Act I, scenes i–ii
Summary: Act I, scene i
Antonio, a Venetian merchant, complains to his friends, Salerio and Solanio, that a sadness has overtaken him and dulled his faculties, although he is at a loss to explain why. Salerio and Solanio suggest that his sadness must be due to his commercial investments, for Antonio has dis*****ed several trade ships to various ports.
he has fallen in love with Portia, a rich heiress from Belmont
Summary: Act I, scene ii
At Belmont, Portia complains to her lady-in-waiting, Nerissa, that she is weary of the world because, as her dead father’s will stipulates, she cannot decide for herself whether to take a husband. Instead, Portia’s various suitors must choose between three chests, one of gold, one of silver, and one of lead, in the hopes of selecting the one that contains her portrait. The man who guesses correctly will win Portia’s hand in marriage, but those who guess incorrectly must swear never to marry anyone
Act I, scene iii
Summary
Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, agrees to loan Bassanio three -thousand ducats for a term of three months. Bassanio assures Shylock that Antonio will guarantee the loan, but Shylock is doubtful because Antonio’s wealth is currently invested in business ventures that may fail.
As he calculates the interest on Bassanio’s loan, Shylock remembers the many times that Antonio has cursed him,
). Antonio responds that he is likely to do so again
Antonio forfeit a pound of his own flesh should the loan not be repaid in due time. Bassanio warns Antonio against entering such an agreement,
Act II, scenes i–iv
Summary: Act II, scene i
In Belmont, the prince of Morocco arrives to attempt to win Portia’s hand in marriage. The prince asks Portia not to judge him by his dark complexion, assuring her that he is as valorous as any European man. Portia reminds the prince that her own tastes do not matter, since the process of picking chests, stipulated in her father’s will, makes the prince as worthy as any other suitor.
the prince asks Portia to lead him to the caskets, where he may venture his guess. She reminds him that the penalty for guessing incorrectly is that he must remain unmarried forever. The prince accepts this stipulation, and Portia leads him off to dinner.
Summary: Act II, scene ii
Lancelot Gobbo, a servant of Shylock’s, struggles to decide whether or not he should run away from his master.
Summary: Act II, scene iii
Shylock’s daughter Jessica bids good-bye to Lancelot. She tells him that his presence made life with her father more bearable. Jessica gives Lancelot a letter to carry to Bassanio’s friend Lorenzo, and Lancelot leaves, almost too tearful to say good-bye. Jessica, left alone, confesses that although she feels guilty for being ashamed of her father, she is only his daughter by blood, and not by actions. Still, she hopes to escape her damning relationship to Shylock by marrying Lorenzo and converting to Christianity.
Summary: Act II, scene iv
, Lancelot enters bearing Jessica’s letter
Lorenzo bids Lancelot to return to Shylock’s house in order to assure Jessica, secretly, that Lorenzo will not let her down. Lancelot departs, and Lorenzo orders his friends to prepare for the night’s festivities. Salerio and Solanio leave, and Lorenzo relates to Graziano that Jessica will escape from Shylock’s house by disguising herself as Lorenzo’s torchbearer.
Act II, scenes v–ix
Summary: Act II, scene v
Shylock warns Lancelot that Bassanio will not be as lenient a master as Shylock himself has been, and that Lancelot will no longer be at liberty to overeat and oversleep. Shylock calls for Jessica and tells her that he has been summoned for dinner. Worried by a premonition that trouble is brewing, Shylock asks Jessica to keep the doors locked and not look out at the revelry taking place in the streets. Lancelot whispers to Jessica that she must disobey her father and look out the window for the Christian
Summary: Act II, scene vi
As planned, Graziano and Salerio meet in front of Shylock’s house. They are especially anxious because Lorenzo is late, and they think that lovers tend always to be early
Lorenzo joins them, apologizes for his tardiness,
. Jessica tosses him a casket of gold and jewels. Jessica descends and exits with Lorenzo and Salerio. Just then, Antonio enters to report that Bassanio is sailing for Belmont immediately.
Summary: Act II, scene vii
Back in Belmont, Portia shows the prince of Morocco to the caskets, where he will attempt to win her hand by guessing which chest contains her portrait
). After much pondering, the prince chooses the gold casket, reasoning that only the most precious ****************l could house the picture of such a beautiful woman. He opens the chest to reveal a skull with a scroll in its eye socket. After reading a short poem chastising him for the folly of his choice, the prince makes a hasty departure. Portia is glad to see him go and hopes that “[a]ll of his complexion choose me so” (II.viii.79).
