Cambridge School Shakespeare The Merchant of Venice (latest edition)

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William Shakespeare

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THE MERCHANT OF VENICE

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Shakespeare

THE MERCHANT OF VENICE

Cambridge School

MACBETH

Shakespeare

THE MERCHANT OF VENICE

Cambridge School

Edited by Rob Smith Series editors: Richard Andrews and Vicki Wienand Founding editor: Rex Gibson

University Printing House, Cambridge CB2 8BS, United Kingdom Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge.

It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence. www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781107615397 Commentary and notes © Cambridge University Press 1992, 2014 Text © Cambridge University Press 1987, 2014 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press.

First published 1992 Second edition 2005 Third edition 2014 Printed in the United Kingdom by Latimer Trend A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library ISBN 978-1-107-61539-7 Paperback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

NOTICE TO TEACHERS IN THE UK

It is illegal to reproduce any part of this work in material form (including photocopying and electronic storage) except under the following circumstances: (i) where you are abiding by a licence granted to your school or institution by the Copyright Licensing Agency; (ii) where no such licence exists, or where you wish to exceed the terms of a licence, and you have gained the written permission of Cambridge University Press; (iii) where you are allowed to reproduce without permission under the provisions of Chapter 3 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, which covers, for example, the reproduction of short passages within certain types of educational anthology and reproduction for the purposes of setting examination questions.

Cover image: Shakespeare’s Globe 2007, © Geraint Lewis

Contents Introduction Photo gallery

iv v

The Merchant of Venice List of characters Act 1 Act 2 Act 3 Act 4 Act 5

1 3 33 75 115 145

Perspectives and themes Characters The language of The Merchant of Venice History and the Jews The Merchant of Venice in performance Writing about Shakespeare Writing about The Merchant of Venice Timeline Acknowledgements

166 171 180 186 189 198 200 202 203

Cambridge School

Shakespeare

Introduction This The Merchant of Venice is part of the Cambridge School Shakespeare series. Like every other play in the series, it has been specially prepared to help all students in schools and colleges.

The Cambridge School Shakespeare The Merchant of Venice aims to be different. It invites you to lift the words from the page and to bring the play to life in your classroom, hall or drama studio. Through enjoyable and focused activities, you will increase your understanding of the play. Actors have created their different interpretations of the play over the centuries. Similarly, you are invited to make up your own mind about The Merchant of Venice, rather than having someone else’s interpretation handed down to you.

Cambridge School Shakespeare does not offer you a cut-down or simplified version of the play. This is Shakespeare’s language, filled with imaginative possibilities. You will find on every left-hand page: a summary of the action, an explanation of unfamiliar words, and a choice of activities on Shakespeare’s stagecraft, characters, themes and language.

Between each act and in the pages at the end of the play, you will find notes, illustrations and activities.

These will help to encourage reflection after every act, and give you insights into the background and context of the play as a whole.

This edition will be of value to you whether you are studying for an examination, reading for pleasure or thinking of putting on the play to entertain others. You can work on the activities on your own or in groups.

Many of the activities suggest a particular group size, but don’t be afraid to make up larger or smaller groups to suit your own purposes. Please don’t think you have to do every activity: choose those that will help you most.

Although you are invited to treat The Merchant of Venice as a play, you don’t need special dramatic or theatrical skills to do the activities. By choosing your activities, and by exploring and experimenting, you can make your own interpretations of Shakespeare’s language, characters and stories.

Whatever you do, remember that Shakespeare wrote his plays to be acted, watched and enjoyed.

Rex Gibson Founding editor This new edition contains more photographs, more diversity and more supporting material than previous editions, whilst remaining true to Rex’s original vision. Specifically, it contains more activities and commentary on stagecraft and writing about Shakespeare, to reflect contemporary interest. The glossary has been enlarged too. Finally, this edition aims to reflect the best teaching and learning possible, and to represent not only Shakespeare through the ages, but also the relevance and excitement of Shakespeare today.

Richard Andrews and Vicki Wienand Series editors This edition of The Merchant of Venice uses the text of the play established by Elizabeth Story Donno in The New Cambridge Shakespeare.

iv

The Christian Antonio (right), the Merchant of Venice, arranges to borrow money from the Jew Shylock (centre). This will enable Antonio’s friend Bassanio (left) to travel to Belmont and try to win the hand of the beautiful heiress Portia.

