Pound of Flesh, Not Kosher

The passage that I want to focus on for this blog post is the statement that Shylock makes when asked if he would really take the pound of flesh from Antonio if the debt is not paid. "To bait fish withal. If it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge." I think that this is a passage that can be referred to when answering a lot of questions about this story. Is Shylock an evil character? Is Antonio an evil character? Who should I feel sympathetic towards? The simple fact that Shylock is willing to literally take the skin off of Antonio in order to feed the revenge inside of himself shows that Antonio has done some pretty terrible things to build this vendetta that Shylock has against him. The terrible acts are also referenced earlier in the story during an exchange between these two characters. Shylock questions why he should lend Antonio money after Antonio has been known to spit on him and demoralize him calling him a dog and other demeaning names. However, we cannot completely side with Shylock because, well, he wants to take the flesh from Antonio. I think that if the reader uses reason, it is not reasonable to want to take a piece of your enemies. Revenge is one thing, mutilation is another.

The characters have to be held responsible for their actions, which is why I am not sympathetic toward either character. If you buy in to the concept that the world balances itself out, then it is only fit for terrible things to fall upon terrible people. The virtuous part of this story lies with Portia and her suitors. It would have benefited Shylock and Antonio to be exposed to some good virtuous advice from the caskets.