Summary: Act II, scene viii
Having witnessed Shylock’s rage upon learning of Jessica’s elopement, Solanio describes the scene to Salerio. Shylock, he reports, railed against the loss of his daughter and his ducats, and he shouted a loud, urgent appeal for justice and the law to prevail. Solanio hopes that Antonio is able to pay his debt, but Salerio reminds him of rumors that the long-awaited ships have capsized in the English Channel.
Act III, scenes i–ii
Summary: Act III, scene i
). Salerio then asks Shylock whether he can confirm the rumors of Antonio’s lost vessels. Shylock replies that Antonio will soon be bankrupt and swears to collect his bond. Salerio doubts Shylock’s resolve, wondering what the old man will do with a pound of flesh, to which Shylock chillingly replies that Antonio’s flesh will at least feed his revenge. In a short monologue, Shylock says Antonio has mistreated him solely because Shylock is a Jew
Tubal announces that he cannot find Jessica
Summary: Act III, scene ii
In Belmont, Portia begs Bassanio to delay choosing between the caskets for a day or two. If Bassanio chooses incorrectly, Portia reasons, she will lose his company. Bassanio insists that he make his choice now, to avoid prolonging the torment of living without Portia as his wife. Portia orders that music be played while her love makes his choice, and she compares Bassanio to the Greek hero and demigod Hercules. Like the suitors who have come before him, Bassanio carefully examines the three caskets and puzzles over their in************************ions. He rejects the gold casket, saying that “[t]he world is still deceived with ornament” (III.ii.74), while the silver he deems
After much debate, Bassanio picks the lead casket, which he opens to reveal Portia’s portrait, along with a poem congratulating him on his choice and confirming that he has won Portia’s hand.
The happy couple promises one another love and devotion, and Portia gives Bassanio a ring that he must never part with, as his removal of it will signify the end of his love for her. Nerissa and Graziano congratulate them and confess that they too have fallen in love with one another. They suggest a double wedding. Lorenzo and Jessica arrive in the midst of this rejoicing, along with Salerio, who gives a letter to Bassanio. In the letter, Antonio writes that all of his ships are lost, and that Shylock plans to collect his pound of flesh. The news provokes a fit of guilt in Bassanio, which in turn prompts Portia to offer to pay twenty times the sum. Jessica, however, worries that her father is more interested in revenge than in money. Bassanio reads out loud the letter from Antonio, who asks only for a brief reunion before he dies. Portia urges her husband to rush to his friend’s aid, and Bassanio leaves for Venice.
Act III, scenes iii–v
Summary: Act III, scene iii
Shylock escorts the bankrupt Antonio to prison. Antonio pleads with Shylock to listen, but Shylock refuses. Remembering the many times Antonio condemned him as a dog, Shylock advises the merchant to beware of his bite. Assured that the duke will grant him justice, Shylock insists that he will have his bond
Solanio attempts to comfort Antonio by suggesting that the duke will never allow such a ridiculous contract to stand
Solanio departs, Antonio prays desperately that Bassanio will arrive to “see me pay his debt, and then I care not” (III.iii.36).
Summary: Act III, scene iv
Lorenzo assures Portia that Antonio is worthy of all the help she is sending him, and that if Portia only knew the depths of Antonio’s love and goodness, she would be proud of her efforts to save him. Portia replies that she has never regretted doing a good deed, and goes on to say that she could never deny help to anyone so close to her dear Bassanio. Indeed, Antonio and Bassanio are so inseparable that Portia believes saving her husband’s friend is no different than saving her own husband.
Portia then sends her servant, Balthasar, to Padua, where he is to meet her cousin, Doctor Bellario, who will provide Balthasar with certain ********************************s and clothing. From there, Balthasar will take the ferry to Venice, where Portia will await him. After Balthasar departs, Portia informs Nerissa that the two of them, dressed as young men, are going to pay an incognito visit to their new husbands. When Nerissa asks why, Portia dismisses the question, but promises to disclose the whole of her purpose on the coach ride to Venice
Summary: Act III, scene v
Lancelot complains that the conversion of the Jews, who do not eat pork, will have disastrous consequences on the price of bacon.