Antonio agrees to include Shylock’s forfeit (his ‘merry sport’) in their agreement (‘bond’): if Antonio cannot repay the loan, he will lose a pound of his flesh.

But Shylock has long suffered at the hands of the Christians, who seize any opportunity to torment him.

Shylock’s ‘ancient grudge’ and the cruel treatment he experiences do not bode well for Antonio.

v

Portia (left), the wealthy mistress of Belmont, explains to her maid, Nerissa, the restrictions placed upon her by her dead father’s will – ‘the will of a living daughter curbed by the will of a dead father’. (Note his portrait on the wall in the background.) She can only marry the man who solves the riddle set by her father about three caskets, each one made of gold, silver or lead.

vi

Two of Portia’s suitors (the Prince of Morocco, top, and the Prince of Arragon, below) attempt to solve the riddle.

Whoever opens the casket containing Portia’s portrait will win her as his wife. Morocco chooses gold; Arragon chooses silver. Much to Portia’s relief, they both fail.

vii

‘Our house is hell’. Jessica is Shylock’s only child and she finds life at home with her father very difficult. (Shakespeare does not show or tell what has happened to her mother.) Jessica has fallen in love with a Christian, Lorenzo, and plans to elope with him. She is relieved to escape from her home but her betrayal of her father, and her stealing of some of his wealth, send him into a grief-stricken rage.

viii

‘Hath not a Jew eyes?’ Shylock, bitter over the loss of his daughter and his hostile treatment by the Christians, tries to rationalise his feelings. He stresses the common humanity of all men, but then pledges to follow a course of action taught to him by the Christians – revenge! Antonio’s fragile finances put him within Shylock’s reach as he decides to enforce his ‘bond’, and pursue his ‘pound of flesh’.

▼

Bassanio has travelled to Belmont. Wary of the deceptive appearance of gold and silver, he correctly chooses the lead casket and claims his reward – Portia: ‘Myself, and what is mine, to you and yours / Is now converted.’ The couple are happy and look forward to their wedding.

ix

Shylock resolves to take the financially stricken Antonio to court to pursue the full terms of the contract. Since Antonio cannot repay the loan, the court assembles to judge if Shylock can cut the pound of flesh from Antonio. Portia (centre), disguised as the male legal expert Balthazar, appears at the trial to act for Antonio.

Portia (right, in this distinctive all-male production) pleads for Shylock to show mercy: ‘The quality of mercy is not strained … ’

x

▲ ‘You must prepare your bosom for his knife.’ Shylock is triumphant, anticipating

the shedding of Antonio’s blood and the gaining of his much-desired revenge.

xi

▼

‘Tarry a little … ’ At the last moment, Portia reveals a loophole in the contract that releases Antonio from the threat of death.

In addition, Shylock has half his wealth confiscated and must convert to Christianity or forfeit his life. He leaves the court a broken man.

▼ The final act moves back to Belmont to focus on reconciliation and harmony.

Lorenzo and Jessica (right) are joined by Bassanio and Portia (centre), and Nerissa and her recently acquired husband, Gratiano (left). Antonio (foreground), alone and isolated, reflects on the events of the play.

xii

T M  V

List of characters Venice Christians THE DUKE OF VENICE BASSANIO ANTONIO

a lord a merchant

SOLANIO SALARINO GRATIANO SALERIO

Friends of Antonio and Bassanio

LORENZO LANCELOT GOBBO GOBBO

servant first to Shylock, then to Bassanio

his father a messenger

STEPHANO JAILER

servant of Bassanio SERVINGMAN employed by Antonio LEONARDO

MAGNIFICOES OF VENICE COURT OFFICIALS

Jews

a rich money-lender JESSICA his daughter TUBAL his friend SHYLOCK

Belmont Portia’s household PORTIA a rich heiress NERISSA her lady-in-waiting BALTHAZAR her servant SERVINGMAN MESSENGER

Portia’s suitors THE PRINCE OF MOROCCO THE PRINCE OF ARRAGON

The action of the play takes place in Venice and Belmont.

1

Antonio says he does not know what causes his sadness. Salarino and Solanio suggest that he is worried about the safety of his ships, in which he has invested so much money.

sooth truth

Characters Focus on Antonio – why is he so sad?

