Introduction
In this post, I would be revolving around two themes from The Merchant of Venice. They are "The Law" and the "Greed of Money".
Themes
The Law
The Merchant of Venice depends heavily upon laws and rules—the laws of the state of Venice and the rules stipulated in contracts and wills. Laws and rules can be manipulated for cruel or wanton purposes, but they are also capable of producing good when executed by the right people. Portia’s virtual imprisonment by the game of caskets seems, at first, like a questionable rule at best, but her likening of the game to a lottery system is belied by the fact that, in the end, it works perfectly. The game keeps a host of suitors at bay, and of the three who try to choose the correct casket to win Portia’s hand, only the man of Portia’s desires succeeds. By the time Bassanio picks the correct chest, the choice seems like a more efficient indicator of human nature than any person could ever provide. A similar phenomenon occurs with Venetian law. Until Portia’s arrival, Shylock is the law’s strictest adherent, and it seems as if the city’s adherence to contracts will result in tragedy. However, when Portia arrives and manipulates the law most skillfully of all, the outcome is the happiest ending of all, at least to an Elizabethan audience: Antonio is rescued and Shylock forced to abandon his religion. The fact that the trial is such a close call does, however, raise the fearful specter of how the law can be misused. Without the proper guidance, the law can be wielded to do horrible things.
Greed of Money
The greed of money is an important theme in The Merchant of Venice. In most cases, characters value money more than anything else and are strongly driven by it. In Shylock's case, he valued his money more than his daughter. This is from “O, my ducats! O, my daughter!” (Act 2, Scene 8, Line 15). Here, it is evident that Shylock cares about his money more then his daughter, much less relationships. Another example from The Merchant of Venice is Bassanio. When Bassanio went to marry Portia, he cared more about how rich she was then his love for her. He had also stated that he was more concerned on the debts that he can settle when marrying then his love for her. From this, it can be seen that Bassanio's greed of money is very strong, such that he neglects his relationship. From these examples, it is clear that characters in The Merchant of Venice are very greedy over money.
Narrative Conflict
Mr Lim was extremely anxious and his heart pounded heavily. Having recently heard of friends who made big bucks in a short period of time, Mr Lim, an enthusiastic investor, wanted to followed suit. He considered embarking on stock manipulation, which was illegal in Singapore. He definitely knew that stock manipulation was against that law in Singapore, but he could not resist his greed of money. In his mind, he thought about the luxury he could enjoy if he succeeded. On the other hand, he was afraid of being caught. He had seen it in the news; it was a heavy sentence and a big fine for offenders of stock manipulation. Mr Lim was in a big dilemma. Eventually, he succumbed to his greed for money, embarked on illegal activites. For the first few days, he saw a sharp increase in his profits and was elated for making the right decision. Unfortunately, luck was not on his side and the law eventually caught up on him. Mr Lim was charge with three counts of stocks manipulating and was tried his caught. As he awaits the judge to read his sentence, he feels a deep sense of regret for his actions. All these would not have happened, if his greed of money had not gotten the better of him.
Resources
http://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/merchant/themes.html
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/manipulation.asp#axzz1UXY7VZR8
http://bml.uoregon.edu/moonphase/book/book-money.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Market_manipulation
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/merchant/tg_race.html
No comments:
Post a Comment