Act IV, scene i, lines 1–163
Summary
[COLOR="darkorange"][U]In Venice, the Court convenes for Antonio’s trial. The duke of Venice greets Antonio and expresses pity for him, calling Shylock an inhuman monster who can summon neither pity nor mercy. Antonio says he knows the duke has done all that he can to lawfully counter Shylock’s malicious intentions, and that since nothing else can be done, Antonio will respond to Shylock’s rage “with a quietness of spirit” (IV.i.11). The duke summons Shylock into the courtroom and addresses him, saying that he believes that Shylock means only to frighten Antonio by extending this drama to the brink of performance. No one, the duke says, believes that Shylock actually means to inflict such a horrible penalty on Antonio, who has already suffered the loss of his ships. Shylock reiterates his intentions and says that should the court deny him his right, the city’s very laws and freedoms will be forfeit. Shylock offers no explanation for his insistence other than to say that certain hatreds, like certain passions, are lodged deep within a person’s heart. Shylock hates Antonio, and for him that is reason enough.
Bassanio, who has arrived from Belmont, attempts to argue with Shylock, but Antonio tells him that his efforts are for naught. Hatred and predation, Antonio suggests, come as naturally to some men as they do to the wolf. Bassanio offers Shylock six thousand ducats, twice the amount of the original loan, but Shylock turns down the offer, saying he would not forfeit his bond for six times that sum. When the duke asks Shylock how he expects to receive mercy when he offers none, Shylock replies that he has no need for mercy, as he has done nothing wrong. Just as the slave-owning Christians of Venice would refuse to set their human property free, Shylock will not relinquish the pound of flesh that belongs to him.
The duke says that he has sent messages to the learned lawyer, Doctor Bellario, asking him to come and decide on the matter. News comes that a messenger has arrived from Bellario, and Salerio runs off to fetch him. Meanwhile, Bassanio tries, without much success, to cheer up the despairing Antonio. Nerissa enters, disguised as a lawyer’s clerk, and gives the duke a letter from Bellario. Shylock whets his knife, anticipating a judgment in his favor, and Graziano accuses him of having the soul of a wolf. Shylock ignores these slurs and states resolutely, “I stand here for law” (IV.i.141). The duke alludes to the fact that Bellario’s letter mentions a learned young lawyer named Balthasar, and orders the disguised Nerissa to admit the young man to the court. The duke then reads the letter in its entirety. In it, Bellario writes that he is ill and cannot come to court, but that he has sent the learned young Balthasar to judge in his stead.
>>>> Ýíå åäÇ ßæÊíÔä ãä ÕÝÍå 159 , ÇáÓØÑ 11æ12 æåæ :
My Patience to his funy , and am armed
To suffer with a quietness of spirit
æÇáÌæÇÈ ãæÌæÏ Ýí Çá act ÇáÓÇÈÞ æ åæ Çááí áæäå ãÎÇáÝ ( ÇáÃÑÈÚ ÇáÃÓØÑ ÇáÃæáì ) ..
Act IV, scene i, lines 164–396
Summary
Portia enters, disguised as Balthasar. The duke greets her and asks whether she is familiar with the circumstances of the case. Portia answers that she knows the case well, and the duke calls Shylock and Antonio before her. Portia asks Antonio if he admits to owing Shylock money. When Antonio answers yes, Portia concludes that the Jew must be merciful.
Because mercy is an attribute of God, Portia reasons, humans approach the divine when they exercise it.
Portia asks whether Antonio is able to pay the money, and Bassanio offers Shylock twice the sum owed. If need be, Bassanio says, he is willing to pay the bond ten times over, or with his own life. Bassanio begs the court to bend the law slightly in order to exonerate Antonio, reasoning that such a small infraction is a little wrong for a great right. Portia replies, however, that the law shall not be broken—the decrees of Venice must stand. Shylock joyfully extols Portia’s wisdom, and gives her the bond for inspection. She looks it over, declares it legal and binding, and bids Shylock to be merciful. Shylock remains deaf to reason, however, and Portia tells Antonio to prepare himself for the knife. She orders Shylock to have a surgeon on hand to prevent the merchant from bleeding to death, but Shylock refuses because the bond stipulates no such safeguard.
