The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare.

The merchandiser of Venice by William Shakespeare. The Merchant of Venice is a tragic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. Though classified as a comedy in the First Folio and sharing certain aspe cts with Shakespeares new(prenominal) romantic comedies, the get is perhaps most remembered for its dramatic scenes, and is best kn receive for shylock and the famous Hath not a Jew eyes speech. alike not fitted is Portias speech about the quality of mercy.The title character is the merchant Antonio, not the Jewish loan shark shylock, who is the plays most prominent and most famous character. This is do explicit by the title page of the offshoot quarto The most excellent History of the Merchant of Venice. With the extreme cruelty of Shylock the Jew towards the Merchant. Summary Antonio, a Venetian merchant, complains to his friends of a melancholy that he cannot explain. His friend Bassanio is desperately in need of m whizzy to apostr ophize Portia, a wealthy heiress who lives in the city of Belmont.Bassanio asks Antonio for a loan in order to rifle in style to Portias estate. Antonio agrees, but is unable to make the loan himself because his own money is in all invested in a number of trade ships that are still at sea. Antonio suggests that Bassanio secure the loan from one of the citys moneylenders and name Antonio as the loans guarantor. In Belmont, Portia expresses sadness over the name of her fathers will, which stipulates that she must marry the man who correctly chooses one of three caskets.None of Portias online suitors are to her liking, and she and her lady-in-waiting, Nerissa, fondly remember a visit paid some time before by Bassanio. In Venice, Antonio and Bassanio approach Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, for a loan. Shylock nurses a long-standing grudge against Antonio, who has made a habit of berating Shylock and other Jews for their usury, the practice of loaning money at exorbitant range of interest, and who undermines their business by offering interest-free loans. Although Antonio refuses to apologize for his behavior, Shylock acts agreeably and offers to lendBassanio three thousand ducats with no interest. Shylock adds, however, that should the loan go unpaid, Shylock will be entitled to a pound of Antonios own flesh. Despite Bassanios warnings, Antonio agrees. In Shylocks own household, his servant Launcelot decides to leave Shylocks service to work for Bassanio, and Shylocks daughter Jessica schemes to elope with Antonios friend Lorenzo. That night, the streets of Venice fill up with revelers, and Jessica escapes with Lorenzo by dressing as his page.After a night of celebration, Bassanio and his friend Gratiano leave for Belmont, where Bassanio intends to win Portias hand. In Belmont, Portia welcomes the prince of Morocco, who has come in an attempt to choose the right casket to marry her. The prince studies the inscriptions on the three caskets and chooses the f avourable one, which proves to be an incorrect choice. In Venice, Shylock is furious to find that his daughter has run away, but rejoices in the fact that Antonios ships are rumored to have been wrecked and that he will soon be able to claim his debt.In Belmont, the prince of Arragon also visits Portia. He, too, studies the caskets carefully, but he picks the silver one, which is also incorrect. Bassanio arrives at Portias estate, and they declare their love life for one another. Despite Portias request that he wait before choosing, Bassanio immediately picks the correct casket, which is made of lead. He and Portia rejoice, and Gratiano confesses that he has fallen in love with Nerissa. The couples decide on a double wedding.Portia gives Bassanio a ring as a token of love, and makes him swear that under no circumstances will he part with it. They are joined, unexpectedly, by Lorenzo and Jessica. The celebration, however, is cut short by the news that Antonio has indeed lost his shi ps, and that he has forfeited his bond to Shylock. Bassanio and Gratiano immediately travel to Venice to try and save Antonios life. After they leave, Portia tells Nerissa that they will go to Venice disguised as men. Shylock ignores the many pleas to spare Antonios life, and a trial is called to decide the matter.The duke of Venice, who presides over the trial, announces that he has sent for a legal expert, who turns out to be Portia disguised as a preadolescent man of law. Portia asks Shylock to show mercy, but he remains inflexible and insists the pound of flesh is rightfully his. Bassanio offers Shylock twice the money due him, but Shylock insists on collecting the bond as it is written. Portia examines the contract and, finding it legally binding, declares that Shylock is entitled to the merchants flesh.Shylock ecstatically praises her wisdom, but as he is on the verge of collecting his due, Portia reminds him that he must do so without causing Antonio to bleed, as the contrac t does not entitle him to any blood. Trapped by this logic, Shylock hastily agrees to take Bassanios money instead, but Portia insists that Shylock take his bond as written, or nothing at all. Portia informs Shylock that he is guilty of conspiring against the life of a Venetian citizen, which means he must turn over half of his property to the state and the other half to Antonio.The duke spares Shylocks life and takes a elegant instead of Shylocks property. Antonio also forgoes his half of Shylocks wealth on deuce conditions first, Shylock must convert to Christianity, and second, he must will the entirety of his estate to Lorenzo and Jessica upon his death. Shylock agrees and takes his leave. Bassanio, who does not see through Portias disguise, showers the young law clerk with thanks, and is eventually pressured into giving Portia the ring with which he promised never to part. Gratiano gives Nerissa, who is disguised as Portias clerk, his ring.The two women return to Belmont, wher e they find Lorenzo and Jessica declaring their love to each other under the moonlight. When Bassanio and Gratiano arrive the next day, their wives accuse them of faithlessly giving their rings to other women. Before the legerdemain goes too far, however, Portia reveals that she was, in fact, the law clerk, and both she and Nerissa reconcile with their husbands. Lorenzo and Jessica are pleased to learn of their inheritance from Shylock, and the blissful news arrives that Antonios ships have in fact made it back safely. The group celebrates its good fortune.