What is the conflict between Antonio and Shylock. - eNotes.
The Merchant of Venice written by William Shakespeare takes place in Italy in the late 1500s. The play focuses on 4 main characters: Antonio, Bassanio, Shylock and Portia. Antonio is a Venetian merchant who is in love with his best friend. Bassanio is the best friend of Antonio and the husband of Portia.
These attributes are the sole purpose of the major conflict between Antonio and Shylock, and ultimately, between self-interest and disinterested love. The values that each character holds most deeply are portrayed in each of their actions and decisions. Throughout the play, The Merchant of Venice, Antonio’s love becomes very evident.
The Merchant of Venice can also be in the category of a tragedy because Antonio goes through human distress. He is a tedious character who arises in Act one as a austere, mournful human being who has trouble identifying the source of his downheartedness and who, for the duration of the play, transfers into a maudlin tumescence, not capable to assemble the liveliness crucial to secure himself.
Shylock: Victim or villain? 3083 words (12 pages) Essay in English Language. What is quite ironic is that the two main characters of Antonio and Shylock do not have a partner at the end of the play! I was extremely lucky to be able to see the film of “The Merchant of Venice”. In the film, Shylock especially in the court scene is.
The Merchant of Venice is a 16th-century play written by William Shakespeare in which a merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. It is believed to have been written between 1596 and 1599.
Antonio is a rich Venetian merchant, Bassanio's BFF, Shylock's archenemy, and the guy who puts up a pound of flesh as collateral so Bassanio can borrow money in order to woo Portia in style.
However it is debatable as to whether the character of Portia helps Antonio in order to condemn Shylock because he is a Jew. Anti-Semitism and the conflict between Jews and Christians highlights the key theme of self-interest. For example, one could question if Lorenzo only marries Jessica to spite her father because of his religion.