Ok Sweethearts,
Please answer one question from each of the following scenes in complete sentences.
Be sure to indicate from which act and scene you are taking the question.
Do not forget to include your heading, indicating your name, my name, the course number, and the date.
This is due on the blog or hard copy by Thursday, January 8, 2008.
Lord Peach
Act III Scene 1
1. Do we have reason to sympathize with Shylock in his upset and anger? Explain. Also: How is he portrayed comically throughout the scene? How as a villain? How as a romantic?
Act III Scene 2
2. Do you think Bassanio is only after Portia for the money? After all, see I.1.ii 129-41. How might the dialectic (intellectual exchange, or discussion) between Bassanio and Portia in this scene (by which Bassanio is tested to both prove his love and win that of Portia) indicate otherwise? Explain.
3. How is it that Bassanio could be classified as a “bankrupt spendthrift” based on his pursuit of Portia and what we can gather from his external image?
4. Portia is certainly described as beautiful, but how else might we consider her beauty based off of what Bassanio says in lines 120-26 or thereabouts?
5. How does Gratiano’s sudden coupling with Nerissa contrast with what our obnoxious friend said earlier in conversation with Solerio and Solanio? What effect does this pairing have on the play in relationship to Bassanio and Portia’s union?
6. Contrast what is going on in Belmont versus what is happening in Venice at this point of the play? What does this contrast provide for us as an audience?
7. Recall Gratiano’s words, “We have won the fleece” (i 241), upon return from Belmont to Venice. What does this say of his attitude regarding love/marriage?
8. Bassanio’s calls himself “worse than nothing” (i 260). Why?
9. How is Portia portrayed as both a charitable and rational woman in the last part of this scene? Explain.
Act III Scene 3
10. What does Shylock have working to his favor? Is he willing to bestow any mercy upon Antonio? What does this situation imply about societal law and how it was administered?
11. Antonio is said by Shylock to have called him what? And so how does Shylock decide to act? What literary technique is used with, then, with such imagery in mind?
12. Antonio seems to want Bassanio to witness his suffering. Why do you think that is? What do you think he wants to demonstrate to Bassanio, especially considering that Portia is now in his best friend’s life?
Act III Scene 4
13. What is the plan that Portia and Nerissa set in motion towards the end of this scene? Consider their initially planned disguise: Why is it appropriate in a sexist society that they would disguise themselves as such?
Act III Scene 5
14. Here we have a brief, humorous dialectic between Lancelet and Jessica. Summarize it, in brief and discuss its thematic significance.
Act IV Scenes 1 and 2
1. What is the reason Shylock gives for his repulsion of Antonio? What are some of the metaphors he uses?
2. What is the Duke trying to persuade Shylock to do? Whom has the Duke favored? What is Antonio’s response to all of this?
3. Consider the master/slave dynamic that’s playing out in this “dramedy” (or is it, “dramady”?). Anyhow, what are the various master/slave pairings that develop throughout the story? That is, who is beholden or indebted to whom? How so?
4. Gratiano makes a clever play on words (i.e., “pun”) in lines 125-28. What does he mean by saying what he does of Shylock’s “soul”? What is his general attitude towards Shylock? Gratiano compares him to what? What is this literary technique called?
5. Portia and Nerissa disguise themselves as what/whom?
6. What does Portia say of mercy, man, and God? (cf. ii 190-212)
7. Male friendship. Brotherhood. As we’ve discussed, both are very important in Elizabethan England and are thus incorporated into Shakespeare’s drama of Italian life as strong themes. See lines 276-299 and summarize the dialogical exchange (i.e., dialogue) between Antonio and his best bud, Bassanio.
8. What legal loophole does Portia jump through to save Antonio? What are the consequences for Shylock? What does Antonio decide? What does his decision reveal regarding his character? Has he been transformed at all by his experience?
9. What do you think the significance of Portia and Nerissa’s “ring game” with their respective lovers is? Tell me more, tell me more, tell me mooooo---eee----ooore!
