Antonio in The Merchant of Venice

I still can’t decide whether or not I liked Antonio. He seemed to be an honest and successful businessman the The Merchant of Venice, but on the other hand I think he’s rather unwise. Antonio was an Italian merchant—or a businessman would be more suitable. He had a number of ships to carry his commodities. Apart from it, he was famous for lending money without interest. I don’t know why he’s doing that, for charity? Did he do it only to help friends? In that case, he might have had a lot of friends, because who didn’t want to be his friend for such generosity? But as a businessman, I think that was unwise. I prefer a man who could separate his business and personal side.

Anyway, Antonio has agreed to help his best friend Bassanio. In order to propose to a wealthy girl he loved, Bassanio needed a large amount of money, this lead him to do business with Shylock, a wicked Jewish money lender. When Shylock hesitated to lend the money, Antonio came and guaranteed the credit with his commodities that were expected to arrive within sometimes. Unfortunately a catastrophe caused Antonio to lost all his ships; he was about to fail settling the debt, and Shylock—who had been hated Antonio since long—saw an opportunity to crush his enemy in front of the court.

[source] 

I started to dislike Antonio when he helplessly submitted himself in front of the court, as if he would accepted anything Shylock would ask from him because he could not pay the debt. At this, I just wanted to yell at him, ‘Oh come on Antonio…you’re a businessman, right? Think of something, can’t you just borrow money from your business partners? Of all the money you lend them, can’t you ask some of them to pay some amount in advance? Can’t you borrow from your customers? Businessman should have been creative in things like this. What a businessman were you, that one loss had made you surrendered your life to a villain like Shylock?’

Really, Antonio shouldn’t be called a successful businessman in the first place! He kept accepted Shylock’s request in front of the judge. But look what happened when Portia came to the rescue and reversed the situation; Antonio forced Shylock to become a Christian. I did not understand him (Antonio), he seemed to be a generous person (lending money to friends needed help) without interest, as if he was a good Christian; but on the other hand he forced Shylock to change his religion.

I could not sum up at the end, what Antonio’s personalities were; was he a good businessman or merely a stupid man? One thing is clear, he is dear to his friends…

Portia in The Merchant of Venice

Portia is a daughter of a wealthy man; she is an intelligent and independent young man, a rare kind of her sex—I believe—at the era when Shakespeare wrote The Merchant of Venice. From her earliest appearance in the play, I could sense a strong will and wise thinking from Portia. Her late father had set up a game competition for her suitors, to decide who would be her husband.

Although Portia thought the game was nonsense—she had had found herself a man she loved—she never disobeyed her father, although he had been died at that time. One by one her suitors came to try their luck, and during those times it was obvious that Portia was much wiser and smarter than all those men. She could see and judge each of their personalities.

Source: Giclee Print by Walter Paget 

Her remarkable intelligence showed when Portia set up a plan to help relieving Antonio—her husband’s (Bassanio) friend—from the wicked Jewish’s (Shylock) debt trap. Alone Portia dressed like a male judge to interfere with the judgment of the case. Without Portia’s help, I believe Antonio would have been died. Here Portia showed her genius way of thinking—I wonder how she learned law, but in fact there were more logic than the law itself in her defense.

Portia & Shylock at the court

In short, Portia was a woman who did not think her being a female as a restriction to her life. She knew what she wanted, and she did everything she could to achieve that. However, with all her advantages, she still respect male’s authority—her father, her husband. She just wanted to do things her own way. That makes me liked Portia very much! The first female character I love from Shakespeare’s plays, maybe because she’s very similar to myself…

Plays Monthly Meme December Prompt: Costume [The Merchant of Venice]

I think one of the most interesting aspects of Shakespeare’s plays was costumes. And thanks to Listra’s Plays Monthly Meme dedicated for Let’s Read Plays, we have the chance to post about it. I always admire original costumes for movies or stages, and therefore have browsed some costumes for The Merchant of Venice (the comedy I read for this month) both from original stage performances and illustration, just for comparison (it’s fun, anyway!)

PORTIA

Portia, played by Kate Dolan. 

Painting by Sir John Everett Millais, 1886

From the stage of:

The Merchant of Venice, 2010. 

(Copyright 2010 Utah Shakespeare Festival. Photo by Karl Hugh)

Shakespearean Festival, Cedar City, Utah, on July 2nd, 2010

Directed by Sharon Ott, Costumes by David Kay Mickelsen

From what I gathered about Italian women's attire at 17th century, the stage costume photo is more fit for Portia than the painting (although Portia in the painting looks more classy and elegant).

