The Merchant of Venice Final Essay

   The play, The Merchant of Venice, starts with a man named Bassanio, and his friends Antonio. Bassanio needs money to seem rich so that he can impress Portia, a rich woman he wants to marry. In order to marry Portia, Bassanio has to pick the right casket that has her portrait in it. There are three caskets. One gold, one silver, and one lead. Bassanio and two other men go into Portia's house and are told to pick a casket. The two other men are both rich with money and valuables unlike Bassanio. When having to choose a casket, the outside appearance might have played a larger role than it should have. The two richer men chose the wrong casket, the gold and the silver. The saw the appealing outside of the casket and assumed there was good inside. Bassanio saw the three caskets but didn't let the appearance play a role in his decision. He chose the lead casket and was shown good inside (Portia's portrait). He was the man chosen to marry Portia. The Merchant of Venice shows that the appearance of something doesn't declare the value of it.
   The way someone looks shouldn't determine how much they are worth. Some of the men thought the way they looked would determine their chances of marring Portia. The first man to choose a casket is the Prince of Morocco. He was the richest out of the three but he had a different colored skin. He let his outside appearance make him think that Portia wouldn't choose him. "Do not dislike me because of my color. My dark skin is the uniform of those who live under the burning coppery sun." (2.1.1-2). Although his skin may be darker than other men, he is still just like them on the inside. He is not worth more or less than the lighter colored skin men. Bassanio, the least rich out of the three also thought that the way he presented himself to Portia was important. He wanted to impress Portia and to do so, he needed money. So he asked his friend Antonio if he could borrow some money. "Oh Antonio- I feel convinced I'd be successful if only I had the money to make myself a rival!" (1.1.173-176). He thought the way he looked was important when going to see Portia. He did not know that Portia didn't take looks into consideration because she didn't want to and she couldn't if she could. The way someone looks shouldn't matter as much as their personality and the words they speak.
   Even if something looks nice and appealing, that doesn't mean what's inside will be nice and appealing also. The Prince of Morocco was the first to choose a casket. When he was given the choice between gold, silver, and lead, he chose the gold casket. The Prince of Morocco learned that the appearance of something doesn't determine its value. When he opened the casket, he found a scroll that said "All that glitters is not gold" (2.7.65.). He chose the wrong casket and was not the one who would marry Portia. When Bassanio went in the choose a casket, he was given the same choices. Gold, silver, or lead. Bassanio chose lead, the one that looked the least appealing. But when he opened the casket, he was happy with what he found. In the casket was Portia's portrait and a scroll that said "You who choose not by the view take a fair chance, and choose quite true" (3.2.131-132). The gold, being the most appealing to the eye, had what the men didn't want. But the lead casket, the least appealing, had what all three men wanted.
   In conclusion, the way something looks, shouldn't play a role when making decisions. If one lets appearance play a role, one may end up unhappy with the outcome. The Prince of Morocco cared too much about the color of his skin. Bassanio cared too much about how much money he had and what he looked like. But Portia didn't care about what any of them wore or looked like. She cared about what's inside (personality). When The Prince of Morocco chose the gold casket, he was fooled by the appearance and was unhappy with what he was shown inside the casket. But when Bassanio didn't let appearance affect his decision and chose the lead casket, he was overjoyed with what he was shown. Don't let the appearance of something declare the value of it.

The Merchant of Venice Essay

   Although someone may be loaded with jewels and money and seem very confident on the outside, on the inside, they may be very insecure about themselves. There is something that is holding them back from being confident and not caring about anything. Something may look priceless on the outside, but on the inside, it is filled with things very useless and disappointing. Don't judge anything by its outside appearance because it is misleading. Shakespeare shows in The Merchant of Venice, that the appearance of something doesn't declare the value of it.
   The Prince of Morocco is a very rich man. He has attendants and lives in a larger than normal home. Although it may seem like he would be a very confident person since he has all these things, he is very insecure about the way he looks. "Do not dislike me because of my color. My dark skin is the uniform of those who live under the burning coppery sun." (2.1.1-2). He doesn't think Portia will want to marry him because he has darker skin. By telling Portia to ignore the color of his skin, he showed her how insecure he is about himself.
   When Portia had to find a man to marry, her father decided that the men would pick a casket and whoever picked the casket with Portia's portrait in it, would be the man she would marry. All three caskets looked a little different from each other. One was gold, one was silver, and one was lead. Three men went to Portia to pick a casket. The Prince of Morocco chose the gold casket. When he opened the casket, there was not portrait but there was a scroll that said, "All that glitters is not gold" (2.7.65). The Prince of Morocco was fooled by the appearance of the casket. But when Bassanio chose a casket, he chose the lead casket and found the portrait and a scroll that said, "You who choose not by the view take a fair chance, and choose quite true" (3.2.131-132).
   In conclusion, when one chooses by the appearance of something or someone, they may be fooled. The appearance of something doesn't declare the value of it. It's what's on the inside that matter the most. A beautiful person is nothing without a beautiful personality and a beautiful casket is nothing without something wonderful on the inside.

Merchant of Venice Act I Scene III

1. Portia can't control choosing a man suitable for her because it is in her father's will.
2. Shylock is the man who is negotiating the loan with Bassanio. Shylock is important because Bassanio needs the money to impress Portia. If Shylock doesn't agree to loan Bassanio the money, he won't give off a good impression on Portia.
3. If Antonio doesn't pay Shylock back, Shylock gets to cut off a pound of his flesh.
4. Shylock is hesitant because Antonio isn't charging interest so Bassanio doesn't have to worry about paying more if he doesn't pay him back on time. The relationship between Antonio and Shylock is negative. Antonio has called Shylock a dog in the past and had spat and kicked him.
5. I wouldn't trust Antonio because he has so many ships out at sea and it's not for sure that he'll make a lot of money. Antonio might not make as much money as he thinks his going to make.
Reflection Question: When you do business with your friends, you are more likely to make exceptions for them. By doing this, you may lose money. I think it is smart that Antonio and Shylock are doing business together because they aren't friends so they won't make exceptions for each other.

Merchant of Venice Act 1

1. The setting of this book is in Venice, Italy. The people there are rich.
2. Antonio is merchant who is depressed. He doesn't know why he is depressed. He's worried about the traded ships he invested in that are still at sea.
3. Bassanio asked Antonio for a loan because he wants to marry Portia. He needed money so that he could look presentable when he sees Portia.
4. Portia likes Bassanio more than all the other men her father chose even though she's only seen him once.

Anticipation Guide

"Don't rely on outward appearances when making judgements."
I agree with this statement because you shouldn't judge food by the way it looks. Something could look like it would taste really good but when you actually taste it, it doesn't taste that good. Something could also look like a piece of trash but when you taste it, it tastes super good.
When I went to eat sushi, everything looked really tasty and pretty. So I took the prettiest one off the conveyor belt. But when I tasted it, I didn't like the way it tasted. Another time, my grandma made eggplant with this sauce and it looked really ugly and unappetizing. But when my mom made me eat it, I ended up really liking it.

"Justice is always blind."
I agree with this statement because I think everyone should be treated the same way. It doesn't matter what gender or race you are. Everyone gets the same consequences for their actions.
When a person turns 18, they will be treated the same as someone who is 30. They will be treated as an adult even if they're 18 or 19 and still a teenager.

"A brotherly love between two friends can be just as strong as an intimate love between a man and a woman."
I agree with this statement because in both relationships, they have to be willing to do anything for the other. They will also be there for each other no matter what. The pair will always want to do everything with each other because that's how much they mean to each other.
When my dad was in the hospital for a few days, my mom went to go make sure he was doing okay even though he was coming home in a few days. Likewise, when my friend was sick, I did everything I could to make sure she got better as soon as possible.

"You can break a promise as long as you have a good excuse."
I agree with this statement because you can't always keep a promise. There are things that come in the way. You can try your best to get around the obstacles but it doesn't always work out and it's not always your fault.
One day I promised my friend I would get her lunch bag that she forgot in the band room. But I couldn't get it for her because I was stuck in a leadership meeting and right after the meeting, my mom told me we had to leave. I didn't have enough time to go all the way to the band room and get her lunch bag.

"Love is blind."
I agree with this statement because if someone really loves someone, their looks won't matter to them. If someone likes another because of the way he/she looks, then it isn't love. If you love someone, you love them because of who they are, not what they look like.
In "The Fault In Our Stars", Augustus loved Hazel Grace because of who she was. He thought she was beautiful no matter what. Although she wasn't the most beautiful because she had tubes connected to her face and she was diagnosed with cancer, he still loves her.

"Stereotypes are often right."
I do not agree with this statement because stereotypes are just things people assume. They think these things because the stereotypes apply to the people they know. But they don't necessarily necessarily apply to the people they don't know.
A stereotype about Asians is that they are very smart. But not all Asians are smart and get straight As. My sister and I get Bs and Cs too. We aren't that tidy and organized either.

"An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth is a good motto to live by."
I don't agree with this statement because I think you should treat people the way you want to be treated. If someone spreads fake rumors about you, you don't have to spread fake rumors about them.
When someone told my friend's hydro flask, he was mad. But he didn't steal the other person's hydro when he found out who stole his.