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Biblical Allusions in The Merchant of Venic.Book read The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare, the four Gospels.I read all four gospels in the bible, although only one was required, as I felt that this would give me a better-rounded insight into the religious allusions made in The Merchant of Venice. After reading the gospels, I felt that doing so helped me to understand the text better. Although I am a Christian, I do not profess to have a thorough knowledge of the Bible, so certain religious allusions in the text escaped me. It was only after reading the gospels that I fully understood the meaning behind certain lines. Also, understanding the allusions in the play helped me to appreciate the play better.One good example of this is in Act 1, scene i, lines 8-, "If they should speak, would almost dam those ears Which, hearing them, would call their brothers fools." These lines are spoken by Gratiano, in his "Let me play the fool" speech. He is trying to lift Antonio's melancholy by making him laugh, and this is one of his attempts. He tells Antonio to say whatever he wants to because if the people listening to him speak were to call him a fool, they are the ones paying for it as by calling someone a fool, they are incurring the condemnation of Matthew 5, which reads "But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother,'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says,'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell." If I had not read this line in the gospel of Matthew, I would not have understood what Gratiano meant in saying, "would call their brothers fools..
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Reading the gospels also helped me understand the relationships between certain characters through the understanding of the religious allusions they use. For example, in Act 1, scene i, lines 1-10, Bassanio says "Wherein my time, something too prodigal, Hath left me gaged," Without reading the gospels, I would only have seen the line "something too prodigal" as meaning too extravagant. However, after reading Luke 1511-, I can appreciate the allusion to the parable of the prodigal son. This parable tells the story of a prodigal son who left home and squandered all he had. After he realised his mistake, he went back to his father's farm to ask for forgiveness and find a job there. His father not only forgave him but also held a great feast in his honour, to celebrate his return. However, his older brother, who had never left his father but had worked hard for him all along, was unhappy that his father was rewarding instead of punishing his younger brother for running away. His father then tells him that they are celebrating his brother's return because "this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found" (Luke 15) Here, Bassanio is compared to the prodigal son and Antonio to his father. Like the prodigal son, Bassanio understands that he was wrong in the past and is sorry; and like the father in the parable, Antonio forgives Bassanio and does not insist that he pay back the debt immediately but helps him find a way to pay off the debt. Understanding this allusion gave me greater insight into the relationship between Antonio and Bassanio, than if I had taken that line at face value and had not recognised the biblical allusion..Reading the gospels also increased my appreciation and understanding of the themes in the play. For example, the theme of appearance and reality in the play and Bassanio's speech starting in Act , scene ii, lines 7, where he speaks of the "outward shows be least themselves; The world is still deceived with ornament." Can be compared to one of Jesus' teachings in John 74, "Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment..Another theme in The Merchant of Venice that I understood better with the help of the gospels is the theme of justice and mercy. Again, the allusion to the parable of the prodigal son expands on this theme. The allusion can be interpreted as Shylock representing the elder brother, who does not believe in the mercy that the father shows the younger son and similarly, Antonio shows Bassanio, but insists on justice, saying in Act 4, scene i, lines 05-06, "My deeds upon my head! I crave the law, The penalty and forfeit of my bond.".Betrayal is another theme in The Merchant of Venice that reading the gospels helped me to understand. In the gospels, there are two instances of betrayal. One is that of Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus' twelve disciples, betraying Jesus. This can be found in Matthew 614-15, "Then one of the Twelve- the one called Judas Iscariot- went to the chief priests and asked, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" The other instance of betrayal is Peter's (another disciple) denial of knowing Jesus. This can be found in Mark 1466-7. Here, for fear of facing prosecution for being one of Jesus' disciples, Peter denied knowing Jesus three times. This can be compared to Jessica's "betrayal" of Shylock in the play. For example, in Act , scene iii, lines 16-17, she says, "Alack, what heinous sin is it in me To be ashamed to be my father's child!" and later, she goes on to elope with Lorenzo, along with a great deal of her father's money and jewels. The difference between this "betrayal" of Shylock and the betrayal of Judas and Peter in the gospel is that in Jessica's case, she is not entirely at fault as it is her father's bitter, gloomy and life-denying