The Merchant of Venice

Act I Scene 2
Context Questions

1. (i) Portia has just said that she can neither choose the one she likes nor refuse the one
she dislikes because the choice of her husband depends on the lottery of caskets devised
according to her late father’s will.

(ii) The lottery refers to the choice of the right casket containing Portia’s portrait from
among the three caskets of gold, silver and lead. The suitor who will make the right
choice as per the will of Portia‘s father will win her in marriage.

(iii) Initially, Portia appears to be anxious over the prospect of choosing her husband
through a lottery devised according to her father’s will. She feels sad as she can neither
choose the one she likes nor refuse the one she dislike as a her husband. But later on she
accepts her father’s will. She says that she would remain a virgin like Diana unless she is
won in marriage by some suitor fulfilling the conditions of her father’s will. Nerissa’s
reaction to the lottery was positive. She calls Portia’s father pious and asserts that good
men do have inspirations at the time of death. She consoles Portia by saying that she will
be chosen correctly by a person whom she truly loves.

(iv) These lines mean that Portia will be chosen correctly by a person whom she truly
loves.

(v) Portia’s melancholy is the result of her anxiety over the prospect of her future
husband while the cause of Antonio’s melancholy is unknown.

2. (i) Portia and Nerissa are in a room in Portia’s house at Belmont. They are discussing
the lottery of caskets and about the suitors who have already come to try their luck. In
this scene, Portia is in a mood of melancholy and anxiety.

(ii) County Palatine was the Count from Palatinate, the region on the west bank of the
Rhine in Germany. He was a powerful lord who had come to Belmont to win Portia’s
hand.

(iii) The first prince described by Portia is the Neapolitan prince from Naples, Italy.
Portia describes him as a dashing youngster and as wild as a young horse. He does
nothing but talks of his horse.
He further considers his ability to shoe a horse himself as a great accomplishment.

(iv) The weeping philosopher refers to Heraclitus of Ephesus. He was a Greek

philosopher who lamented the stupidity and folly of mankind and wept at everything in
the world. Portia refers to him to describe County Palatine. It means ‘a skull with a bone
in its mouth‘. The emblem of a skull with
two bones crossed underneath was usually known as “death‘s head“
.
(v) County Palatine is described as a gloomy and self-conceited person. He is always
frowning as if to say that if Portia will not marry him, she may choose someone else. He
is morose and sullen that even jovial stories don‘t make him laugh. Portia feels that since
he has an abrupt manner of speech and is usually gloomy in his young age, he may
become a sad philosopher like Heraclitus when he grows old.

3. (i) Earlier Portia described the Neapolitan prince as wild as a young horse and so
attached to his horse that he always spoke about the horse only. The Count Palatine and
Le Bon share the common
characteristic of frowning.

(ii) he is every man in no man : He has every man’s characteristics but no personality of
his own.

(iii) When he hears the singing of a thrush, the French Lord starts jumping immediately.

(iv) (a) It would be as if she were married to twenty husbands as he is never one man but
twenty men by turns.

(b) If he were to despise Portia, Portia would not be in the least angry and would forgive
him.

(c) Portia could never return his love since she could never possibly love twenty
husbands.

(v) Portia says that the French Lord is more attached to his horse than the Neapolitan
Prince and excels Count Palatine in frowning. If he hears a thrush singing, he starts
jumping immediately. Further, if he does not have anybody to fence with, he will take his
own shadow as adversary.

4. (i) The baron’s external appearance is described as odd and strange. He is oddly
dressed and very odd in behaviour too. He wears an Italian jacket and breeches in the
French fashion. He seems to have got his hat from Germany and his manners from
everywhere. Englishmen of Shakespeare’s days had fondness for the manners and clothes
of foreigners.

(ii) Portia’s statement that the Englishman did not know Latin, French or Italian shows
that he had very poor knowledge of European Languages. Portia found it difficult to
converse with him as he did
not know Latin, French or Italian and Portia’s knowledge of Englishwas very poor.

(iii) (a) He is a proper man’s picture: He is handsome and fine-looking.

(b) How oddly he is suited!: He is dressed very strangely.

(iv) The word dumb-show refers to a play in which all characters act without speaking,
that is by gestures. A pantomime is a dumb-show. The baron is described as a ‘dumb-
show’ because he is unable to speak foreign languages and had to converse by means of
signs as in a dumb-show.

(v) The Scottish Lord is not impressive. Portia speaks about his cowardice in a sarcastic
way by calling him kind-hearted as he did not return the Englishman’s blow immediately.
The description of the Sottish Lord is a reference to the frequent alliances between the
Scots and the French against England when Scotland was at war with England.

5. (i) When sober, the young German is less than a man in behavior and when drunk he is
no better than a beast. If the worse happens to Portia, she will manage to do without him.

(ii) (a) When he is drunk, he is no better than a beast.

(b) Place a tall goblet of Rhenish wine on the wrong casket.

(iii) To prevent the young German from choosing the right casket, Portia instructed
Nerissa to place a tall goblet of Rhenish wine on the wrong casket. Portia was sure that
the German suitor will not be able to resist the temptation of his national drink even if the
picture of the devil himself was within.