The opening line of the play quickly establishes that Antonio, the Merchant of Venice, is in a melancholy mood. He goes on to explain how weary it makes him and how he is losing sight of who he really is.

But he is also puzzled by why he is sad. r As the first scene unfolds, compile a list of possible reasons for his sadness. At the end of the scene, the whole class pools its ideas. Start a Character file on Antonio and write down what you feel are the most interesting possibilities; amend and qualify them as the play unfolds. Link the points you make to quotations and other evidence from the script.

to learn ignorant And … myself sadness has made me so absent-minded that I hardly know who I am

argosies merchant ships portly stately signors gentlemen burghers important citizens pageants processions Do … traffickers look down on small boats

do them reverence show them respect

Stagecraft Where do they meet? Set the scene (in pairs) At the beginning of each scene a location is given (here it is simply ‘Venice’). But in Shakespeare’s theatre the action took place on a bare stage, with little or no scenery (see the illustration on p. 189).

Since Shakespeare’s day, each director of a stage production has had to make decisions about whether they will indicate precise locations. r Try your hand at scene-setting. Decide on a suitable place in Venice for the three friends’ meeting. Perhaps they meet in a house or an office, or in a public place such as a bar, a café or the Venetian Stock Exchange. Select your favourite suggestions. r Then imagine that you are preparing to direct a performance of The Merchant of Venice. Start your own Director’s Journal and write down your ideas under the heading ‘Scene-setting’. Use your journal to record further ideas about stagecraft as you go through the play.

2

venture forth trade ships at sea The better … affections most of my concern

still forever Plucking … wind throwing grass in the air to find the direction of the wind

Piring in looking closely at roads anchorages

The Merchant of Venice Act 1 Scene 1 Venice

Enter ANTONIO, SALARINO, and SOLANIO ANTONIO

SALARINO

SOLANIO

In sooth I know not why I am so sad.

It wearies me, you say it wearies you; But how I caught it, found it, or came by it, What stuff ’tis made of, whereof it is born, I am to learn.

And such a want-wit sadness makes of me, That I have much ado to know myself.

Your mind is tossing on the ocean, There where your argosies with portly sail Like signors and rich burghers on the flood, Or as it were the pageants of the sea, Do overpeer the petty traffickers That curtsey to them, do them reverence, As they fly by them with their woven wings.

Believe me, sir, had I such venture forth, The better part of my affections would Be with my hopes abroad. I should be still Plucking the grass to know where sits the wind, Piring in maps for ports, and piers, and roads; And every object that might make me fear Misfortune to my ventures, out of doubt Would make me sad.

5

10

15

20

3

Antonio says he is not worried about business matters. He has invested his money in several ships. That is much safer than relying on only one. He’s not in love either!

Write about it

wind breath blow … ague give me a fever

Disasters at sea Salarino says that if he were in Antonio’s situation, everything he did or saw would constantly remind him of all the disasters that might happen to his ships as they transported their valuable cargoes across the ocean. r Blowing his soup to cool it would make him think of the dangers of violent tempests (lines 22–4). r Watching the sand pass through an hourglass would remind him of a beached ship (lines 25–8). r Gazing at the stone walls of a church would make him imagine them as rocks on which the vessel might founder (lines 29–36).

Take each of these sections of the script in turn. Write advice for an actor about how to deliver the lines and about what gestures (or ‘stage business’) to add as he speaks his words. Add this advice to a new section in your Director’s Journal.

1 I’m not in love (by yourself )

wealthy Andrew the San Andrés (St Andrew), a valuable Spanish ship captured by the English in 1596 Vailing … top bowing down her mainmast

ribs the timber frame of the hull holy … stone the font Enrobe … silks dressing the raging sea with my cargo of silk but even now a moment ago

bottom ship

When Solanio implies that Antonio’s sadness is caused by being in love (line 46), Antonio is quick to deny it (‘Fie, fie!’). r Experiment with different ways of delivering these two words in order to bring out exactly how you think Antonio feels. For example, what might the brevity of his response suggest about his attitude to love – and to women? Show your favourite version to others in your class.

2 Janus: facing two ways (in pairs) The play contains many references to figures from classical mythology. Here, Solanio alludes to Janus, a Roman god who faced in two opposite directions at the same time. Solanio uses this reference to demonstrate his belief that all humans have the capacity to be happy and sad simultaneously. a First, have a go at drawing an image of Janus. Then talk together about what your drawing suggests about the world of Venetian males that Shakespeare creates at the start of the play. b Summarise your thinking in one written sentence, ready to share with other pairs.