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14 comments:
Matthew Clair
Brit lit
Bro Peach
1/8/09
III.i.1
We do have reason to sympathize with Shylock, because of the horrible treatment he has received for being a Jew. Comically, he is portrayed as a villain because he is obsessed getting his revenge by potentially taking the life of Antonio. Romantically, in this scene, Shylocks emotions are all over the place- so to speak. He receives dire news, then good news, then bad again.
ii.6
In Belmont, Bassiano has won the casket game and claimed Portia’s hand. Back in Venice, it has become apparent that Antonio has lost his ships, and Shylock will carry out his plan of collecting a pound of Antonio’s flesh, and offers no mercy.
iii.10
Shylock seems to have the Venice law system on his side. He is showing no mercy to Antonio. He plans to take the whole pound of flesh. This situation shows that societal law must be fair to everyone, even a Jew in this case.
iv.13
They decide to disguise themselves as young men, and visit their new husbands, and help them out in court, to try and save Antonio’s life, Portia’s husband’s kinsman. She is willing to do this because any friend to her beloved husband should be a friend of her own. Dressed as men, they would be taken seriously in the sexist times during the play.
v.14
Lancelot fears for Jessica’s soul. Jessica believes that she will be saved by marrying Lorenzo. Lancelot says that Jews, who do not eat pork, will affect the price of beacon in a negative way.
IV.i,ii.9
The “ring game” that Portia and Nerissa use on their husbands was a way of seeing if their “men” would actually be loyal to them, or if they would give up the rings that they swore never to part ways with.
Joe Rabel
January 6, 2009
Brit. Lit.
Bro Peach
Act 3 Scene 1 question 1
Yes we do and yet we don’t. Shylock finds out Antonio looses a ship with some of Antonio’s money on it, which he was going to use to repay his debt, but he also find out that his daughter has run away. He has too major losses but he cares more about the money than his daughter. We see him in as a villain because he vows to cut out the heart of Shylock.
Act 3 Scene 2 question 8
Bassanio calls him self worse for nothing because he had to borrow money from his best friend but because of that his friend Antonio had to borrow money from his enemy, a Jew, for himself.
Act 3 Scene 3 question 11
Antonio is said by Shylock to call him the most stubborn dog that ever lived. Shylock decides to just wait until 3 the months are up and take what he is owed. Foreshadowing is used to dramatize the eventual scene with the duke.
Act 3 Scene 4 question 13
The plan is to dress up like men and it is appropriate because the male is seen as the leader of the house in this time period.
Act 3 Scene 5 question 14
Lancelot and Jessica’s conversation in the beginning of this scene is them joking about Jessica being a Jew and its important because it brings in the topic once again of the anti-Semitism in this novel.
Act 4 scenes 1 and 2 questions 5-6
Portia and Nerrisa disguise themselves as a lawyer, Balthazar and a lawyer’s clerk.
Portia talks about mercy, man, and God in respect to only when man and mercy combine they can be more powerful than God. Mercy blesses not only the one giving it but receiving it as well.
Devon Mancini
Brit lit/eng 141
Bro Peach
1/7/09
Act 3 Scene 1 #1
Yes i believe we have reason's to sympathize with Shylock. He is mistreated because he is jewish. Antonio loses his vessels and the money that was on them. This money he was going to use to repay Shylock. Also, his daughter has run away. He is suffering two losses in this scene and he is very angered and states that he will seek revenge on Antonio.
Act 3 Scene 2 #8
Bassanio says this about himself because he had to borrow money from Antonio and in turn Antonio had to borrow money from Shylock, who is now seeking revenge on Antonio because he has yet to repay him.
Act 3 Scene 3 #12
Antonio wants Bassanio to witness his suffering because if it wasn't for Bassanio, Antonio never would have had to borrow money from Shylock. He wants to demonstrate how trust can ruin a relationship and potentially ones life.
Act 3 Scene 4 #
They decide to dress up as men and visit their husbands and try to save Antonio's life. With this disguise, they will be taken more serious in this time period.
Act 3 Scene 5 #14
Lancelot is scared for Jessica's soul. She claims that she will be saved by marrying Lorenzo. Lancelot goes on to say that Lorenzo being a jew that does not eat pork, will have a bad affect on the price of bacon.
Act 4 Scenes 1-2 #9
The ring game is a trick that the girls use on their husbands to see if they will be loyal and never part ways with them or the rings.
Branford Phillips
Brit. Lit.
Bro. Peach
1/8/09
III.i.1
There is reason to feel sympathy for Shylock and there is reason not to. On one hand, Shylock is looked down on by society because of his Jewish religion. He is even forced to convert to Christianity during the trial with the Duke. On the other hand, Shylock refuses to take the six thousand ducats offered and instead demands the pound of flesh, proof of his stubbornness. Even when his daughter goes missing and takes several jewels with her, Shylock is more concerned with the money and his revenge rather than finding his daughter. He is comically portrayed as a villain because of his obsession with revenge. Romantically, he is presented with many events both happy and saddening.
