Question

is shylock a villain or a victim?​

Answer 1

Answer:

Shylock is a combination of both victim and villain in The Merchant of Venice. He is a victim of discrimination and mistreated by Antonio and his daughter, Jessica. Shylock's greedy, vengeful nature is what makes him a villain, which helps drive the plot of the play.

Explanation:

I believe Shylock is a villain for various reasons. Firstly he demands his “pound of flesh” and this is a recurring theme throughout of the play. Through disassembling each scene in the play he does not show any morsel of mercy ,whereas other characters have tried and I have taken this into consideration. However, I feel the modern day audience would perceive Shylock as a victim as today we live in an equal society where no one or faith is alienated from a community. After reading the play I can also see how other readers would view Shylock as a victim because he has lost everything including his family and he is the only character who ends of up with less than he started with. This play has numerous themes embedded into it and possibly the most important is friendship. What is quite ironic is that the two main characters of Antonio and Shylock do not have a partner at the end of the play! I was extremely lucky to be able to see the film of “The Merchant of Venice”.