shakespeare critquing england society Flashcards
1
Q
Shakespeare may have been subtly critiquing Elizabethan society through the portrayal of Venetian society in The Merchant of Venice:
- prejudice
A
- prejudice - By setting the play in Venice, Shakespeare creates distance from English society, which allows him to tackle themes that might have been too controversial if set in England. This “foreign” setting gives him the freedom to explore issues like anti-Semitism, legal systems, and social stratification without directly targeting English norms.
2
Q
Shakespeare may have been subtly critiquing Elizabethan society through the portrayal of Venetian society in The Merchant of Venice:
- gender inquality
A
- gender inquality -shakespeare may be crtiquing gender inequality in elezibethan england through portia, portia although being weathly is restricted by the gender roles of the time, he intelligence is undervalued simply because she is a woman, this is seen in the courtroom scene where she is forced to disguise herself just to be listened to.
3
Q
why did he set it in venice then
A
–as shakespeare was writing under the reign of queen elzibeth II, he would have been cautious not to offend her, we can see this by the use of dsiguising his critique of the english society with a venetian society.
4
Q
Shakespeare may have been subtly critiquing Elizabethan society through the portrayal of Venetian society in The Merchant of Venice:
- justice and mercy
A
- justice and mercy -The courtroom scene, where Portia delivers the famous speech about mercy, also works as a commentary on the legal system. whilst shakespeare doesn’t directly critique the legal system, the merciless application of law shown by portia shows there are flaws in a purely lagalistic approach to justice.In Elizabethan England, there were harsh punishments for crimes, and this could be seen as Shakespeare’s reflection on the importance of mercy and compassion in the English system.
5
Q
what century was this written in
A
16th