Antonio bids Bassanio farewell. He asks his friend not to grieve for him and tells Bassanio that he is happy to sacrifice his life, if only to prove his love. Both Bassanio and Graziano say that, though they love their wives, they would give them up in order to save Antonio. In a pair of sarcastic asides, Portia and Nerissa mutter that Bassanio’s and Graziano’s wives are unlikely to appreciate such sentiments. Shylock is on the verge of cutting into Antonio when Portia suddenly reminds him that the bond stipulates a pound of flesh only, and makes no allowances for blood. She urges Shylock to continue collecting his pound of flesh, but reminds him that if a drop of blood is spilled, then he will be guilty of conspiring against the life of a Venetian citizen and all his lands and goods will be confiscated by the state. Stunned, Shylock hastily backpedals, agreeing to accept three times the sum, but Portia is insistent, saying that Shylock must have the pound of flesh or nothing. When Shylock finds out that he cannot even take the original three thousand ducats in place of the pound of flesh, he drops the case, but Portia stops him, reminding him of the penalty that noncitizens face when they threaten the life of a Venetian. In such a case, Portia states, half of Shylock’s property would go to the state, while the other half would go to the offended party—namely, Antonio. Portia orders Shylock to beg for the duke’s mercy.
The duke declares that he will show mercy: he spares Shylock’s life and demands only a fine, rather than half of the Jew’s estate. Shylock claims that they may as well take his life, as it is worthless without his estate. Antonio offers to return his share of Shylock’s estate, on the condition that Shylock convert to Christianity and bequeath all his goods to Jessica and Lorenzo upon his death. Shylock consents and departs, saying simply, “I am not well” (IV.i.392).
Act IV, scene i, lines 397–453; scene ii
Summary: Act IV, scene i, lines 397–453
After Shylock leaves, the duke invites Portia, still in the disguise of a young lawyer, to dinner. Portia declines, saying that she must leave immediately for Padua. As she leaves, the duke tells Antonio to reward the young law clerk, since it was he who saved Antonio’s life. Bassanio thanks Portia, though he does not see through her disguise, and offers her the money he brought with him in order to pay off Shylock. Portia declines the gift and says that having delivered Antonio from Shylock’s clutches is payment enough. Bassanio insists that she take some token from him, and she eventually agrees. Portia asks Antonio for his gloves and Bassanio for his ring, which she herself gave Bassanio on the condition that he never part with it. Bassanio pulls his hand away, calling the ring a trifle and claiming that he will not dishonor the judge by giving him such a lowly gift. Instead, Bassanio offers to find the most valuable ring in Venice, but Portia remains firm, and demands the trifle or nothing. When Bassanio admits that the ring was a gift from his wife, who made him promise never to part with it, Portia claims that the excuse is convenient and used by many men to hold onto possessions they would rather not lose. With that, she takes her leave. Antonio urges Bassanio to let the law clerk have the ring, saying that he should value Antonio’s love and the gentleman’s worth more than his wife’s orders. Bassanio gives in and sends Graziano to run after Portia and present her with the ring. Antonio and Bassanio then leave for Antonio’s house to plan their trip to Belmont
Summary: Act IV, scene ii
Meanwhile, Portia sends Nerissa to Shylock’s house to ensure that Shylock signs the deed that will leave his fortune to Lorenzo and Jessica.
. Graziano enters, offers Bassanio’s ring to Portia, and invites her to dinner. Portia accepts the ring, but declines the invitation. Portia asks Graziano to show Nerissa to Shylock’s house, and Nerissa, before leaving, tells Portia that she will likewise try to convince Graziano to part with his ring. The plan satisfies Portia, who imagines how Graziano and Bassanio will swear up and down that they gave their rings to men, and looks forward to embarrassing them. Nerissa turns to Graziano and asks him to lead her to Shylock’s house
Act V, scene i
Summary
The messenger informs them that Portia will soon return from the monastery
. Lancelot enters and announces that Bassanio will return to Belmont the next day.
. Portia greets Bassanio, who introduces her to Antonio, who reports in turn that he has been acquitted in the courts of Venice. Graziano and Nerissa begin to argue over the ring with which he promised never to part. Nerissa chastises her husband not for hurting her feelings, but for breaking his own promise. Graziano insists that he gave the ring to a lawyer’s clerk as a fee, and Portia criticizes him for parting with so precious a gift, saying that her own husband would never have parted with his ring. Graziano corrects her and reveals that Bassanio has, in fact, given his ring to the lawyer who saved Antonio. Portia declares that her husband’s heart is as empty as his finger, and she promises never to visit his bed until he produces the ring.