List of characters

Venice

Christians

Jews
SHYLOCK, a rich money-lender
JESSICA, his daughter
TUBAL, his friend

Belmont

   The action of the play takes place in Venice and Belmont.

Antonio says he does not know what causes his sadness. Salarino and Solanio suggest that he is worried about the safety of his ships, in which he has invested so much money.

1 Antonio’s sadness – why?

The opening line of the play quickly establishes that Antonio, the Merchant of Venice, is in melancholy mood. But he is also puzzled by why he is sad. As the first scene unfolds, compile a list of the possible reasons for his sadness. At the end of the scene, the whole class pools its ideas.

2 Where do they meet? Set the scene (in pairs)

Shakespeare left no stage directions to show the exact location of each scene. On the Elizabethan stage the action flowed swiftly from scene to scene without the aid of an elaborate set. Since Shakespeare’s day, each editor of the play, and each director of a stage production, takes decisions about whether they will indicate precise locations. So try your hand at scene-setting. Decide on a suitable place in Venice for the three friends’ meeting. Perhaps they meet in a house or an office, or in a public place such as a bar, a café or the Stock Exchange. Give reasons for your choice.

3 Add actions to words (in pairs)

In lines 15–22 Solanio describes nervously waiting for the safe outcome of a trade deal involving transport by sea. What gestures or actions would you suggest to an actor to accompany his speech? Take turns to speak the lines, adding actions. Show your ideas to the rest of the class. The following explanations will help you:

   ‘Plucking . . . wind’ – throwing grass in the air to find the direction of the wind

   ‘Piring’ – looking closely at

   ‘roads’– anchorages

The Merchant of Venice

Act 1 Scene 1
Venice

Antonio says he is not worried about business matters. He has invested his money in several ships. That is much safer than relying on only one. He’s not in love either!

1 A trader’s journal

Salarino says that if he were in Antonio’s situation, everything he did or saw would constantly remind him of what disasters might happen to his ships. Even blowing his soup to cool it would make him think of tempests. Lines 22–36 are full of images of calamity at sea.

   Using ideas from lines 22–36, the picture below and your own ideas, write a diary entry for one of the Venetian merchants who is awaiting the safe arrival of some valuable goods.

2 I’m not in love . . .

Antonio is quick to deny that he is in love (‘Fie, fie!’). What might this suggest about his attitude to women? Experiment with different ways of delivering this short line in order to show Antonio’s troubled emotional state.

More friends arrive. One of them, Gratiano, comments on how careworn Antonio has become. He recommends laughter over misery and warns against false seriousness.

1 Friends? Or . . .? (in groups of three)

The entrance of Bassanio and his two friends, Lorenzo and Gratiano, can be used to change the mood of the scene. Although briefly there are six men on stage, Solanio and Salarino decide to leave when the others arrive. What prompts their departure? Are there tensions between these two groups of friends?

1. Take parts and read aloud lines 57–68 in different ways. Are these words as friendly and polite as they appear?
2. What have Solanio and Salarino made of Antonio? Either write their thoughts on taking their leave of him, or improvise a later conversation between them.

2 All the world’s a stage – two players (in pairs)

Antonio’s lines 77–9 echo well-known words from Act 2 Scene 7 of Shakespeare’s As You Like It:

      All the world’s a stage,
   And all the men and women merely players:
   They have their exits and their entrances
   And one man in his time plays many parts

1. Talk together about what Antonio’s lines reveal about him and his view of life.
2. Gratiano makes it clear that the part he wants to ‘play’ is ‘the Fool’ (line 79). His long speech satirises the ways in which many Elizabethan men pretend to be what they are not. Take turns to speak lines 88–99 and then talk together about what they show of Gratiano’s attitudes and values.

Gratiano advises Antonio against using sadness to gain a reputation for wisdom. Antonio asks Bassanio whom he loves. Bassanio begins by explaining his plans to pay off his debts.

The relationship between Bassanio (left) and Antonio has become a much-discussed feature of productions of the play. Many have presented it as homoerotic: that Antonio is strongly attracted to Bassanio and, as he speaks, he often attempts to establish physical contact. Keep this notion in mind as you work through the play.

1 Money – a clue to character? (in small groups)

Bassanio has been asked about love, but he begins his answer by talking about his debts. He has spent all his money and owes a great deal.

   One person reads aloud lines 121–33. The others echo every word to do with money. Afterwards, talk together about what the ‘echoing’ activity and the lines suggest about Bassanio’s personality.

Antonio is ready to help Bassanio, whatever the circumstances. Bassanio explains that he wishes to marry Portia, a wealthy heiress. Rich and famous men from all over the world come to woo her.

1 Antonio’s pledge: ‘My purse . . .’ (in pairs)

In lines 134–8, Antonio offers everything to help his friend Bassanio. Take turns in reading the lines aloud, then talk together about Antonio’s attitude towards Bassanio. Also discuss whether you think he is throwing good money after bad.

2 First impressions of Portia (in small groups)

In lines 160–71 the audience first hears of Portia. Bassanio uses stories of Ancient Greece and Rome to praise her. He compares her (line 165) to Portia who was the daughter of Cato, a famous Roman politician, and the wife of Brutus, the ‘honourable man’ who was one of Julius Caesar’s assassins. Bassanio also sees her as a rich prize, like the Golden Fleece the Greek hero Jason sought in Colchis (see p. 181). These references would have been understood by educated members of Shakespeare’s audience. They also indicate Bassanio’s high social status.

1. Read aloud lines 160–71. Each person reads up to a punctuation mark, then hands on. Emphasise all the words and phrases Bassanio uses to praise Portia.
2. Write a paragraph giving your own impressions of Portia from Bassanio’s description.
3. Talk together about what Bassanio’s classical references add to his description of Portia.
4. Suggest at least two possible reasons why Shakespeare chose to have Bassanio begin the description of Portia by explaining that she is ‘a lady richly left’.