Hath not a Jew eyes?
Hath not a Jew hands, organs,
dimensions, senses, affections, passions; fed with
the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject
to the same diseases, heal'd by the same means,
warm'd and cool'd by the same winter and summer
as a Christian is? If you prick us, do we not bleed?
If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us,
do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?
dimensions, senses, affections, passions; fed with
the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject
to the same diseases, heal'd by the same means,
warm'd and cool'd by the same winter and summer
as a Christian is? If you prick us, do we not bleed?
If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us,
do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?
When I first watched The Merchant of Venice, I was trapped reading the play (Act I, to be exactly) and watching the film was a relief. Maybe some of you will immediately judge me because I didn’t give an opportunity to this masterpiece of English literature, but I must admit that I am terrible reader when it comes to understand and analyze old English. This adaptation helped me not only to visualize the setting and context of the play, but also to appreciate the different actor’s performances. Al Pacino’s performance, specifically, was admirable because he brought humanity to one of Shakespeare’s most controversial characters: Shylock. Bringing humanity to a human character may sound a little bit silly, but I am not talking about any character, I am talking about the supposedly despicable and greedy villain Shylock. Since I read the play without meticulously noticing the protagonists’ temperaments, I didn’t realize their complexity and ambiguity. Therefore, watching the film gave me a fresh perspective, especially with Shylock.
Despite the
fact that Shylock has very few lines on the play (and on the film, as well), Al
Pacino’s performance—and obviously Shylock’s essence—portrays a palpable Jewish
man who makes us feel sympathy, and even sorrow.
My two favorite
scenes are Shylock’s. One of them is the Hath
not a Jew? a moment in which I personally felt the vulnerability and
desperation, as well as the rejection against Shylock only for being the Jew. My second favorite scene,
almost at the end, is when Shylock is outrageously demanding Antonio’s pound of
flesh when suddenly he is intercepted and questioned by a cross-dressing
Portia. He was about to accomplish his role as the Jew showing no mercy by killing the good Christian fellow
Antonio. However, what we don’t expect is having Antonio acting without mercy when
he demands that Shylock must convert to Christianity. As Harold Bloom mentions
in his essay “Antonio wins and has nothing except money, Shylock loses (and
deserves to lose) and has nothing, not even an identity”. There is an
unbearable irony in this part; it is either Antonio’s butchery or Shylock
baptism. We all know the endings for these two characters, but I believe that
Shylock received the worst punishment because as a Christian he cannot be
himself: neither a Jew nor a moneylender. He vanishes when he loses his own
identity, and Al Pacino captures that when he says “I am content”.
written by Macarena Álvarez V.
I agree with you. Sometimes reading old engish can be a real challenge and the movie medium is very helpful in aiding us to understand and visualize the images described in a novel (especially those written in a strange, almost alien language). I also agree with your sympathy for Shylock, which I think is unavoidable after reading/watching his few lines throughout the novel/movie.He almost seems like a more complete individual than Antonio, a true victim of his past, despised by many but understood by few. I could never see him as a true villain; but Antonio, on the other hand, his lack of sympathy towards Shylock showed me that he was both a hypocrite and a deluded individual, a man who considered himself to be a "good christian" all the while mocking and attempting to destroy Shylock in every way possible. Antonio only thinks about himself, even in helping his best friend, he is only thinking about himself. Bassanio's friendship, after all, keeps Antonio afloat, so his "selfless" act of sacrifice was actually quite selfish. I did not like this character one bit.
ResponderEliminarI very much agree with you two. Although I haven't seen the movie yet, I had the same sense of sympathy towards Shylock during the whole play and I rejected Antonio´s actions and personality. Besides, I think Shylock is the one who gives life to the story with his desire of revenge, which at least for me it was the most interesting part of Shakespeare’s work. Without the presence of Shylock in the play, it would have been a boring love story, even though it is categorized as a comedy.
ResponderEliminar