![]() ![]() You called me dog, and for these courtesies / I’ll lend you this much money.”” Antonio answers, “I am as like to call thee so again, / To spit on thee again, to be spurn thee too. Shylock says, ““Fair sir, you spit on me Wednesday last, / You spurned me such a day, another time. In Act I Scene 3, before Jessica has run off and confused-for the viewer maybe at least-the source of Shylock’s anger, Shylock most clearly explains why he’d desire a pound of flesh from Antonio. This definition was solidified by the King James Bible, which was in development at the time of “Merchant of Venice,” but still offers a window into two relationships in the play. One oversimplification is that gentile refers to someone who is not Jewish and/or is a Christian. But money does not mean you are of gentle birth.Ĭonsidering the root of the word, as given in the OED, gentile, there are complicated and frankly confusing Biblical allusions and centuries of interpretation at play. Up until the trial Shylock is far and away the most financially well-off of the Venetians. ![]() The word gentle gets more complicated when applied to Shylock and his daughter. Sometimes it more obviously has the undertones of class and birth, as when Bassanio calls Portia a “Gentle lady” in Act III Scene 2. Sometimes it seems a moniker of affection. Gentle, when applied by the characters of “The Merchant of Venice” to each other, assumes each of these meanings and interpretations at least once. What do I mean when I call you “gentle”? Is it out of affection, because you are courteous and polite? Do I consider you a person of distinction? Or am I reflecting on the character of your birth?Īnd if I am, is it in derision, praise or with the intent of reinventing you?
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