through his works. An important issue that is evident in his work is gender roles. The roles of characters, as described by Shakespeare, show social norms that define female and male genders. Female characters in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice and Othello are underestimated because of the stereotypical gender roles. The roles involving female characters revolve around the homestead, unless where a female character is from a wealthy family, a queen or a princess. Male dominance in society implies that the Shakespearean era advocated for women discrimination.

Trails of Cultural Memory: Rediscovering Shylock as a Father Figure in the 21st Century

Given that in the last few decades theories of adaptation have advanced enormously, with such names as Linda Hutcheon setting the theoretical premise of these ideas, it is essential to see how certain aspects present in canonical texts have been translated into present-day literature. In this paper, I discuss how the father-daughter relationship in The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare, has been (re)interpreted through the carrying of similar characters and situations in the novel Shylock Is My Name by Howard Jacobson. The novel does not only serve as a means of projecting old ideas as new, but it also provides the stage of resolution for such prominent characters as Shylock. In order to have a broader understanding of the (re)interpreted father-daughter relationship, this chapter will take into account the sociological symbolism of the contemporary text, with Erik Erikson’s descriptions of adolescence in the foreground.

Dark Ambition: The Two Faces of Portia

Portia in The Merchant of Venice has all the hallmarks of a great diva, such as Isabella Andreini or Vincenza Armani. She is famous beyond Italy, prodigiously intellectual, versatile, and brilliantly clever at devising plots that show off her acting skills, especially cross-gender disguise. Portia banters, plots, and travels with the confidence of a seasoned professional, while suitors and observers extol her golden virtues in paeans like those lavished on star actresses. Yet the diva of Belmont is too good to be true and too theatrical to be good; audiences might well interpret her artful cunning, sophistication, and duplicity as “dark” Italian qualities. In fact, Portia’s zest for acting, wifely insubordination, casual racism, and notable lack of mercy tend to unsettle her mask of moral perfection, as she relishes her diva-like domination of Morocco, Shylock, Bassanio, and Antonio.

Put to the Test: The Folk-­Tale Motif of the "Test to Prove Worthiness" in Three of Shakespeare's Comedies

<p>Critics have recognised folk‐tales as being among the varied sources Shakespeare has mined for the plots of his plays. However, this recognition has often formed the basis of an argument which seeks to excuse what are perceived as flaws in Shakespeare’s plays, for example claiming that humanised characters jostle against their folk‐tale or popular culture archetypes, or that friction is generated when a folk‐tale plot is placed into a realistic setting. There has been little examination of Shakespeare’s relationship to his sources from folk‐tale, and so in this thesis I use the motif of the “test imposed to prove worthiness” (Stith Thompson’s Motif H900) as an example of the way Shakespeare develops, doubles and ultimately subverts these sources. I examine three comedies which employ this motif: The Taming of the Shrew, The Merchant of Venice and All’s Well That Ends Well. In the first play I argue that the testing of Katherina’s obedience rebounds to test Petruccio’s masculinity. In The Merchant, I argue that the casket test and doubled ring test play a crucial role in the development of Bassanio’s worthiness and loyalty, simultaneously casting doubt on Portia’s faithfulness. Finally, in relation to All’s Well, I argue that the test motif and by extension its folk‐tale sources are subverted so that the impossible tasks rebound not only on Bertram, but on the play as a whole, testing the genres of romance and realism. I find that testing cycles have a structural function as they fall between the couples’ weddings and consummations. Because of this placement, they are linked to private and public anxieties about sexuality and fidelity, in turn demonstrating their thematic function. The development, doubling and subversion of folk‐tales allow Shakespeare to explore ideas fully, often contrapuntally. Thus, my thesis seeks to address the gap in the critical studies by contending that Shakespeare makes innovative use of his folk‐tale sources. While ambiguity is certainly generated in each of the three plays, this is a deliberate effect rather than a flaw; no apology is required.</p>

Put to the Test: The Folk-­Tale Motif of the "Test to Prove Worthiness" in Three of Shakespeare's Comedies

<p>Critics have recognised folk‐tales as being among the varied sources Shakespeare has mined for the plots of his plays. However, this recognition has often formed the basis of an argument which seeks to excuse what are perceived as flaws in Shakespeare’s plays, for example claiming that humanised characters jostle against their folk‐tale or popular culture archetypes, or that friction is generated when a folk‐tale plot is placed into a realistic setting. There has been little examination of Shakespeare’s relationship to his sources from folk‐tale, and so in this thesis I use the motif of the “test imposed to prove worthiness” (Stith Thompson’s Motif H900) as an example of the way Shakespeare develops, doubles and ultimately subverts these sources. I examine three comedies which employ this motif: The Taming of the Shrew, The Merchant of Venice and All’s Well That Ends Well. In the first play I argue that the testing of Katherina’s obedience rebounds to test Petruccio’s masculinity. In The Merchant, I argue that the casket test and doubled ring test play a crucial role in the development of Bassanio’s worthiness and loyalty, simultaneously casting doubt on Portia’s faithfulness. Finally, in relation to All’s Well, I argue that the test motif and by extension its folk‐tale sources are subverted so that the impossible tasks rebound not only on Bertram, but on the play as a whole, testing the genres of romance and realism. I find that testing cycles have a structural function as they fall between the couples’ weddings and consummations. Because of this placement, they are linked to private and public anxieties about sexuality and fidelity, in turn demonstrating their thematic function. The development, doubling and subversion of folk‐tales allow Shakespeare to explore ideas fully, often contrapuntally. Thus, my thesis seeks to address the gap in the critical studies by contending that Shakespeare makes innovative use of his folk‐tale sources. While ambiguity is certainly generated in each of the three plays, this is a deliberate effect rather than a flaw; no apology is required.</p>

The Return from the Dead

Chapter 5 argues for the lingering power of medieval values and imaginative forms in their relation to characters who seemingly return from the dead. Criticism has not recognized the extent of this motif in the comedies or the way that it figures in their ongoing actions as well as their endings. Among other values, return from the dead showcases the efficacy of desire on the part of those bereft and the sense of radiant new life that the revenant sometimes acquires. While this motif is usually oriented towards Shakespeare’s late romances, such as Pericles, The Winter’s Tale, and The Tempest, it is strikingly pervasive, influential, and mysterious in the earlier comedies, as suggested by revenant characters ranging from Two Gentlemen’s Julia to All’s Well’s Helen. The chapter draws examples extensively from the comedies, including Much Ado About Nothing, The Merchant of Venice, and Twelfth Night. The motif lends uncanny power, emotional and intellectual depth, and memorability to Shakespearean comedy. It likewise helps us understand the persistence of medieval values into the early modern period.