Characters:

Location: Venice

Christians:

• The Duke of Venice

• Bassanio, a lord

• Antonio, a merchant

• Solanio, friend of Antonio and Bassanio

• Salarino, friend of Antonio and Bassanio

• Gratiano, friend of Antonio and Bassanio

• Salerio, friend of Antonio and Bassanio

• Lorenzo, friend of Antonio and Bassanio

• Lancelot Gobbo, servant first to Shylock, then to Bassanio

• Gobbo, Lancelot’s father

• Stephano, a messenger

• Jailer

• Leonardo, servant of Bassanio

• Servingman, employed by Antonio

• Magnificoes of Venice

• Court Officials

Jews:

• Shylock, a rich money-lender

• Jessica, Shylock’s daughter

• Tubal, Shylock’s friend

Location: Belmont

Portia’s Household:

• Portia, a rich heiress

• Nerissa, Portia’s lady-in-waiting

• Balthazar, Portia’s servant

• Servingman

• Messenger

Portia’s Suitors:

• The Prince of Morocco

• The Prince of Arragon

Plot:

Act 1: Scene 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

• 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!

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

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

• 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

Act 1: Scene 2

• 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

• Nerissa recaps the will: potential husbands (suitors) must choose between three caskets of gold, silver and lead. Whoever chooses correctly wins Portia! Nerissa begins describing Portia’s suitors

• The two women end their mocking of Portia’s suitors. Nerissa reports the men’s intention to return home immediately. She reminds Portia of her past meeting with Bassanio

Act 1: Scene 3

• A servant announces that the suitors are about to leave, and that another the Prince of Morocco, will soon arrive. In Venice, Bassanio tries to borrow money from Shylock

• Shylock doubts the security of Antonio’s ships, but seems willing to lend the money. He tells the audience that he hates Antonio for a variety of reasons, and intends to harm him if he can

• Shylock gently taunts Antonio for his past opposition to charging interest. He tells a story from the Bible to show the benefits of profiting by lending

• Antonio is not convinced by Shylock’s argument. He warns Bassanio not to be deceived by the Jew’s use of the Bible. Shylock reminds Antonio of the contemptuous way he has been treated in the past

• Antonio remains contemptuous, but Shylock claims to want his friendship, offering not to charge interest on the loan. Instead, if Antonio fails to pay, Shylock will take a pound of his flesh

• Shylock insists that he can gain nothing from the deal except Antonio’s friendship. Antonio agrees to the terms, and Shylock leaves to fetch the money. Bassanio is still uneasy about the contract

Act 2: Scene 1

• The Prince of Morocco arrives to try and win Portia’s hand in marriage, Portia stresses that she must obey her dead father’s will and marry the man who solves the riddle of the caskets

• Portia reminds Morocco that he must swear an oath and, after dinner, is to make his choice of casket

Act 2: Scene 2

• Scene 2 introduces Lancelot Gobbo, Shylock’s servant, who is considering deserting his master

• Lancelot Gobbo resolves to leave Shylock’s service. Lancelot’s nearly blind father arrives, looking for Lancelot, but does not recognise his son. Lancelot decides to play a trick on him

• After several attempts, Lancelot convinces his father that he is indeed talking to his own son. Lancelot plans to enter the service of Bassanio

• Bassanio sends a servant to fetch Gratiano. Lancelot and his father try to persuade Bassanio to employ Lancelot. Bassanio says that Shylock has already recommended Lancelot to him

• Lancelot welcomes the prospect of serving Bassanio, who plans to entertain Antonio that night. Gratiano wished to travel with Bassanio to Belmont, Bassanio advises him to improve his rough manners

• Gratiano promises to behave respectably in Belmont - but not tonight!

Act 2: Scene 3

• In Scene 3, Jessica laments Lancelot’s imminent departure. She hands him a letter to give secretly to Lorenzo

• Jessica, ashamed to be Shylock’s daughter, plans to marry Lorenzo and become a Christian

Act 2: Scene 4

• In Scene 4, arrangements for a masque are made, Lancelot delivers Jessica’s letter

• Lorenzo tells Gratiano that Jessica plans to disguise herself as a boy and flee from Shylock; taking some of his gold and jewels

Act 2: Scene 5

• Scene 5 begins with Shylock talking of his generosity to Lancelot

• Shylock intends to dine with Bassanio, even though he is uneasy because of ominous dreams. He leaves Jessica to protect the house, warning her not to watch the masque. Lancelot tells her of Lorenzo’s impending visit

• Shylock is glad to be rid of Lancelot, whom he sees as a lazy wastrel. Jessica relishes the prospect of escaping from her father

Act 2: Scene 6

• In Scene 6, Gratiano and Salarino await Lorenzo: he is late

• Lorenzo meets his friends outside Shylock’s house. Jessica, although embarrassed by her disguise as a boy, is ready to elope with him, having already plundered her father’s gold and jewels

• Lorenzo talks of his love for Jessica, then elopes with her. Antonio informs Gratiano that Bassanio’s ship is about to leave

