The Merchant of Venice: Choice, Hazard, and ConsequenceMacmillan, 1995 - 369 sider The interpretative problem that haunts The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare's most performed and currently most controversial comedy, concerns the question of artistic unity: did Shakespeare effectively integrate his multiple plots and apparently divergent worlds of Venice and Belmont? Joan Ozark Holmer examines Shakespeare's indebted and innovative theatrical choices regarding his comedy's structure, language, ideas, and characters. Discovering a tightly knit interplay of contrarieties and correspondences, she argues for the play's unity of dramatic design through its enactment of choices for or against a complex conception of wise love. Historical contexts - aesthetic, theological, and economic - anchor the play's problems of finance and faith that make or break a variety of secular and spiritual bonds. An on-going dialogue with past and present criticism gauges altering perspectives and persuasions in the critics' performance. Because most modern contention centres on the question of anti-Semitism, a consideration of how the play encodes sixteenth-century concepts of Jews illuminates their cultural moment and ours. If Shakespearean drama can be said to be an infinitely varied experience in seeing feelingly, then the play entertains and educates through dilemmas of choice and ironic reversals that expose the human difficulty of knowing and doing well. Presenting possible new sources as well as new evidence from recognised sources, Holmer highlights issues usually underestimated in the play's criticism. Examples include the interrelation of wealth and faith with literal and figurative conversions, the importance of usury, biblical allusion and the instrumentality of stage law. Taking the recapitulation of the final act for closure of both play and book, she analyses its incorporative design for summing the circle of the play, concluding with an awareness of how this play fits within Shakespeare's canon and at the same time continues to 'exceed account' in its imaginative reckoning. |
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Side 57
... final rings episode , which grows out of the resolutions of the casket plot ( 3.2 ) and the flesh - bond plot ( 4.1 ) in order to effect the final reso- lution of the play . He especially effects artistic unity through the thematic ...
... final rings episode , which grows out of the resolutions of the casket plot ( 3.2 ) and the flesh - bond plot ( 4.1 ) in order to effect the final reso- lution of the play . He especially effects artistic unity through the thematic ...
Side 232
... final judgement passed on Shylock by Antonio and the Duke has an even broader allegorical signifi- cance for the play . The Duke grants Shylock his physical life , which Antonio supports with ' living ' and , from his perspective , new ...
... final judgement passed on Shylock by Antonio and the Duke has an even broader allegorical signifi- cance for the play . The Duke grants Shylock his physical life , which Antonio supports with ' living ' and , from his perspective , new ...
Side 271
... final mention of ' the rich Jew ' ( 5.1.292 ) . Shylock's presence is recalled symbolically through his ' special deed of gift ' to his daughter and son - in - law ( 5.1.291-3 , my italics ) . Lorenzo's appreciation of the ' fair ladies ...
... final mention of ' the rich Jew ' ( 5.1.292 ) . Shylock's presence is recalled symbolically through his ' special deed of gift ' to his daughter and son - in - law ( 5.1.291-3 , my italics ) . Lorenzo's appreciation of the ' fair ladies ...
Indhold
Structure and Language | 40 |
Friends and Lovers | 95 |
Antonio and Shylock | 142 |
Copyright | |
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The Merchant of Venice: Choice, Hazard, and Consequence Joan Ozark Holmer Ingen forhåndsvisning - 1995 |
Almindelige termer og sætninger
Abigail allusion Antonio and Shylock Antonio's Barabas Barabas's Bassanio Belmont biblical blessing Cambridge casket test characters choice choose Christ Christian comedy comic conversion critics Danson daughter death deed dramatic ducats Elizabethan audience emphasis example faith father flesh bond friendship gain Geneva Bible Gerontus Gesta Romanorum gift giving and hazarding gloss God's Gratiano hate Hebrew human idea intended interpretation Iscah italics Jacob Jessica Jew of Malta Jewish judgement justice Lancelot lending literal literary London Lopez Lorenzo Mahood Marlowe Marlowe's meaning Merchant of Venice mercy Morocco and Arragon Mosse murder Nashe Nerissa oath Pecorone penalty perspective play's Portia pound of flesh R. H. Tawney religious Renaissance revenge rings episode Salarino Shake Shakespeare Shelah Shylock Shylock's bond sixteenth-century Solanio speare's speech spirit Testament Thomas Thomas Lodge Thomas Nashe tion trial scene Tubal University Press usurer usury Venetian wealth Wilson wisdom wise love word