III.ii.8
Bassanio is saddened when he receives Antonio’s letter telling him that Antonio lost all of his ships and has no money to pay back Shylock. He evaluates himself as “worse than nothing” when he realizes that if he didn’t ask to borrow money from Antonio, he wouldn’t have to borrow money from Shylock.
III.iii.10
Shylock has the oath that Antonio will repay his dept, as well as the law to his advantage. He is dead set on getting his revenge on Antonio and thus, refuses to show any mercy. As Antonio later says, the Duke or no other authority figure can deny the law without denying all foreigners, such as Jews.
III.iv.13
Portia and Nerissa decide to follow Bassanio and Gratanio under the guise of male lawyers. Because most women in that time were denied many of the same rights as men, they would not have been able to defend Antonio or even to witness the trial, had they not disguise themselves.
III.v.14
Lancelet jokes around with Jessica, saying that is damned for being Jewish and her only hope for salvation is either she is not Shylock’s daughter or to marry a Christian. He also states that Jews will raise the price of pork because they don’t eat it.
IV.i.2
The Duke tries to persuade Shylock to show mercy on Antonio, to give up the money he wants back and tells him he will become a better person for it. The Duke shows favor in Antonio, perhaps to give Antonio a break after the loss of his ships or because he doesn’t want Shylock to get his money, being a Jew. Antonio says not to try and convince Shylock otherwise. He knows that he will not show mercy on him.
Brian Fuchs
Brit Lit
Bro Rob
1/8/09
III.i.1
We are given reason to sympathize with Shylock beacuse throughout the play he has been abused and degraded based on his Jewish orientation. Villainously, Shylock is fixated on exacting revenge on Antonio by taking his life. Romantically, Shylock displays various emotions from happiness to anger and sadness.
III.ii.6
In Belomnt, Bassanio has been successful in winning the hand of Portia by choosing the lead casket. In Venice, Antonio's ships have been lost and Shylock is ready to mercilessly take revenge on him.
III.iii.10
Shylock seems to have the justice system of venice on his side. He is merciless towards Antonio and plans to take the flesh. The societal law seems to functioning justly towards all types of people.
III.iv.13
Portia and Nerissa decide to disguise themselves as young men inorder to see their new hubbies and to help save Antonio from the merciless Shylock.She is willing to help because she believes that a friend of her new hubbies is a friend of hers. The disguises will help them be taken seriously in a sexist era.
III.v.14
Lancelot fears for the life of Jessica. Jessica believes that marrying Lorenzo will save her. Lancelot feels that Jews who won't eat pork will affect the price of bacon.
IV.i&ii.19
Portia and Nerissa use the ring game inorder to test the loyalty of their men. They want to see if they will give up the rings they swore to always wear.
Adam Butler
Brit Lit
Bro Peach
1/8/09
III.i.1
I believe that we do have a reason to sympathize with Shylock. At this time Jews were portrayed as people who were not worthy of living in the same town as non- Jewish people. And because of this Shylock is automatically classified as a villian because he is Jewish and is seeking revenge on Antonio. Shylock displays romantic emotions in this scene by being relentless for revenge and he doesn't exactly get the revenge he wants his emotions go the opposit way.
III.ii.9
Portia is scene as rational and charitable in the end of this scene because she says Pay him the money and basically jsut forget the rest. And she also says that she would give her friend alot more money then needed so he could pay off his debt.
III.iii.10
What Shylock has in his favor is justice is on his side and the duke also is. Shylock does not plan on having any mercy upon Antonio. What this shows is that when you made an agreement you have to stick to it, their is no "bailing" on the other person.
III.iv.13
Portia decides to dress as a man would in that day and age. She does this because men were the shall we say the "alpawolf" then and women had no real hear say at all. So she dressed as a male to have her voice heard .
III.v.14
Launcelot is saying to Jessica he fears of her going to hell. Jessica has convinced herself though that her husband will come to the rescue since he is a Christian. Jessica goes on to say that how their is people converting from Jewish to Christianity that the price of pork will rise as a result of the converts .
IV.i,ii.9
What i believe this so called "ring game" is about is being fully commited. She is probably giving the rings out to see who she can trust with her heart and have a future with, without her man "bailing" on her for another woman.
J. Harry Farina
Brit Lit.