SHYLOCK

played by Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree
Painting by Charles Buchel, 1914

From the stage of:

The Merchant of Venice, 2010. 

(Copyright 2010 Utah Shakespeare Festival. Photo by Karl Hugh)

Shakespearean Festival, Cedar City, Utah, on July 2nd, 2010

Directed by Sharon Ott, Costumes by David Kay Mickelsen

Although both costumes are similar, I think Shylock looked like some kind of witch in the painting, I think the stage photo is more probable.

JESSICA

Painting by Samuel Luke Fildes, 

from Shakespeare Illustrated, 1888

From the stage of:

The Merchant of Venice, 2010. (Copyright 2010 Utah Shakespeare Festival. Photo by Karl Hugh)

Shakespearean Festival, Cedar City, Utah, on July 2nd, 2010

Directed by Sharon Ott, Costumes by David Kay Mickelsen

I don't know which one suits most for a Jewish girl, but I definitely like the painting better... :)

....And while we are talking about costumes, these are more exotic costumes of Portia's exotic suitors...

PRINCE OF MOROCCO

Percy Macquoid (1852-1925)

Costume design for The Merchant of Venice, 1908

PRINCE OF ARAGON

From the stage of:

The Merchant of Venice, 2010. (Copyright 2010 Utah Shakespeare Festival. Photo by Karl Hugh)

Shakespearean Festival, Cedar City, Utah, on July 2nd, 2010

Directed by Sharon Ott, Costumes by David Kay Mickelsen

What have you found for the costumes of play you've read this month? Share with us!

The Merchant Of Venice

The Merchant of Venice was the second comedy I have read from Shakespeare’s plays. After successively read two tragedies, it’s quite relieving to flow with a lighter story, with beautiful words. The main plot of this play was concerning Antonio—an honorable Venetian merchant—who wanted to help his dear friend Bassanio to pursue his love for a wealthy girl named Portia. Antonio agreed to be Bassanio’s guarantor as the later took a credit from a cunning Jewish moneylender named Shylock.

Being a Christian hater—especially to Antonio who always lent money gratis—Shylock was full of joy when he found out that Antonio’s ships had wrecked at the sea, that he won’t be able to pay back the money. Wanted to take revenge to Antonio, Shylock sued Antonio in court to be cut his flesh for exchange of the money.

Meanwhile, with the money from Shylock, Bassanio had departed to Belmont to enter a contest set by the late of Portia’s father to get a husband for his daughter. A suitor who could choose the right casket from three choices would become Portia’s husband. It was a great test indeed, for Portia was very rich, that his father was afraid she would get a greedy man as a husband.

And between those two situations, Shakespeare crafted witty and interesting scenes and acts to become this beautiful play.

This is the third play I read for Let’s Read Plays and I found at least one similarity from those three, that the servants—despite of being secondary characters—were wiser than their masters or mistresses, and the main characters often learned from them. Here is when Nerissa taught her lady, Portia, about how the balance of trouble and happiness would make live longer.

“It is no mean happiness, therefore, to be seated in the mean.

Superfluity comes sooner by white hairs, but competency lives longer.”

It’s interesting too how Shakespeare picked a Jewish as the stereotype antagonist; I wonder whether it did not stir many controversies from Jewish readers? Another thing, being a comedy, this play still made me a bit uncomfortable when Antonio asked Shylock to be a Christian (Act IV Scene I). When Antonio was asked by Portia: “What mercy can you render him, Antonio?” he replied: “..Two things provided more: that for this favor he presently become a Christian…” I could not understand how forcing somebody to have one’s religion can be regarded as a mercy. And that request changed my respect to Antonio.

Besides that annoyance, I found this play quite entertaining, especially whenever Launcelot was in the scenes, such as this one (talking to Gobbo—his father):

Gobbo: “..what a beard hast thou got! Thou hast got more hair on thy chin than Dobbin my fill-horse has on his tail.”
Launcelot: “It should seem then that Dobbin’s tail grows backward. I am sure he had more hair of his tail than I have of my face when I last saw him.”

Over all, Merchant of Venice was an exotic and intriguing play; it criticized men’s greediness. I found it funny in Portia’s father casket contest, and a bit tragic in Shylock’s judgment. Four stars for Mrchant of Venice!

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