Shylock Flashcards
first appearance in the play (1.3)
“Three thousand ducats, well”
“Antonio is a ____ ___” (1.3)
“Antonio is a good man”
what is the meaning of “Antonio is a good man” ? (in relation to semantics)
being a good man (according to Shylock in 1.3) means to be “sufficient”, Antonio however does not have money on hand, and Shylock says his “means are in supposition”.
Drakakis edition draws attention to the OED’s legal implications of the word “sufficient”.
“supposition” - unrealised, and therefore hypothetical.
what is the figurative/thematic significance of “Antonio is a good man” ? (and the subsequent passage)
There is a separation between the man, & his wealth.
Antonio has revealed that his business ventures are at risk on the open seas, unlike the news, they are exposed to vicissitudes of nature. He goes on to list the locations of Antonio’s goods, and mentions the ones which have been “squandered abroad”. He also makes subsequent reference to “ships are but boards, sailors but men…”
“But ships are but boards, / sailors but men; there be land rats, and water rats, water / thieves, and land thieves”
Technique: Chiasmus.
Whereby the order of words in one or two parallel clauses is inverted in the other.
What does this do?
Antagonism between Jews and Christians (1.3) - hint: Nazarite
After being asked to dine,
SHYLOCK: “Yes, to smell pork, to eat of the habitation which your prophet the Nazarite conjured the devil into.”
“conjure” - insinuates an act of supernatural trickery
“habitation” - reference to Christ’s expulsion of the devil from a dumb man into a herd of swine. The Jew turns against the Christians’ very rhetoric of demonisation directed against him, says that they ingest the devil every time they eat pork.
“Antonio shall become ____”
“Antonio shall become bound”
Shylock’s response to:
BASSANIO: “Be assured you may”
“I will be assured I may; and, that I may be assured, I will bethink me”
“assured…assured…assured” -
How is Antonio connected to “assured”?
In his earlier promise to Bassanio:
“be assured / my purse / my person / my extremest means”
there are many different meanings of this word: to be certain, to have confidence, or it is Shylock needing a formal guarantee.
The many different meanings of assure remain in play throughout this exchange, this is where we can discuss SHYLOCK possibly twisting meaning.
What is the idea of the ‘Ancient Grudge’? Provide some evidence to support this.
Racial and religious prejudice, between Judaism and Christianity.
“He hates our sacred nation”
“I hate him for he is a Christian”
Quotes from part of genesis during the bond negotiations.
Dicey triangle of fiscal relationship (B / A / S)
a relationship between men whose foundation is based on ‘need’ and yet is strangely called ‘love’ by Antonio: we have Bassanio, the profligate bankrupt aristocrat living beyond his means, borrowing from Antonio, the rich merchant whose money is all ‘at sea’ and who is offering to give away to Bassanio what he does not actually have in his hands, now breaking his rule that he will never borrow money by approaching the powerful Jewish usurer Shylock to stand surety for the loan for Bassanio.
“venture” meaning.
undertaking of a hazardous or risky nature
ANTONIO ABOUT SHYLOCK:
“The devil can…”
“cite Scripture for his purpose. / An evil soul producing holy witness / Is like a villain with a smiling cheek”
“You call me ________, cut _____ ___”
“You call me misbeliever, cut throat dog”
At which point is the bond decided?
I will argue that as soon as the “pound of flesh” is mentioned, the bond is made for real.