Janus a Roman god who faced in two opposite directions

framed made peep … eyes squint through their eyes (because they have been narrowed by laughing)

laugh like parrots … bagpiper laugh inappropriately (i.e. parrots making laughing noises when they hear sad music)

vinegar aspèct sour looks Nestor a Greek king, famed for his seriousness

4

T M  V A  S 

SALARINO

ANTONIO

SOLANIO ANTONIO SOLANIO

My wind cooling my broth Would blow me to an ague when I thought What harm a wind too great might do at sea.

I should not see the sandy hourglass run But I should think of shallows and of flats, And see my wealthy Andrew docked in sand, Vailing her high top lower than her ribs To kiss her burial. Should I go to church And see the holy edifice of stone And not bethink me straight of dangerous rocks, Which touching but my gentle vessel’s side Would scatter all her spices on the stream, Enrobe the roaring waters with my silks, And (in a word) but even now worth this, And now worth nothing? Shall I have the thought To think on this, and shall I lack the thought That such a thing bechanced would make me sad?

But tell not me: I know Antonio Is sad to think upon his merchandise.

Believe me, no. I thank my fortune for it, My ventures are not in one bottom trusted, Nor to one place; nor is my whole estate Upon the fortune of this present year: Therefore my merchandise makes me not sad.

Why then, you are in love.

Fie, fie!

Not in love neither? Then let us say you are sad Because you are not merry; and ’twere as easy For you to laugh and leap, and say you are merry Because you are not sad. Now by two-headed Janus, Nature hath framed strange fellows in her time: Some that will evermore peep through their eyes, And laugh like parrots at a bagpiper; And other of such vinegar aspèct, That they’ll not show their teeth in way of smile Though Nestor swear the jest be laughable.

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

5

More friends arrive. One of them, Gratiano, comments on how careworn Antonio has become. He recommends laughter over misery and warns against false seriousness.

1 True friends? (in fours) The entrance of Bassanio and two friends, Lorenzo and Gratiano, can be used to change the mood of the scene. There are now six men on stage, but Salarino and Solanio quickly decide to leave when the others arrive.

What prompts their departure? Are there tensions between these two groups of friends? Or do you think their departure is entirely natural? r Take parts and read aloud lines 57–68. First, make the words friendly and polite; then play them in a manner that suggests some unpleasantness and mistrust. Decide which version you think is more effective and show it to the other groups in the class for comment.

Write about it

prevented me beaten me to it Your … regard you’re a good friend

embrace th’occasion take the opportunity

laugh meet up and have some fun strange unfriendly We’ll … yours our time is yours

Thoughts about Antonio (in pairs) What have Solanio and Salarino made of Antonio’s behaviour in the first part of the scene? Write their thoughts on taking their leave of him as a scripted conversation between the two men.

Use modern English.

You … world you care too much about what people think

Themes Appearance and reality: all the world’s a stage

take life too seriously lose the ability to enjoy it

Antonio’s lines 77–9 echo well-known words from Act 2 Scene 7 of Shakespeare’s As You Like It:

And … groans I’d rather

All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players: They have their exits and their entrances And one man in his time plays many parts Although Antonio views the part he currently has to play as ‘a sad one’, Gratiano makes it clear that he wants to ‘play the Fool’ (line 79).

Both men acknowledge that they live in a world where false actions and feelings are prominent. Gratiano’s long speech satirises (makes fun of) the ways in which many Elizabethan men pretend to be what they are not. r Read lines 88–99 and write an explanation for a younger student of exactly what Gratiano is saying. Add a paragraph discussing what the lines suggest about Gratiano’s character, his attitudes and his values.

6

They lose … care those who

cheer myself up with drink than weaken my heart with sighs and being miserable

Sit … alabaster be like his grandfather’s statue in the cemetery

creep … jaundice become a victim of disease

visages faces Do cream and mantle become still and covered over

do a wilful … wisdom remain stubbornly silent in order to appear wise

Oracle someone of infinite wisdom

when … bark let no inferior person dare interrupt me

T M  V A  S 

Enter BASSANIO, LORENZO, and GRATIANO

SALARINO ANTONIO

SALARINO BASSANIO SALARINO LORENZO

BASSANIO GRATIANO

ANTONIO

GRATIANO

Here comes Bassanio, your most noble kinsman, Gratiano, and Lorenzo. Fare ye well; We leave you now with better company.

