The Merchant of VeniceACT IV

PRESENTATION BY: FARSHAD DANAEE FARD, ROOZBEH MORADI, SASAN MORADI

Summary

Scene 1The scene opens to a court room in Venice with the Duke, Antonio, Bassanio, Gratiano, Salerio and others present. The Duke sympathizes with Antonio for having such a heartless enemy. After asking Shylock to enter the room, the Duke and Bassanio strongly request him to relent. In the meanwhile, Antonio tells Bassanio that it is a waste of time to argue with Shylock and he declares that the law is on Shylocks side and he is ready to pay the price. The Duke dismisses the court unless the Doctor Bellario comes to decide the case. Just then a messenger from Bellario arrives. Nerissa enters dressed as a lawyer's clerk. Nerissa states that she comes from Bellario with a letter from the doctor. The letter requests that the Duke allow a young doctor of law to attend the case. The Duke readily agrees. Portia enters dressed as a doctor of law. She attempts to get Shylock to relent. She portrays mercy as an attribute of a king and God. Shylock still refuses. Bassanio offers money twice more as Shylock states he will only be satisfied with flesh. Portia finally states that Antonio must make ready to have the flesh removed. She asks Shylock to allow a surgeon to come to stop the blood. Shylock refuses this mercy as it is not written in the bond. At the last minute Portia tells Shylock that while he may have the flesh he cannot have a drop of blood as it is not written into the bond. Shylock realizes he cannot have his flesh and so states he will take the money.

Summary

Scene 1Portia tells him that because he has already refused it Shylock can only have the flesh. In fact, she states, he cannot even have the principal, and cannot leave because he has attempted to murder a Venetian citizen. The price of Shylock's crime is death and the loss of his estate. The estate should go half to Antonio and half to the city of Venice. The Duke spares Shylock's life but he must still forfeit his estate. Antonio states that he should give half his money to his daughter and her Christian husband upon his death. Additionally, Shylock must become a Christian. He agrees and leaves. Bassanio offers the "judge" the three thousand ducats that were to go to Shylock but is refused. Bassanio insists that the judge should take something and Portia takes Antonio's gloves and asks Bassanio for his ring. Bassanio refuses stating that it was a gift from his wife. Portia leaves saying that Bassanio's wife would have said she deserved the ring. Antonio convinces Bassanio that he should have given the judge the ring and so Bassanio takes it off and asks Gratiano to take the ring to the judge.

Summary

Scene 2

During this scene Portia and Nerissa are in a street in Venice. Portia is sending Nerissa into Shylock's house to deliver the papers he promised to sign. Gratiano catches up to them to deliver the ring and invites them to dinner. Portia refuses stating she must bring the clerk to Shylock's house. Nerissa thinks it would be fun to trick Gratiano out of his ring as well.

Deconstruction Elements

Binary Opposition

The establishing of one center of unity automatically means that another is decentered, Derrida concludes that Western metaphysics is based on a system of binary operations (also called binary oppositions). For each center, an opposing center, God and humankind for example, exists. In addition, Western philosophy decrees that in each of these binary oppositions or opposing centers, one concept is superior and defines itself by its opposite or inferior center. We know truth because we now deception; we know good because we know bad.

What is dominantly seen in this play is that Christians are positioning themselves in a superior position to the Jew and always try to offend him by words and lower his social degree. In the court, after arguing so much, Gratiano obviously does this by calling Shylock ‘inexecrable dog’:

Deconstruction Elements

Binary Opposition

GRATIANO: O, be thou damned, inexecrable dog, and for thy life let justice be accused! thou almost makest me waver in my faith to hold opinion with Pythagoras that souls of animals infuse themselves into the trunks of men. Thy currish spirit governed a wolf who, hanged for human slaughter, even from the gallows did his fell soul fleet, and whilst thou layest in thy unhallowed dam infused itself in thee, for thy desires are wolvish, bloody, starved, and ravenous.

Deconstruction Elements

Binary Opposition

Deconstruction rejects the idea of comparing and contrasting two individuals in order to declare ones superiority to the other one. It does not support the concept that by degrading one, the other is upgraded. Deconstruction yells that pairs commonly known as opposites such as black/white, man/woman, etc. do not stand against each other but supplement each other.

It believes that each individual should be dealt with independently. Deconstruction assumes that through independent analysis of the values, one may inevitably reach the differences. (Hooti, 2013)

Deconstruction Elements

Aporia

A Greek term denoting a logical contradiction, ‘aporia’ is used by Derrida to refer to what he often calls the ‘blind spots’ of any metaphysical argument. Aporia is a deadlock of a relationship, decision, interpretation, which one reaches after having exchanged the logical reasoning and justification, but all in vain. (Hooti, 2013)

In the forth act of the play, we see Shylock strongly insists on taking a pound of Antonio’s flesh out of his chest as it is stated in the contract. The Duke and Antonio’s friends try to convince him by giving him even ten times more than the lent money but he still refuses and insists on getting what he wants.

Although this struggle is obvious through the whole scene but it can be felt more in this argument between Shylock and Bassanio:

Deconstruction Elements

Aporia

BASSANIO: This is no answer, thou unfeeling man, to excuse the current of thy cruelty.

SHYLOCK: I am not bound to please thee with my answers.

BASSANIO: Do all men kill the things they do not love?

SHYLOCK: Hates any man the thing he would not kill?

BASSANIO: Every offense is not a hate at first.

SHYLOCK: What, wouldst thou have a serpent sting thee twice?

Deconstruction Elements

Theologocentrism

The term used by Jacques Derrida and other exponents of deconstruction to designate the desire for a center or original guarantee of all meanings, which in Derrida's view has characterized Western philosophy since Plato. The Greek word logos can just mean ‘word’, but in philosophy it often denotes an ultimate principle of truth or reason.

A dominant concept in the course of the play is the discriminatory ideas and behaviors of the main citizens of Venice towards the Jew merchant. This sense of superiority to the Jews can originate from the anti-Semitic theocentric beliefs among Christians. This idea acts as a mind filter for all the Christians in the Venice and they think and act based on it. Even the law and the court which is a symbol of justice and equality is based on these theocentric concepts.

Deconstruction Elements

Theologocentrism

PORTIA: Tarry, Jew. The law hath yet another hold on you. It is enacted in the laws of Venice, if it be proved against an alien that by direct or indirect attempts he seek the life of any citizen, the party 'gainst the which he doth contrive shall seize one half his goods. The other half comes to the privy coffer of the state, and the offender’s life lies in the mercy of the Duke only 'gainst all other voice. In which predicament I say thou stand’st, for it appears by manifest proceeding that indirectly—and directly too—thou hast contrived against the very life of the defendant, and thou hast incurred the danger formerly by me rehearsed. Down, therefore, and beg mercy of the Duke.

Reffrences

Hooti N. 2013. William Shakespeare’s Hamlet: A Deconstructive Study. Intl. Res. J. Appl. Basic. Sci. Vol., 4 (12), pp. 3903-3909

Wikipedia.com

Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms