Give a brief description of Antonio character with special reference to his melancholy.At of two page...
Answers
Answer:
Although the plot turns on Antonio's predicament, his character is not sharply drawn. He is a rich man, and a comfortable man, and a popular man, but still he suffers from an inner sadness. One obvious, dramatic reason for Antonio's quiet melancholy is simply that Shakespeare cannot give Antonio too much to do or say without taking away valuable dialogue time from his major characters. Therefore, Shakespeare makes Antonio a quiet, dignified figure.
One of Antonio's most distinguishing characteristics is his generosity. He is more than happy to offer his good credit standing so that Bassanio can go to Belmont in the latest fashions in order to court Portia. And one of the reasons why Shylock hates Antonio so intensely is that Antonio has received Shylock's borrowers by lending them money at the last minute to pay off Shylock; and Antonio never charges interest. He is only too happy to help his friends, but he would never stoop to accepting more than the original amount in return. Antonio's generosity is boundless, and for Bassanio, he is willing to go to the full length of friendship, even if it means that he himself may suffer for it.
Antonio is portrayed as a melancholy character from the outset of the play. In the first scene, Antonio's friends, Salarino and Solanio, insist that Antonio is upset and depressed about his ships. Antonio is a wealthy merchant whose money is invested in his ships. Antonio's ships are currently out at sea, where they are subjected to the treacherous waves. However, Antonio denies this explanation for his melancholy disposition and mentions that he has no idea why he is so depressed.
Another possible explanation for Antonio's melancholy mood concerns his feelings towards Bassanio. Bassanio is much younger than Antonio and seeks Portia's hand in marriage. Being that Antonio is such a close friend of Bassanio's, he may be upset that his best friend is seeking marriage, which means that he will get to spend less time with him. Similar to this explanation is the argument that Antonio is in love with Bassanio and is depressed about losing him.
Explanation:
follow me