(iv) A sponge constantly absorbs water. Similarly, a drunkard, who constantly takes
liquor is called a ‘sponge’. Since the young German is a drunkard, Portia calls him a
‘sponge’.

(v) Nerissa tells Portia to set aside her fears concerning the suitors. She says that they
have informed her of their decision to go back home and not to press their courtship
further unless Portia’s father’s decree concerning the caskets can be set aside and they
may woo her in an ordinary way. Nerissa’s concern for Portia comes forth in her speech
as she tries to sooth Portia’s troubled mind due to her unworthy suitors.

6. (i) Portia’s father’s will was that her marriage will be decided by the lottery of the
three caskets. The suitor, who chooses the right casket containing Portia’s picture will be
her husband.
(ii) In Ovid’s metamorphoses, Sibylla was a prophetess. She was granted a wish by
goddess Apollo that she would live for as many years as the grains of sand she held in her
hand. She was the ageless old woman. Diana was the goddess of moon and hunting. She
is known as the virgin goddess. They are referred to here to explain Portia’s resolve to
remain a virgin like Diana even if she lives to be as old as Sibyl of Cumae unless she is
won in marriage by some suitor in the lottery of caskets.

(iii) To introduce Bassanio, Nerissa recalls the visit of a young Venetian along with the
Marquis of Montferrat, when Portia’s father as alive. He was a scholar and a soldier. In
this scene, Portia’s
feelings for Bassanio are quite positive. She recalls his name and tells Nerissa that he
fully deserves her praise. Her simple reply shows that she is already in love with
Bassanio.

(iv) The opening of the first two scenes of Act I gives the plots of the play. The two main
plots of the play are the bond-story and the casket-story. The bond-story is initiated in
Scene 1 while the casketstory

(v) The six suitors given in this scene are:

(a) The Neapolitan Prince from Naples, Italy, was a dashing youngster, as wild as a
horse. He always talked about his horse.
(b) The County Palatine was always frowning and unusually gloomy.

(c) Monsieur Le Bon from France, had the characteristic of every man and had no
personality of his own.

(d) Mr. Falconbridge from England, though handsome was strangely and unmannerly
dressed and did not know Latin, French or Italian.

(e) The Scottish Lord, was a coward and did not repay the Englishman who gave him a
blow.

(f) The Duke of Saxony was a drunkard. He in his sober moments, behaved less than a
man and when drunk no better than a beast.
 The Merchant of Venice
Act I Scene 3
Context Questions

1. (i) Antonio is bound to a bond according to which if he fails to repay the amount in due
time, Shylock will be entitled to take an exact pound of flesh from any part of Antonio’s
body that he may wish. It was very unwise of Antonio to misjudge Shylock’s intentions
and sign such a fatal bond.

(ii) Can you help me and will you do me this favour?

(iii) When Shylock says that Antonio is a good man, he means that Antonio is a reliable
man, whose surety is sufficient to give a loan.

(iv) Shylock enumerates the possible dangers to Antonio’s merchandise — ships being
only planks of wood are apt to be broken; the mariners being merely human beings, are
liable to be drowned; there are pirates on the waters; and there are all the dangers of the
ocean from the gales, tempests and dangerous rocks.

(v) Antonio can be considered as a prudent businessman as his wealth is distributed over
the whole world. One of Antonio’s ship is on its journey to Tripolis, another is bound for
the Indies, a third is
voyaging to Mexico, fourth to England and others to various other distant places. He is so
overconfident of his riches that he agrees to an unreasonable and dangerous bond.

2. (i) Publicans were tax collectors for the Romans and were generally oppressive. They
were hated by the Jews because they were agents of Rome, who collected taxes also from
the Jews. Publican is a natural term of contempt and loathing in the mouth of a Jew.
Shylock hates Antonio because he is a Christian, lends money without interest and hurls
abuses on him.

(ii) The words mean that if Shylock could get hold of Antonio at a disadvantage or in a
weak spot, he will satisfy fully the long-standing hatred he has against him.

(iii) Shylock had a long-standing grudge against Antonio because Antonio was a
Christian and looked upon the holy Jewish race with contempt. He used to lend money
without interest and thus, bring down the rate of interest. He even spat on Shylock,
kicked him and called him a ‘cut-throat dog’.

(iv) ‘The Sacred Nation’ is a reference to the holy Jewish race. Antonio insults Shylock
for his business deals and for earning profit by lending money on interest.
(v) Shylock plans to get money immediately from a wealthy fellow-Jew Tubal. It shows
that Shylock wants to execute the bond as soon as possible and use the chance to take his
revenge on Antonio.

3. (i) The topic referred to in the extract is lending money for interest. Jacob was the
second son of Issac who became the third successor to Abraham. Abraham was the
founder of the Hebrew nation and Jacobs’ grandfather.