I would have stayed till I had made you merry, If worthier friends had not prevented me.

Your worth is very dear in my regard.

I take it your own business calls on you, And you embrace th’occasion to depart.

Good morrow, my good lords.

Good signors both, when shall we laugh? Say, when?

You grow exceeding strange; must it be so?

We’ll make our leisures to attend on yours.

Exeunt Salarino and Solanio My Lord Bassanio, since you have found Antonio We two will leave you, but at dinner time I pray you have in mind where we must meet.

I will not fail you.

You look not well, Signor Antonio.

You have too much respect upon the world: They lose it that do buy it with much care.

Believe me, you are marvellously changed.

I hold the world but as the world, Gratiano: A stage where every man must play a part, And mine a sad one.

Let me play the Fool.

With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come, And let my liver rather heat with wine Than my heart cool with mortifying groans.

Why should a man whose blood is warm within Sit like his grandsire cut in alabaster?

Sleep when he wakes? And creep into the jaundice By being peevish? I tell thee what, Antonio – I love thee, and it is my love that speaks – There are a sort of men whose visages Do cream and mantle like a standing pond, And do a wilful stillness entertain, With purpose to be dressed in an opinion Of wisdom, gravity, profound conceit, As who should say, ‘I am Sir Oracle, And when I ope my lips, let no dog bark!’

60

65

70

75

80

85

90

7

Gratiano advises Antonio against using sadness to gain a reputation for wisdom. Antonio asks Bassanio whom he loves. Bassanio begins by explaining his plans to pay off his debts.

That therefore … nothing whose silence gains them a reputation for wisdom

damn … fools cause those listening to call them fools fish … opinion don’t use your sadness as bait to catch this stupid fish called reputation exhortation strongly offered advice

moe more ▲ Gratiano, Bassanio and Antonio pictured together in the opening scene.

Identify each of the three characters and justify your decision by linking it to evidence from the script. What do you make of the relationship between the three Christians that is presented in this image? Write a couple of sentences in response.

gear advice (or business) neat’s tongue dried cured ox tongue (with a secondary meaning of ‘sexually impotent old man’)

vendible desirable

Characters First impressions of Bassanio (in small groups) a Bassanio’s first words in the play are a mocking put-down of his ‘friend’ Gratiano. Talk together about whether you think Gratiano deserves Bassanio’s scornful judgement. Why, or why not? b When he is invited by Antonio to speak about the ‘lady’ he’s in love with, Bassanio answers by talking extensively about his debts.

He has spent all his money and owes a great deal. One person reads aloud lines 121–33. The others echo every word that is connected with money or financial transactions. Afterwards, talk together about: r what the ‘echoing’ activity and the lines suggest about Bassanio’s attitude to wealth r your response to Bassanio’s lines suggesting that his ‘secret pilgrimage’ is simply a ploy to ‘get clear of all the debts I owe’. c On your own, write a few sentences giving your initial assessment of Bassanio’s character. Display your evaluation of Bassanio on a large sheet of paper and add to it as you read on.

8

secret pilgrimage journey of love

disabled mine estate overspent my fortune

By something … continuance by enjoying a standard of living I could not afford

Nor … rate I don’t complain about having to economise prodigal wasteful gaged owing from … purposes because of our friendship I owe you an explanation

T M  V A  S 

LORENZO

GRATIANO ANTONIO GRATIANO

ANTONIO BASSANIO

ANTONIO

BASSANIO

O my Antonio, I do know of these That therefore only are reputed wise For saying nothing; when I am very sure If they should speak, would almost damn those ears Which, hearing them, would call their brothers fools.

I’ll tell thee more of this another time.

But fish not with this melancholy bait For this fool gudgeon, this opinion.

Come, good Lorenzo. Fare ye well awhile; I’ll end my exhortation after dinner.

Well, we will leave you then till dinner time.

I must be one of these same dumb wise men, For Gratiano never lets me speak.

Well, keep me company but two years moe, Thou shalt not know the sound of thine own tongue.

Farewell; I’ll grow a talker for this gear.

Thanks, i’faith, for silence is only commendable In a neat’s tongue dried, and a maid not vendible.

