Love In The Merchant Of Venice

Love between a father and child in The Merchant of Venice refers to Shylock and Jessica’s strained relationship. Shylock is rarely affectionate towards anyone, even his own flesh and blood, Jessica. The love these two have for each other is very minimal, but still present. One very large example of Shylock displaying his feeling is when he says,“Out upon her! Thou torturest me, Tubal. It was my turquoise! I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor. I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys” (51). This refutes the claim that Shylock strictly only cares about material things. His reaction reveals that he is pained by Jessica’s actions. Shylock takes the loss of the ring so seriously because it was a gift from his dead wife, Leah. Shylock’s

In Portia and Bassanio’s relationship we see that Portia’s love seems to be genuine while Bassanio’s love for Portia does not. Shakespeare implies that Portia genuinely loves her husband when he adds, “To wish myself much better, yet for you I would be trebled twenty times myself, a thousand times more fair, ten thousand times more rich, that only to stand high in your account I might in virtues, beauties, livings, friends, exceed account” (57). In this passage, love is described as a want to better oneself for their other half. This categorizes Portia’s love as genuine rather than counterfeit. Bassanio’s love appears to be counterfeit because he was initially interested in Portia because of her wealth and status. This implies that he has fallen in love with the idea of Portia and her possessions rather than her personality. Just like Portia and Bassanio’s relationship, Jessica and Lorenzo have ulterior motives to their relationship. Instead of being strictly based on love, Jessica wants to marry Lorenzo so she can convert to Christianity and shed her father’s reputation. On the other hand, Lorenzo sees their marriage as profitable. When talking about his future wife he says, “I must needs tell thee all. She hath directed how I shall take her from her father's house, what gold and jewels she is furnished with, what page's suit she hath in

For example, Friendship, love between father and child, romantic love, as well as the love of possessions and money are the heterogeneous types of love shown in The Merchant of Venice. In Jessica and Shylock’s relationship, there is little affection shown between the two of them. Jessica think negatively of her father because of his reputation to be a money-hungry Jew. Shylock fits this stereotype because of his love of possessions and money. Christians look down upon him because he lends money with interest, which the Christian faith deems unmoral. The nature of this love is negative because his love of his materialistic attitude which will only hurt himself. If one has lost friends and family, then material goods will soon mean little to nothing. In terms of romantic love, shakespeare displays Bassanio and Portia’s love as true love, Jessica and Lorenzo’s Love as young love, and Gratiano and Nerissa’s love as lustful. Finally, Antonio and Bassanio’s friendship is the strongest type of love in The Merchant of Venice. This friendship is the only relationship in the play without an ulterior