spirit that causes her to run away. The contrast between these two different kinds of betrayal helped me to understand the feelings of Jessica to have to betray her father and that she is not completely in the wrong..Reading the gospels also helped me to better understand the themes of prejudice in the play. The gospels also helped me to better appreciate the reasons behind the "ancient grudge" Shylock bears against Christians (Act 1, scene iii, line 4), and similarly, why the Christians, in Shylock's words, "hate our sacred nation" (Act 1, scene iii, line 44). The Christians traditionally blame the Jews for their Christ's death, as it was the Jews who chose for Barabbas over Jesus' life to be spared. An example of this can be seen, again, in the allusion to the parable of the prodigal son. A popular interpretation of the parable in Shakespeares day understood the prodigal son as the gentiles and the older son in the story as the Jews. When the prodigal son returns, he is like a gentile turned Christian who receives all the bounty his father (God) can bestow, even though he once wasted his inheritance. The older son is like the Jew who never left his father, but doesnt understand why the father forgives the prodigal son and resents his fathers celebration of the younger son. Thus the resentful older son doesnt understand forgiveness, redemption, and unmerited grace, and so he is like the Jew who resents the Christian who has taken his place in Gods favour. This can be compared to Shylock not understanding the virtues of mercy and forgiveness. Related to this is Shylock's line about a "merry bond" (Act 1, scene iii, line 168), where he disguises the bond for Antonio's pound of flesh by trying to speak the Christians' language, one of forgiveness of debts and one that appears to make "merry sport" (Act 1, scene iii, line 140) of the law with all its bonds and contracts. In doing so, Shylock hope to make the "prodigal" Christians recognise the severity of law and justice. Unlike the resentful elder brother in the parable, he hopes to "feed upon the prodigal Christian (Act , scene v, lines 14-15) in a feast of his own, instead of holding a feast for the younger brother..Another example of this prejudice is the allusion to Barabbas by Shylock in Act 4, scene i, line 5-6, "Would any of the stock of Barabbas had been her husband, rather than a Christian". Here, Shylock is referring to his daughter Jessica, who had eloped with the Christian, Lorenzo. The story of Barabbas can be found in the gospel of Luke 18-1, "With one voice they cried out,'Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!' (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for insurrection in the city, and for murder.)". The bible states that Judas had betrayed Jesus, who was being brought in front of the Jewish judges who sentenced him to death for wanting to incite revolts. This happened to be the day when the Jewish celebrated Passover and it was traditional for the Romans to release a prisoner on death row on this day. Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor in charge of that area could find no reason to convict Jesus and asked the Jews if they wanted him to release Jesus, but the Jews chose Barabbas, a murderer, to be released instead. This allusion shows Shylock's deep hatred for Christians, seeing them as evil. He feels that they, like Barabbas, are willing to betray anybody, including their wives. In fact, he hates them to such an extent that he would rather his daughter have married a thief and murderer instead of a Christian. This remark, being addressed to Bassanio, a Christian, is particularly insulting as Barabbas was partly responsible for the death of Jesus, making him a great evil. As Jesus is the chosen One in the Christian religion, Barabbas could almost be seen as the devil. Thus, Shylock is comparing Christians to worse than devils. His line "…rather than a Christian." Shows that this hatred is not directed at Bassanio or Antonio in particular, but at Christians in general. This generalisation of the characteristics of people because of their religion is an example of the prejudice Shylock had for Christians..Yet another instance of religious prejudice in the play is in Shylock's line, "Yes, to smell pork, to eat of the habitation which your prophet the Nazarite conjured the devil into!" (Act 1, scene iii, lines 0-). This is an allusion to one of the miracles Jesus performed, which can be found in Mark 51-1. There, Jesus healed a man who had been possessed by evil spirits. The spirits, being afraid of Jesus, begged him not to torment them. Jesus then ordered them to leave the man's body and possess a nearby herd of pigs. The possessed pigs then ran towards the sea and drowned. In the play, Bassanio, a Christian invites the Jew, Shylock to dine with him, but Shylock refuses, comparing this story in the scripture to how it would be dirty for a Jewish person to dine with a Christian and eat their "unclean" food. Shylock's use of this passage makes him appear superior and the Christians appear inferior and evil, an example of the discrimination and dislike both parties shared for each other..Thus, after reading both The Merchant of Venice and the four gospels in the bible, I feel that reading the gospels helped me to understand the better appreciate the text through both the understanding of the many religious allusions made in the text and the contrast and similarity between certain events in both texts...
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