Venice As Far As Belmont The Play example essay topic

The play, ^The Merchant of Venice^ by William Shakespeare has two main settings. One setting is Venice, a city where many businessmen live, a place full of unhappy and unkind people. It a world of commercial and law. Venice has been portrait ed by Shakespeare as the ^real^ world. The other setting is Belmont, a city which houses a rich, happy and sophisticated society of beautiful people. Belmont is a fairy-tale world of music and love.

In this play it is evident that, good things occur in Belmont and not so pleasant events take place in Venice. In the very first line of the play, Antonio, a rich merchant of Venice is moved to complain: ^In sooth, I know not why I am so sad^ (I. 1), this shows that money and wealth has not brought happiness to this man. Shylock, a wealthy businessman who lives in Venice is not happy because he is an outsider and he is treated badly because of his Jewish religion. ^I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions^ ( .

1) All his money could not buy him the happiness he wanted. Shylock^s daughter Jessica, in her opening lines, exclaims that ^Our house is hell. ^ (II. 3) This is a woman who belongs to the privileged leisure class of Venice but still she is not happy, even with all that money she possessed. This rich society of Venice is pathetically dependant on money for support and satisfaction but it still does not bring them to happiness.

Belmont consists of a more happier society. The young people there play tricks on each other, wittiness and humour is part of their daily life style in Belmont. Portia, a beautiful, rich young woman who lives in Belmont enjoy playing light-hearted tricks on others for amusement, and everybody has a good laugh at th end. She plays a trick on her own husband, Bassanio, by dressing up as a lawyer and taking away the ring she herself gave him when they got married. She had made him promise that he would never take it off, loose it or give it away. Afterwards when Portia asks Bassanio of the ring, he has to confess that he gave it away to a lawyer as a reward for saving his best friend from an important court case.

Then she pretends to be very hurt and offended by his lack of love, faith and honour towards her by saying: ^If you had known the virtues of the ring, or half her worthiness that gave the ring, or your own honour to contain the ring, you would have not parted with! the ring. ^ (V. 1) But then laughingly she reveals the truth as to who the lawyer really was. All the people present at the scene were amused and they all enjoyed the light-hearted trick played on Bassanio by his own wife. Evidently people are happier in Belmont. As shown in the play Venetians are unkind people. ^... you spit on me on Wednesday last; you spurn^d me such a day; another time you call^d me dog^ (I. 3) says Shylock the Jewish businessman addressing Antonio, a Christian Venitian who has been so cruel to him simply because he^s a Jew.

Also the people in Venice mock and laugh at Shylock when his daughter eloped with his money to marry a Christian. Salar ino and Sala nio make fun of him by saying ^... the dog Jew did utter in the streets: ^My daughter! O my ducats! O my daughter! Fled with a Christian! O my Christian ducats!

Justice! the law! my ducats, and my daughter! ... ^ all the boys in Venice follow him, crying, his stones, his daughter and his ducats^ (II. 8) They had no sympathy towards the man who has just lost his only family and his precious money. Maybe he is greedy, but it was still his money and one would expect people to feel sorry for him but they were even more cruel to him by laughing at his losses. Even though one should feel sorry for Shylock, he himself is a very cruel and vindictive man.

He hates Antonio and all Christians and when he got the opportunity to take revenge he was more than prepared to do so. He and Antonio had a bond which stated that if Antonio was not able to pay off the debt of three thousand ducats he borrowed from Shylock within three months, he would have to pay the debt by letting Shylock cut a pound of flesh from his body close to the heart. When Antonio^s ships were lost and he was not able to pay off the debt Shylock rejoiced in his lose. ^... other men have ill luck too: Antonio, as I heard in Genoa, ... hath an argosy cast away, coming from Tripoli's^ ( . 1) said Tubal, a friend of Shylock^s informing him about Antonio^s misfortune. Shylock rejoices saying ^I thank God, I thank God... I thank thee good Tubal: good news, good news! ha, ha!

... I^m am very glad of it: I^ll plague him; I^ll torture him: I^m glad of it^ ( . 1) This! shows that he was a horrible man. Later when he was offered the money, he refuses saying that he would rather have Antonio^s flesh than money ^When I was with him I have heard him swear to Tubal and to Ch us, his countrymen, that he would rather have Antonio^s flesh than twenty times the value of the sum that he did owe him^ ( . 2) says Jessica, Shylock^s daughter informing Bassanio and Portia how much of a cruel man her father really is.