(ii) Laban was Jacob’s uncle. Jacob and Laban entered into an agreement that Jacob
would receive as his wages the lambs which were born with spots or stripes. During the
breeding season, Jacob arranged the wodden rods in such a way that the shadows of the
rods should fall on the sheep. Consequently, most of the lambs were born spotted or
stripped, and thus, they became Jacob’s property.

(iii) Taking interest means to charge specific amounts on the money given as loan for a
specified period. Receiving payment for one’s labour means to take remuneration for
one’s service rendered. This is legitimate while taking interest is not.

(iv) After this extract, Antonio tells Shylock that it was purely a matter of chance in
Jacob’s case. He had no control over it himself, but providence guided and governed the
event. It was not a matter in
the hands of men, like the taking of interest.

(v) “The third possessor” means the third in the line of heirs to family estates. The first
one was Abraham and the second was Issac. Esau and Jacob were Issac’s sons. Issac
wanted to bless his elder son Esau but would do so after he brought him some savoury
meat. Jacob’s mother Rebecca overheard this conversation. She wanted to get this
blessing for Jacob. She told Jacob to fetch two goats to make a savoury dish. Rebecca
then asked Jacob to go to his blind father with the savoury meat. In this way, Jacob,
through the crafty assistance of his mother, got the blessing of his father.

4. (i) It means “are you going to oblige us.” Rialto was the Venetian Stock Exchange
where the merchants met for the transaction of business.

(ii) Shylock speaks of his ill-treatment at the hands of Antonio. He says that Antonio had
spat upon his Jewish robe in contempt and called him an unbeliever and a cur. He had
also spat upon his beard. On another day he had pushed him aside with his foot as if he
were a stray dog being kicked out of his house. Shylock reacted to Antonio’s insults
patiently.

(iii) Shylock bore Antonio’s insults patiently since, as a shrewd Jew, he was waiting for
an opportune time to take revenge on Antonio. Earlier, in the scene Shylock admits that
patience is the badge of
his race.

(iv) Financially Antonio is a threat to Shylock’s money-lending business because he

lends money without charging interest and thus brings down the rate of interest charged
by money-lenders. Besides, he hates Antonio since he is a Christian, who despises the
Jewish race.

(v) Antonio is a rich businessman but does not have ready cash in his hand. That is why
he needs to borrow money from his enemy Shylock to give it to Bassanio, his friend so
that he can go to Belmont to woo his lady love, Portia. Shylock is ready to lend money to
Antonio because that would enable him to take revenge on Antonio for all the insults
heaped on him by Antonio.

5. (i) Shylock is referring to the insults hurled on him by Antonio such as speaking
abusively of him and his money-lending, spitting on him, kicking him, calling him a dog
and ridiculing the Jews.

(ii) ‘The present wants’ refer to the immediate need of Antonio — three thousand ducats
to provide for Bassanio’s trip to Belmont to woo Portia. Shylock is ready to supply the
wants provided Antonio
signs a bond, according to which if Antonio is unable to pay him the money on the
specified date, the penalty to be paid will be an exact pound of flesh from any part of
Antonio’s body.

(iii) Antonio storms Shylock by saying that in future too he is likely to abuse and disgrace
him and that he should lend the money as to an enemy rather than a friend. He challenges
him to exact the penalty if he fails to repay on time. Shylock is willing to lend the money
without interest because he wants to trap Antonio in a fatal bond and take his revenge.

(iv) ‘This is kind I offer you’ means this is the kindness that I offer you. This refers to his
lending of money without charging any interest on it. Immediately after this, the speaker
proposes to Antonio to
accompany him to a lawyer and execute a bond with his signature wherein the forfeit to
be paid will be an exact pound of flesh from any part of Antonio’s body.
(v) The third person present at the scene is Bassanio. He is reluctant to agree to Shylock’s
terms because he did not trust the kind words uttered by Shylock. He tells Antonio that he
will not have him make such an agreement on his account. He would rather remain as
poor as he is now and do without his wants supplied at such a price.

6. (i) A notary is a lawyer who has the authority to execute official and legal dealings and
agreements. Shylock wants to take Antonio to the notary to sign the bond document
which stipulates that the forfeit to be paid will be a pound of flesh from any part of
Antonio’s body.
(ii) (a) single bond: agreement in which Antonio will be the only signatory.

(b) merry sport: for a pleasant joke.

(iii) Bassanio tells Antonio that he will not have him make such an agreement on his
account. He adds that he would rather remain as poor as he is now and do without his
wants supplied at such a price.

(iv) Antonio is confident that there is no danger in signing the bond because he is
confident that one month before the date of payment, his ships will have brought nine
times the amount they are borrowing and they will not have to pay the penalty. This
incident shows Antonio’s overconfidence and generosity towards Bassanio.

(v) Shylock insists on a pound of Antonio’s flesh to take revenge on him and to put him
completely at his mercy. Shylock’s hatred for Antonio and Christians is shown in his
absurd demand. Taking
advantage of the situation, he wants to take revenge on Antonio and all Christians, who
persecuted him and his race. Shylock appears to be a man fired with hate and vengeance,
who is ready to go to the extent of getting his enemy’s pound of flesh to take his revenge.