Act 2: Scene 7

• In Scene 7, the Prince of Morocco considers which casket to choose

• Portia reminds Morocco that he can win her hand by choosing the correct casket. Morocco deliberates over the three choices: lead, silver and gold

• Morocco decides to open the gold casket, hoping to discover Portia’s picture inside. However, he finds only a skull and a dismissive message. To Portia’s relief, Morocco departs for home

Act 2: Scene 8

• Bassiano and Gratiano have sailed for Belmont. Jessica, having taken money and jewels, has eloped with Lorenzo. Solanio tells of Shylock’s intense anguish at his loss, and suggests that he will seek revenge

• Salarino hopes that the shipwrecked galleon was not one of Antonio’s. He describes the selfless and loving friendship Antonio has for Bassanio

Act 2: Scene 9

• Scene 9 prepares for the Prince of Arragon’s choice of casket

• The Prince of Arragon, hoping to win Portia, explains the terms of the oath he has undertaken. He deliberates about his choice of casket

• Arragon, guided by what he feels he deserves, chooses the silver casket. He finds the portrait of a ‘blinking idiot’ instead of Portia’s picture. Disappointed, he takes his leave

• Portia is relieved that Arragon has chosen wrongly. A messenger informs her that a new suitor has arrived from Venice. Nerissa, for Portia’s sake, hopes that it is Bassanio

Act 3: Scene 1

• Solanio and Salarino talk of the rumours sweeping the Rialto about Antonio’s shipwrecked on the Goodwin Sands. They taunt Shylock about Jessica’s elopement. He suspects that they were part of the conspiracy

• Shylock speaks menacingly of Antonio and the bond between them. He stresses the common humanity of both Jews and Christians, and says he will learn from Christian example and seek revenge

• Shylock rages about the money and jewels Jessica has taken. He wishes her dead. Tubal reports the loss of another of Antonio’s ships. Shylock tells him to hire an officer to arrest Antonio

Act 3: Scene 2

• Portia urges Bassanio to delay before choosing. She could tell him how to choose correctly, but she must not break her oath of secrecy

• Bassanio is impatient to choose. He and Portia talk playfully of the treachery of love. He insists on choosing without delay. Portia, calling for music, compares him to a dying swan, and to Hercules

• As music plays, Bassanio begins making his choice from the caskets. He considers false appearance in law, religion, war and beauty. In each case, vice can be concealed beneath a mask of virtue

• Bassanio rejects the gold and silver caskets because he fears that their fine appearance might be misleading. To Portia’s delight, he chooses the lead casket. Inside he finds her portrait and a scroll

• The scroll confirms that Bassanio has won Portia. He asks her to approve the casket’s truth. She wishes for his sake that she was a better and wealthier woman

• Portia gives herself and all her wealth to Bassanio. She hands him a ring, saying its loss will mark the end of his love. Basaanio swears to wear it until his dying day. Gratiano asks for permission to marry Nerissa

• Gratiano gives an account of wooing Nerissa. Lorenzo, Jessica and Salerio arrive, having met on the way to Belmont

• Bassanio reads Antonio’s letter, turning pale as he learns the bad news. He tells Portia of the debt he owes to Antonio, and asks Salerio to confirm the news of Antonio’s shipwrecked vessels

• Salerio confirms that all Antonio’s ships are wrecked. He and Jessica tell of Shylock’s burning desire to pursue the case against Antonio. Portia offers to cancel Antonio’s debt and pay generous interest to Shylock

• Portia orders Bassanio to Venice to help Antonio. Bassaiano reads Antonio’s letter explaining his dreadful predicament

Act 3: Scene 3

• In Scene 3, Shylock orders the jailer to guard Antonio closely

• Antonio suspects that Sylock wants him dead because he has paid the debts of many of Shylock’s clients. He feels that the Duke must uphold the law of Venice, and so is resigned to death

Act 3: Scene 4

• Lorenzo and Portia talk of the close friendship between Antonio and Bassiano. Portia says she plans to stay in a convent during Bassiano’s absence. She appoints Lorenzo master of her household until her return

• Portia says she and Nerissa will stay at a convent. She sends her servant, Balthazar, to Padua to collect clothes and papers from Doctor Bellario

• Portia tells Nerissa of her plans. They will see their husbands again, but in disguise as men

Act 3: Scene 5

• In Scene 5, Lancelot fears that Jessica will be damned because she is a Jew’s daughter

• Jessica tells Lancelot that Lorenzo has converted her to Christianity. Lorenzo also accuses Lancelot of making a black girl pregnant. Lancelot doesn’t take it seriously

• Lancelot deliberately misinterprets Lorenzo’s words, but is sent off to arrange the serving of dinner. Jessica tells her husband how much she admires Portia. Lorenzo says he also has similar admirable qualities

Act 4: Scene 1

• The Duke’s court assembles to judge Shylock’s case against Antonio. The Duke sympathisers with Antonio, and tells Shylock that he expects him to show mercy at the last moment

