what do u think is the reason the prince of arragon made his choice of casket?
what does this tell us about him?
(1000-1500 words)
gud luck lol
Answers
Answer:
In Shakespeare’s play ‘The Merchant of Venice’, Unlike the Prince of Morocco, who preceded him in the play, the Prince of Arragon has no introductory scene in which the audience has an opportunity to learn about his character and personality. Arragon simply appears at Portia's house in Belmont, takes the oath required of every suitor who chooses among the three caskets, and proceeds directly to making his choice among the three caskets of lead, silver, and gold.
the Prince of Arragon showed his lack of wisdom and self-contradictory nature by his reasoning in choosing the right casket to win Portia’s hand. One of the functions that the Prince of Arragon serves in the play is to provide the audience with the actual conditions of the oath, which have not been fully stated previously in the play. Arragon seems to have no reservations about making the oath, and he's ready to make his choice. Through the process of his choice, the choice he makes, and his reaction to his reward, Arragon is shown as a coldly practical, unsentimental, unromantic, and supremely self-confident man. At first he took no time to dismiss the lead casket as it read “Who chooseth me must give and hazard all he hath.” His reasoning was — you shld look more attractive before I of risk anything Arragon was quite arrogant and foolish here to think himself more deserving than a common lead box. He actually judged it by the outward appearance of the casket.
Arragon mention that he has any interest in Portia as a person, that he loves her, or that he's in any way attracted to her. The only time he addresses Portia personally is when he says, "Sweet, adieu" on his way out of the scene. For Arragon, this casket business and the possible acquisition of Portia for his wife seems like nothing more than a business transaction. He then moved to the gold casket and read the inscription there. He thought that “what many men desire” may indicate to the foolishness of most people to run after something judging by its outer appearance. And so he decided to go past it. Actually he showed some wisdom here not to fall prey of the trap of gold. But it shows a sharp contrast to his earlier logic regarding the lead box.
However he read the writing on the silver casket and was convinced by the words “as much as he deserves”. He always thought highly of himself and he felt that he deserved the best in the world. He then went on to think a bit longer about how this world would have been if everyone got only what one deserved. Then many noblemen would have been peasants and many poor people would be kings according to their merit and not by corruption. But as he thought, he deserved the very best, he went on to open the silver box and failed. Arragon is rewarded with what he deserves, which is a portrait, not of Portia but of a "blinking idiot" and a poem that calls him a fool who came to the choice of caskets with the head of a fool but that goes away with two foolish heads—his own and the portrait of the "blinking idiot." Here again he showed his foolishness in thinking himself the best in the world.
Arragon makes no mention of losing Portia as his wife, nor does he seem particularly upset about that. Arragon simply can't believe that he chose the wrong casket. "Did I deserve no more than a fool's head?" he says. "Is that my prize? are my deserts no better?" Arragon promptly leaves the scene with barely a nod to Portia, shaking his head in disbelief as he goes out the door. Portia dismisses him as a moth singed by a candle and has nothing more to say about him as she turns her attention to Bassanio, Portia's own choice for a husband, who has just appeared outside her door, intent on taking his own turn to choose among the caskets.
Explanation:
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