Exeunt [Gratiano and Lorenzo] It is that anything now.

Gratiano speaks an infinite deal of nothing, more than any man in all Venice. His reasons are as two grains of wheat hid in two bushels of chaff: you shall seek all day ere you find them, and when you have them they are not worth the search.

Well, tell me now what lady is the same To whom you swore a secret pilgrimage That you today promised to tell me of. ’Tis not unknown to you, Antonio, How much I have disabled mine estate By something showing a more swelling port Than my faint means would grant continuance.

Nor do I now make moan to be abridged From such a noble rate, but my chief care Is to come fairly off from the great debts Wherein my time, something too prodigal, Hath left me gaged. To you, Antonio, I owe the most in money and in love, And from your love I have a warranty To unburden all my plots and purposes How to get clear of all the debts I owe.

95

100

105

110

115

120

125

130

9

Antonio is ready to help Bassanio, whatever the circumstances. Bassanio explains that he wishes to marry Portia, a wealthy heiress. Rich and famous men from all over the world come to woo her.

1 Antonio: reckless devotion? (in pairs) In lines 134–8, Antonio offers to do everything in his power to help his friend Bassanio. a Take it in turns to read the lines aloud. Then discuss whether Antonio is being foolish in offering to bail out his friend again, after the way Bassanio has wasted Antonio’s money before. Does Bassanio’s honest admission that he has behaved like a ‘wilful youth’ really excuse his previous mistakes? b One of you is Antonio, the other a friend he goes to for advice.

Improvise a conversation in which you discuss Bassanio’s situation and his requests for further credit.

And if … honour and if it’s honourable, as you are

My purse … occasions everything I have is at your disposal

shaft arrow his fellow … flight an identical arrow

advisèd careful proof experience like a wilful … lost like a stupid boy, I’ve lost every penny I’ve borrowed from you

Characters First impressions of Portia (in small groups, then by yourself ) In lines 160–71, the audience first hears of Portia. Bassanio uses stories of ancient Greece and Rome to praise her. He compares her (line 165) to Portia, the daughter of Cato, a famous Roman politician, and the wife of Brutus, the ‘honourable man’ who was one of Julius Caesar’s assassins. Bassanio also sees her as a rich prize (see ‘Characters’, p. 177, on the position of women in Elizabethan society), like the Golden Fleece the Greek hero Jason sought in Colchis (see ‘The language of The Merchant of Venice’, p. 181). These references suggest that Bassanio is an educated man and that Portia is a lady of high social status. a Read aloud lines 160–71. Each person reads up to a punctuation mark, then hands on to the next. Emphasise all the words and phrases Bassanio uses to praise Portia.

hazard risk

To wind … circumstance to make use of my love for you in a roundabout way

In … uttermost by doubting my limitless help

prest unto forced into a lady richly left a rich heiress

b Working on your own: r Use Bassanio’s description to write a paragraph giving your own impressions of Portia. Include a comment about the impact of Bassanio’s use of classical references in describing her. r Suggest at least two possible reasons why Shakespeare chose to have Bassanio begin the description of Portia by explaining that she is ‘a lady richly left’. r Finally, write a sentence explaining why you think Shakespeare has Bassanio describe Portia at this point, even though she is not introduced into the play until the following scene.

10

Renownèd suitors famous men who want to marry her

T M  V A  S 

ANTONIO

BASSANIO

ANTONIO

BASSANIO

I pray you, good Bassanio, let me know it, And if it stand as you yourself still do Within the eye of honour, be assured My purse, my person, my extremest means Lie all unlocked to your occasions.

In my schooldays, when I had lost one shaft, I shot his fellow of the selfsame flight The selfsame way, with more advisèd watch To find the other forth; and by adventuring both I oft found both. I urge this childhood proof Because what follows is pure innocence.

I owe you much, and like a wilful youth That which I owe is lost; but if you please To shoot another arrow that self way Which you did shoot the first, I do not doubt, As I will watch the aim, or to find both Or bring your latter hazard back again And thankfully rest debtor for the first.

You know me well, and herein spend but time To wind about my love with circumstance; And out of doubt you do me now more wrong In making question of my uttermost Than if you had made waste of all I have.

Then do but say to me what I should do That in your knowledge may by me be done, And I am prest unto it: therefore speak.

In Belmont is a lady richly left, And she is fair, and – fairer than that word – Of wondrous virtues. Sometimes from her eyes I did receive fair speechless messages.

