Merchant of Venice

Merchant of Venice

Exposition is that part of a play which shows the background that is required in order for one to understand the action and the characters in that play. It also helps in understanding the basic conflicts of the antagonist and the protagonist. Exposition usually ends in an inciting moment. This is whereby there an incident occurs such that if it did not, then there would be no story. This moment is used to set in motion the starting of the second act. This can be seen where Gobbo who is shylock's servant mocks his father's blindness and in Launcelot makes people laugh by the way he misuses words exaggerates his movements.

Rising action in a play or story is whereby there is complication of the basic conflict due to the introduction of another related secondary conflict. This includes many obstacles which usually frustrate the protagonist's aim of reaching his goal. Secondary conflicts may include adversaries which are of less importance in comparison to the antagonist's story and who can work separately from the antagonist. This can be seen when Antonio's ship which was the only way he could pay shylock's debs was reportedly lost in the sea.
A climax is whereby there is a turning point usually depicting change. This change is usually for the better or for the worse in the affairs of the protagonists. If it's a comedy, the bad things which are happening to the protagonist will take a turn and start going well for him and vice versa. This can be seen when Portio known as a man of law comes on Antonio's behalf.

Resolution comes after the climax of a play or story. Here the protagonist looses or wins in the conflict which unravels. A resolution includes points of suspense whereby there is no doubt in the outcome of the conflict. This is seen when Shylock is ordered to change to be a Christian and do away with Lorenzo and Jessica and also when Portia and Nerrisa are convinced to leave their rings.
Physical humour is expressed in the play for example when Gobbo creates laughter by not being in a position to identify his son and also when Gobo mocks his father's blindness.

Confusion in the play is shown when Lancelot is giving his father directions to Shylock's house. There is confusion in the directions that he gives. There is also a show of confusion when Gobbo ensues in a confrontation with Bassanio in line 120.

The character of Shylock in The Merchant of Venice is depicted as a horrible character that is just interested in Antonio's life. (Alfred 2008) But looking critically, Shylock is a loyal member of the community. This is because he was able to forgive, he followed the laws and customs of the community, and he also did not react to the abuses that were directed to him by Antonio for a very long time. He bore a lot of disgrace as shown in Act 3 scene 1 in line 52.
He has a strong spirit for he is able to give Antonio an interest free loan despite all the abuses he had showed him. (Alfred 2008). He had a kind and forgiving heart. An example of this can be seen in Act 1 scene 3 as from line 48. He is also an honest and loyal person and he had respect for law and order as can be seen in Act 4 scene 4 line 104, 213 and 257. So in my opinion, Shylock was more of the victim than the villain as may be seen in the play.

The merchant of Venice has characters that can represent men of today due to the ways they express their themes. One the ways is through their expression of the theme of love and interracial marriages. These two issues are usually the topics of discussion in modern day society. The relationships that exist in the play depict love though some do not depict the true love. Bassanio and Portia, Jessica and Lorenzo Gratiano and Nerrisa are all in relationships. Looking carefully at these, one can see that a comparison can be drawn between them and the relationships of today. One, is the issue that the three marriages may not last; this has a relationship with many marriages nowadays which we see ending in divorce.

One of the causes for divorce is hasty marriages. Hasty marriages means that the two partners have not gotten to know each other well. This is depicted in the play through the marriages of Nerrisa and Gratiano who get married to each other after knowing each other for only a few hours; Bassano and Portio also get married without prior knowledge of one another.

The other issue that is of concern today is the rise in homosexuality. This in the play is depicted through Antonio's love. The other issue that is commonplace today is that of inter- racial marriages; we see that more Jews are now getting married to gentiles. This has ensued in a great loss of the Jewish faith hence the Jewish are very much worried about their faith. This in the play can be seen through the intermarriage of Jessica and Lorenzo a fact which worried Shylock and led to him shedding tears (Alfred 2008).





References
Alfred, D. (2008). Shylock, the merchant of Venice, Wildside Press.



.