Essay About Theme Of Discrimination And Merchant Of Venice

Essay on the Theme of Discrimination in the Merchant of Venice
Essay on the Theme of Discrimination in The Merchant of Venice                                                       By Prof. Tannu     Discrimination is when you judge or put someone down because of their race, age, sex, religion, and many other things. In the play The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare, the reader is introduced to the theme of discrimination, in particular the discrimination of religion and race which I will discuss in this essay.     There was religious discrimination found between Christians and Jews who hated each other because they both believe in different things. This is found throughout the play when Shylock, the Jew, was continuously put down by the Christians. He was spat on, his business and wealth were taken away, his daughter stole his money and ran away from him because she was ashamed of being Jewish, and his servant left because he was also ashamed of working for a Jew. When Antonio and Shylock met to talk about the loan, Shylock explained the agreement that if the loan was not paid back within three months, he was going to take a pound of his flesh. Antonio agreed to the bond and remarked, “Ill seal to such a bond, and say there is much kindness in the Jew” (1.3.164-165). Antonio finally saw that Jews can be good too.      Shylock was also being discriminated again towards the end of the play when his fortune was taken away from him. When Antonio could not repay his debt, Shylock rightfully so, wanted to enforce his deal with him claiming his pound of flesh. However, he was not able to get his wish because Portia, who hypocritically disguised herself to be a male and who claimed to be a lawyer