Her name is Portia, nothing undervalued To Cato’s daughter, Brutus’ Portia.

Nor is the wide world ignorant of her worth; For the four winds blow in from every coast Renownèd suitors, and her sunny locks Hang on her temples like a golden fleece, Which makes her seat of Belmont Colchos’ strand, And many Jasons come in quest of her.

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Antonio’s cash is tied up in his ships, but he allows Bassanio to borrow money on his behalf. In Belmont, Portia complains that her dead father’s will prevents her from choosing her own husband.

Themes The conflict of love and money

I … thrift I feel I’m going to make

The opening scene contains many references to a major theme of the play: the clash between the pursuit of love and the desire for wealth. In Bassanio’s pursuit of Portia, the two come together.

at sea invested in my ships commodity goods

r Find quotations in Scene 1 that highlight the importance of love or money. In each case, explain what the quotation suggests about the speaker’s attitude to either love or money. Then write a paragraph exploring the conflicting viewpoints presented.

Stagecraft

a huge profit

racked even to the uttermost stretched to the limit

furnish thee provide for you to go presently immediately To have … sake on my credit or for the sake of friendship

Belmont: Portia’s home The action of the play must move swiftly from the financial, all-male world of the public places of Venice to the female world of Belmont (literally ‘fair mountain’), which is Portia’s home. a Using the illustration of Shakespeare’s stage on page 189, suggest a few simple ways to convey to an Elizabethan audience that this next scene takes place in ‘the garden of Portia’s house’. b Think about how you might evoke the wealth and splendour of Portia’s home in a modern production. Study the images on pages vi, 90,165 and 183, then write up or sketch your design ideas in your Director’s Journal. c As you read on, look out for the way Shakespeare alternates scenes that are played out in public areas in Venice, and those that have intimate domestic locations. Can you think of any reasons why the play might unfold like this?

1 Portia’s weariness – like Antonio’s sadness? (in pairs)

troth faith

surfeit overfeed seated in the mean of average wealth

superfluity … longer too much good living ages us; having just enough makes us live longer

divine priest The brain … decree the head is

Portia’s opening words in Scene 2 echo Antonio’s at the start of Scene 1.

overruled by the heart

r Share a quick reading of Scene 2 and identify possible reasons for Portia’s comment that she is ‘aweary of this great world’. (For example, Nerissa tells Portia that riches don’t bring happiness: people can be made sick by having too much.) Compare your conclusions about Portia’s state of mind with your observations about Antonio’s sadness in the first scene.

meshes nets

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But … husband all this talking won’t help me find a man

T M  V A  S 

ANTONIO

O my Antonio, had I but the means To hold a rival place with one of them, I have a mind presages me such thrift That I should questionless be fortunate.

Thou know’st that all my fortunes are at sea; Neither have I money nor commodity To raise a present sum; therefore go forth, Try what my credit can in Venice do, That shall be racked even to the uttermost To furnish thee to Belmont to fair Portia.

Go presently enquire, and so will I, Where money is, and I no question make To have it of my trust or for my sake.

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Exeunt

Act 1 Scene 2

Belmont The garden of Portia’s house Enter PORTIA and NERISSA PORTIA NERISSA

PORTIA NERISSA PORTIA

By my troth, Nerissa, my little body is aweary of this great world.

You would be, sweet madam, if your miseries were in the same abundance as your good fortunes are; and yet for aught I see, they are as sick that surfeit with too much as they that starve with nothing. It is no mean happiness, therefore, to be seated in the mean – superfluity comes sooner by white hairs, but competency lives longer.

Good sentences, and well pronounced.

They would be better if well followed.

If to do were as easy as to know what were good to do, chapels had been churches, and poor men’s cottages princes’ palaces. It is a good divine that follows his own instructions; I can easier teach twenty what were good to be done, than be one of the twenty to follow mine own teaching. The brain may devise laws for the blood, but a hot temper leaps o’er a cold decree – such a hare is madness the youth, to skip o’er the meshes of good counsel the cripple. But this reasoning is not in the fashion to choose me a husband. O me, the word ‘choose’! I may neither choose who I would, nor refuse who I dislike, so is the will of a living daughter curbed by the will of a dead father. Is it not hard, Nerissa, that I cannot choose one, nor refuse none?

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