Bro. Peach
Jan 7,2009
Act III Scene 1
1) I suppose we have reason to sympathize with Shylock, because when such an event happens such as in the case of Shylock, your daughter running away from you, it is hard on that person. He portrayed comically throughout the scene by being poor. There is irony in his situation, he used to stick up his nose at other merchants, but now he is with out his wealth. He is a villain because he wishes to seek revenge on Antonio. As a romantic I do not see. Maybe by the fact that he wants his daughter back, but there again he says he wishes she was in a coffin at home.
Act III Scene 2
8) When Bassanio calls himself “worse than nothing”, to me, this means that in terms of money, he already told her he had non, but in fact he is in debt to his friend who is risking his life for his adventure. So by saying he is worse than nothing means that he is in debt and has put his friend in grave danger.
Act III Scene 3
12) It seems Antonio wants Bassanio to witness his suffering, because he wants Bassanio to feel guilty for “leaving” him to pursue a relationship which includes Portia over himself. He feels that he is loosing Bassanio to Portia, and by making him feel guilty it will sway Bassanio back to spending the majority of his time with him.
Act III Scene 4
13) Portia and Nerissa plan to see their husbands, but fear they would be seen as women. So they decide to go dressed as men. To cover her high pitched voice she says, “And speak between the change of man and boy…” This way they will think she is a teenage boy.
Act III Scene 5
14) Launcelot is antagonizing Jessica saying things like, “Therefore be o' good cheer, for truly I think you are damned.” He thinks she is going to hell because of her fathers actions, and there is no escaping it. Although Jessica feels that her husband will rescue her. He has converted he to being Christian. And Launcelot makes fun of her and her people by saying that if all the Jews converted that there would be no pork for anybody to eat.
Act IV Scenes 1 and 2
6) Portia says this about mercy, “The quality of mercy is not strained... It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings. It is an attribute to God himself… That in the course of justice none of us should see salvation. We do pray for mercy, and that same prayer doth teach us all to render the deeds of mercy.”
What I think she is saying is that, mercy can not be taken. You are born with it, mercy is a part of God. And when we ask for mercy, we know that we would want mercy brought on to us.
Sam Miclot
Brit. Lit. Bro. Peach 1/8/09 III.i.
1. There is reason to feel sympathy for Shylock, he is wrongly looked down upon in society just because he is Jewish. Even though he is greedy and seems to care about money more than his daughter, any type of racism is horrible and warrants sympathy. Shylock can be viewed comically because of his unending need for revenge, he even goes as far as taking a life of another human.
III.ii
Bassanio receives a letter from Antonio informing him that all his ships are lost and he is going to have to sacrifice his pound of flesh to Shylock. This news makes Bassanio feel extremely guilty. Portia shows her charitable personality by offering twenty times the loan. Later she shows her rational side when she tells Bassanio to go to Venice and help his friend Antonio.
III.iii
Antonio is said by Shylock to have called him a dog. Shylock then tells him to beware of his bite. Shylock knows that the Duke will grant him “justice” and he knows he will have his bond. I think this is foreshadowing the event with the duke.
III.iv
They decide to dress up as men, because women were not granted the same rights as men. They knew the only way they could save Antonio and that was to be men. This way they could witness the trial and attempt to defend Antonio
III.v
Lancelot says he fears for Jessica’s soul. Jessica thinks if she marries Lorenzo she will be saved. Then Lancelot complains that the Jews, who do not eat pork, will have bad consequences on bacon.
IV.i-ii
5. Portia and Nerissa disguise themselves as a lawyer’s clerk.
Vinnie Venturella
Brit Lit
Bro peach
1/8/09
3. i. 1
I believe we should not sympathize with Shylock because he was mistreated. He valued the loss of his money over the loss of his daughter. Shylock who was a Jew was mistreated but it doesn't give someone the right to value money of a family member.
3. ii. 8
Bassanio refers to himself as good for nothing becasue he boorrowed money form a friend who had to get it by menas of a jew.
3.iii. 12
Antonio wanted Bassanio to see wheat happened to him because it was his fault he had to borrow the money in the first place from Shylock.
3. iv. 13
Portia and Nerrissa disguise themselves as guys so they will be taken seriously when trying to save Antonio.
3.v. 14
Lancelot thinks Jessica's soul is in danger because she think marrying Lorenzo, a Jew, will save her. Byt Lancelot thinks it will have a negative effect on her.
4. i and ii. 9
Portia and Nerrissa use a ring game to test their man's loyalty to each other by seeing if they will hold on to the rings they swore to keep/
Zachary Carlino
Brit. Lit.