• The Duke asks Shylock to show pity. Shylock refuses to give his reasons for wishing to harm Antonio, except that it is his whim, and that he hates him

• Antonio says it’s pointless to argue with the pitiless Shylock. Bassiano’s offer of six thousand ducats is refused. Shylock demands the pound of flesh as his property, and due to him by law

• Nerissa, disguised as a messenger, arrives from Bellario, a legal expert. Shylock sharpens his knife on the sole of his show, and Gratiano abuses him for his cruel nature

• Bellario’s letter is read out. He is ill, but has sent Doctor Balthazar in his place. Portia enters in disguise as Balthazar and announces that she is fully informed of the case

• Portia appeals unsuccessfully to Shylock to show mery. She explains that mercy can be neither forced nor diluted, and is greater than any monarch’s power. Mercy and justice should go hand in hand, for mercy, not justice, will save us

• Bassanio asks Portia to bend the law to save Antonio, but she refuses, as other legal cases would be affected. Despite offer of trebled payment, Shylock implacably refuses to give way

• Portia judges that Shylock must have his pound of flesh. Antonio is now prepared to die. He lovingly bids farewell to Bassanio, saying that he is glad to be spared a life of poverty

• Portia gives judgement in Shylock’s favour but, at the last moment, saves Antonio. Blood is not mentioned in the bond, so Shylock must break the law if he sheds Antonio’s

• Shylock is defeated, and Portia insists on justice. She will not allow him to be repaid any money, only to take the pound of flesh at his peril

• Portia reveals another trap for Shylock. If a foreigner plots to kill a Venetian, the punishment by law should be confiscation of all wealth, and possible execution

• Antonio requests - and is granted - partial mercy for Shylock: he can keep half his wealth; Antonio will invest the rest. Unwittingly, Bassanio tries to reward Portia with her own money

• Portia refuses money, but asks insistentlu for Bassanio’s ring: the very one she gave him as a token of her loyalty. Bassanio cannot part with it, and Portia mocks him

• Antonio persuades Bassiano to part with the ring

Act 4: Scene 2

• Gratiano brings it to Portia. Nerissa plans to set the same test for her husband by making him give her his ring too

Act 5: Scene 1

• Lorenzo and Jessica are reminded by the night of famous lovers from classical mythology. They speak, somewhat ambiguously, of their love for each other

• Stephano brings news of Portia’s imminent return from Belmont. Lancelot informs Lorenzo that Bassiano is also on his way home. Lorenzo proposes to welcome them with music

• Lorenzo tells Jessica of the harmony of the heavens. As the musicians play, he describes the healing powers of music

• Portia and Nerissa return, unnoticed at first, and comment on the light and the music. They discover that their husbands have not yet arrived in Belmont, and plan to keep quiet about their own absence

• Bassiano returns with Antonio and Gratiano. Nerissa challenges Gratiano. He has given away her ring, which he swore to wear as long as he lived!

• Gratiano insists that he gave the ting to the judge’s clerk. Portia reproaches him, saying that Bassiano would never have parted with her ring. Gratiano tells Portia that’s exactly what Bassiano has done

• Portia and Bassiano spar over the missing ring. Bassiano insists that he gave it to the lawyer who saved Antonio’s life. Portia declares that her revenge will be to deny this lawyer nothing

• Bassiano begs forgiveness, swearing always to be faithful. Portia mocks him; Antonio tries to help him. The rings are returned, but the teasing of Bassiano and Gratiano continues

• Portia reveals the truth about her deceptions and tells Antonio that three of his ships have been saved. Lorenzo and Jessica learn that Shylock will leave all his possessions to them

• It is almost dawn as the characters go into Portia’s house. Gratiano looks forward to going to bed with Nerissa, determined never again to relinquish her ring!

==Interesting ==

• Antonio reacts unfavourably to the suggestion that he might be in love. What does this suggest about him and his attitude to women?

• Solanio and Salarino decide to leave when the other friends of Antonio arrive. But why? Read their lines 57-68 to see if there are any clues to their sudden exit. Are their words as friendly and polite as they appear?

• Lines 114-117. What is Bassanio’s true attitude to Gratiano

• Bassanio is asked about love but replies by talking about the money he owes. What does this say about him?

• Bassanio describes Portia using Ancient Greek and Roman mythology which would have only be understood by educated members of society. This is also indicative of his own class

• National stereotyping

• Book of Gensis, Chapter 30, Jacob and his sheep

• Smiling villains

• Is charging interest wrong?

• What values do Venetians value?

• Why did Portia’s Dad leave her love life (and safety) in a game of chance rather than letting her choose?

• Shakespeares relationship between him and his daughters?

• Portia’s inner conflict

• Lancelot Gobbo as a name?

• Working class people? Lancelot and his father?

• Disability in Shakespeare? Lancelot’s father?

• Lancelot’s remarks of Shylock indicate even the working class think lowly of Jews

• Prose vs. verse