These unkind attitudes of Venitian have originated from Venice being a commercial city of trade and business. People are untrustworthy and cunning. People who live here have to be aware of their fellow citizens, thus they have developed a un trusting, unkind attitude towards others. People who live in Belmont are kind and helpful. When Portia learns that Bassanio^s best friend, Antonio would have to fulfil a bond between him and a Jewish businessman by giving him a pound of flesh from his body because of not being able to pay off the debt; without hesitation she gives Bassanio the money to go and save him, ^you shall have gold to pay the petty debt twenty times over^ ( . 2) says Portia giving him more than that was needed.

She also postpones her honeymoon and urges Bassanio to return at once to his friend. This shows that she was a kind young woman who sincerely cared for this man^s life, a person she has never met. Later, Portia dresses up as a lawyer and saves Antonio from getting a pound of flesh cut off his body as the bond stated. She and her maid Nerissa went through the trouble of travelling to Venice from Belmont to save Antonio and they never took money as a reward for their good work. Portia was thoroughly unselfish. Although she has never met Antonio, she does not hesitate to risk all in order to save him.

These kind attitudes are practised in Belmont because it^s a clam and quite place which houses happy and sincere people. The laws of Venice are very strict and cruel. At the trial Portia recalls the law by which an alien who plots against the life of a Venetian, is liable to forfeit his life and goods ^Tarry Jew: The law hath yet another hold on you. It is enacted in the laws of Venice, if it be proved against an alien that by direct or indirect attempts he seeks the life of any citizen the party ^against the which he doth contrive shall seize one half his goods; the other half comes to the privy coffer of the state; and the offender^s life lies in the mercy of the duke only, ... ^ The laws of Venice were against a foreigner but if Shylock was a citizen of Venice it would have not been ordered by the court that all his lands and money be taken away from him.

Also the Venetian laws accepted the inhumane bond between Shylock and Antonio which stated that Antonio will get a pound of flesh cut off his body if he doesn^t pay off the debt on time. The law of Venice allowed Antonio to declare in the court of justice that as a punishment for trying to seize a life of a citizen of Venice, Shylock becomes a Christian, ^... that, for his favour, he presently become a Christian^ The final act opens at Belmont. Music sounds and we know that all is well with the world again. The act ends happily with all the lovers reunited, Bassanio with Portia, Gratia no with Nerissa and Jessica with Lorenzo. There is no place for Shylock in Belmont, he is a man who hates music and festivals ^the man that hath no music in himself, not is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils; the motions of his spirit are dull as night and his affections dark as Erebus: let no such man be trusted^ (V. 1) He is an alien to the generous world of music, nightingales and moonlit lovers. Even Antonio, who is a Venitian seems rather silent and not at ease in the magical world of Belmont.

In this play, Venice is pot rated to be the ^real^ world. It^s where bad events take place. Shylock looses all his properties in Venice ^you take my life when you do take the means whereby I live^ (IV. 1), Antonio almost gets killed ^he seeks my life^ ( . 3), Jessica and Lorenzo ran away from Venice ^In such a night did Jessica steal from the wealthy Jew and with an unthrift love did run from Venice as far as Belmont^ (V. 1) In Venice Bassanio has to decide whether keeping his wife^s ring and his promise not to ever take it off or giving it away as a reward to the Doctor of Laws for saving his friend^s life is the most important thing. ^Good sir, this ring was given me by my wife; and when she put it on, she made me vow that I should neither sell nor give nor lose it.

^ (IV. 1) Bassanio may have wooed Portia without pain in the magic world of Belmont; but marriage and commitment are different matters and must be tested in the real world of Venice. Above all, Venice is the city of gloom and pain and it has much to learn from the love which governs Belmont. When one recalls what happened in Belmont, it seems, at times, like a fairy-tale come true.

A poor young nobleman comes to the city of Belmont, in hope of marrying a fair and wealthy maiden. He has to choose between three caskets set by the beautiful maiden^s dead father, to win her hand in marriage. This is the world of the fairy-tale, in which everything happens in groups of three. Throughout the world in fairy-tales, lovers are subjected to triple tests and the third attempt is always lucky. Also, in the radiational fairy-tale, those who foolishly identify themselves with wealth or riches are taught a bitter lesson. So, the Prince of Arragon and Morocco who chose the costly metals of gold and silver leave the scene as presumptuous fools.

The unaffected but handsome Bassanio, who risks all on the lead casket ^who choose th me must give and hazard all he hath^ (II. 7, II. 9), receives the fitting reward for his wisdom and humility. Also the young lovers Lorenzo and Jessica! run away from Venice and come to Belmont to start a new and happy life together ^In such a night did Jessica steal from the wealthy Jew and with an unthrift love did run from Venice as far as Belmont^ (V. 1) The play ends happily in Belmont. So at the end, those who deserve happiness finds it in this magical fair-tale city of Belmont. by Nim andra de J. Seneviratne.