Bro. Peach
1/8/09
III.i.1
We can be sypathetic for Shylock because of how cruel he was treated for being a Jew. He is portrayed as a villian. he is shown as a villian because he wants to cut Antonio's heart out. He is shown romatically because he cannot control his emotions.
III.ii.3
Bassanio can be seen as a "bankrupt spendthrift" because he will give up the ships that are carrying all of his gold just to have a chance to marry Portia.
III.iii.10
societal law seems to be on Shylock's side. He plans on taking a pound of flesh from Antonio. This also shows that societal law is fair to everyone including Jews.
III.iv.13
They decided that they will dress as men and go to ask their new husbands to help them save Antonio. They do this because they will not be taken seriously if they are dressed as women.
III.v.14
Lancelot is scared for the life of Jessica. Jessica believes that if she marries Lorenzo her life will be saved. Lancelot fears that a women who does not eat pork will look bad to a prince.
IV.i,ii.9
This game they played was a way to see if their husbans would be as loyal to them as they said they would be.
Brett Pippens
Brit. Lit.
Bro Peach
1/8/09
Act 3 Scene 1 # 1
Yes we do and yet we don’t. Shylock finds out Antonio looses a ship with some of Antonio’s money on it, which he was going to use to repay his debt, but he also find out that his daughter has run away. He has two main mishaps but he cares more about the money than his daughter. We see him in as a villain because he wants to kill him.
Act 3 Scene 2 #8
Bassanio says this about himself because he had to somehow get the money from Antonio and in turn Antonio had to get some money from Shylock, who is now trying to kill him because he didn't give him his money yet.
Act 3 Scene 3 #10
Shylock hasthe Venice law system working to his favor. He didn't show any mercy to Antonio. He plans to kill him any he isn't changing his mind. This situation shows that the law has to be fair to everyone.
Act 3 Scene 4 #13
The idea was to dress up like a man to and go see their husbands and try to save Antonio's life because men were taken more seriously.
Act 3 Scene 5 #14
Lancelot was joking around about her being Jewish and it is significant because the whole anti- semitism thing around this time is negatively affecting everyone.
Act 4 Scenes 1-2 #9
The ring game is a trick they cooked up to test the loyalty of their men. its kinda cool but its effective.
James McDonough
Brother Peach
British Literature
1/8/09
1)It is only human to sympathize for Shylock, seeing as he has endured the many insults and torments from the life of being Jewish. Also, seeing as these insults have directly come from Antonio, it is only natural to want to seek revenge. By these insults, Shylock has played somewhat of a comical character. But he plays the villain, in the way that he develops the sinister bargain with Antonio in which Antonio will submit his life if the debt is not repaid. Finally, Shylock can be seen as a romantic in the sense that because the plot of the story contains different consequences for Shylock, dramatically good and dramatically bad, Shylock’s passion can be seen for each, including his deep sorrow and frustration by the loss of his daughter.
6)Venice and Belmont provide the audience with a perspective of contrast in the sense that we can see that while one setting becomes happy and hopeful, the other is rank with death. This is mainly because in Belmont, Portia has united with Bassanio, and Gratiano has united with Narrissa, providing a joint marriage. But in Venice, Antonio is condemned to death after not being able to pay Shylock his debt due to the failure of his business venture (the ships that carried Antonio’s hopes capsized).
10)Shylock has the law working in his favor as he brutally enforces the laws of Venice against Antonio. Because he is so brutally enforcing the law, there is no room for Shylock to grant any mercy to Antonio, who signed a bond forfeiting his life in exchange for the money. This situation implies that the societal law is cruel when enforced and can occur towards any kind of bargain.
13)Narissa and Portia concoct a plan to rescue Antonio from the death that will be awaiting him at the end of his trial. This plan is to disguise themselves as young men-lawyers and plead in Antonio’s favor. This is so appropriate to disguise themselves as men mainly because women did not enjoy the privilege of the court system, and therefore, for women to be involved in any court case was to be illegal.
14)In the dialect between Lancelot and Jessica, Lancelot is worried about the Jew soul of Jessica, and how he believes she is condemned. But Jessica replies that hopefully her marriage to her beloved Lorenzo will ultimately save her soul, all in a comic-like manner. This is so significant because it not only directly foreshadows the marriage, but also brings a recurring theme of anti-Semitism to the story.
15)When Portia and Nerissa are still disguised as lawyers, they trick their husbands into giving their rings, to which they swore they would never depart, as a reward for saving their friend’s lives. This was to test their loyalty, to a small comical degree, but mainly to enjoy the benefit of a prank which they later revealed when they asked their husbands about the rings, and pretended to be upset. Then, pulling out the rings and saying that they should keep a better handle on them.
James McDonough
Brother Peach
British Literature
1/8/09
1)It is only human to sympathize for Shylock, seeing as he has endured the many insults and torments from the life of being Jewish. Also, seeing as these insults have directly come from Antonio, it is only natural to want to seek revenge. By these insults, Shylock has played somewhat of a comical character. But he plays the villain, in the way that he develops the sinister bargain with Antonio in which Antonio will submit his life if the debt is not repaid. Finally, Shylock can be seen as a romantic in the sense that because the plot of the story contains different consequences for Shylock, dramatically good and dramatically bad, Shylock’s passion can be seen for each, including his deep sorrow and frustration by the loss of his daughter.
6)Venice and Belmont provide the audience with a perspective of contrast in the sense that we can see that while one setting becomes happy and hopeful, the other is rank with death. This is mainly because in Belmont, Portia has united with Bassanio, and Gratiano has united with Narrissa, providing a joint marriage. But in Venice, Antonio is condemned to death after not being able to pay Shylock his debt due to the failure of his business venture (the ships that carried Antonio’s hopes capsized).
10)Shylock has the law working in his favor as he brutally enforces the laws of Venice against Antonio. Because he is so brutally enforcing the law, there is no room for Shylock to grant any mercy to Antonio, who signed a bond forfeiting his life in exchange for the money. This situation implies that the societal law is cruel when enforced and can occur towards any kind of bargain.
13)Narissa and Portia concoct a plan to rescue Antonio from the death that will be awaiting him at the end of his trial. This plan is to disguise themselves as young men-lawyers and plead in Antonio’s favor. This is so appropriate to disguise themselves as men mainly because women did not enjoy the privilege of the court system, and therefore, for women to be involved in any court case was to be illegal.
14)In the dialect between Lancelot and Jessica, Lancelot is worried about the Jew soul of Jessica, and how he believes she is condemned. But Jessica replies that hopefully her marriage to her beloved Lorenzo will ultimately save her soul, all in a comic-like manner. This is so significant because it not only directly foreshadows the marriage, but also brings a recurring theme of anti-Semitism to the story.
15)When Portia and Nerissa are still disguised as lawyers, they trick their husbands into giving their rings, to which they swore they would never depart, as a reward for saving their friend’s lives. This was to test their loyalty, to a small comical degree, but mainly to enjoy the benefit of a prank which they later revealed when they asked their husbands about the rings, and pretended to be upset. Then, pulling out the rings and saying that they should keep a better handle on them.
Shane Yuhas
Brit. Lit.
Bro Peach
1.8.2009
Act 3 Scene 1 #1
Yes I think we are given reason to sympathize with Shylock beacuse throughout the play he has been abused and constantly put down simply because he was jewish. Out to get pay back, Shylock is focused on nothing more but revenge on Antonio by killing him. In a romantic manner Shylock displays many different emotions from happiness to sadness.
Act 3 Scene 2 #8
Bassanio says this about himself because he had to borrow money from Antonio and then, Antonio had to do the same by borrowing money off of Shylock. Shylock is now looking to get back at Antonio because Antonio never payed him back yet.
Act 3 Scene 3 #10
It appears that Shylock has people of Venice on his side. He is being ruthless towards Antonio and cannot wait to kill him. Unfortunatly for Shylock the courts of law are not favoring certain people like Shylock, therefore they seem to treat everyone the same as they should.
Act 3 Scene 4 #13
They (Portia & Nerissa) as a whole, have decide to disguise themselves as young men, so they can see their better halves, and help them out in court. All in an effort to save Antonio's life, Portia’s man. She is soo willing to help out because any friend of her husband is a friend of hers. Being dresses as man will help them be taken foreal in a time where sexism was rather common in this time.
Act 3 Scene 5 #14
Lancelot at the start of this scene is messing around with jessica about being jewish. Later,
Lancelot begins to worry about jessica's life. Jess thinks that if she were to marry Lorenzo, her life would be spared. Lancelot then states that because jews do not eat pork it will raise the prices on bacon which is not a good thing.
Act 4 Scenes 1&2 #19
The two wives, Portia and Nerissa use the "ring game" on their men. Like wedding rings of today they play this game as a challenge to their husbands to see if they will remain loyal, and to see if they will always wear the rings they swore that they always would.
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