Please post your essay questions here. Don't forget to look at your previous post on themes. Really good work and definitely a great question or two in there.
Mary
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Character: To what extent is Shylock a sympathetic character? How did Shakespeare intend his audience to feel about him? Theme: What effect does the contrast between Portia’s relationship with her father, and Jessica’s relationship with her father have on the play? What does it reveal about these two characters? Language: How does Shakespeare's use of mythic imagery contribute to the overall tone of the text, and/or how does it influence the reader’s view of the characters that use it? (ex. Prince of Morocco, Bassanio, Shylock). Structure: How does Shakespeare establish a contrast between Venice and Belmont, and what effect does the juxtaposition of these two places have on the play? -Renee
Character: Focusing on Shylock and Antonio, when do they undergo changes in their character, and how do these changes compare and contrast with one another?
Theme: What is justice for both Antonia and Shylock? How do they justify it in their own eyes?
Language: How do literary devices, such as hyperboles, similes, and metaphors, impact the way a character is speaking, and how they are received by other characters?
Structure: How does the order of the scenes help to build tension and suspense, but also add comedic relief at appropriate times? -Aidan
Character: Is Shylock the villain of "The Merchant of Venice"? How does his role for an Elizabethan audience compare to his role when presented to a modern audience? Theme: Is justice served at the end of the play? How does the prejudice towards Shylock darken the seemingly fairytale ending? Language: How does Shylock and Portia's rhetoric in the courtroom illustrate the contrast between the oppressor and the oppressed? Structure: How does Shakespeare establish a divide between the justice in the courtroom and the injustice in Venice? -Michael
1. Character: To what extent do the relationships between father and daughter influence self-motivated decisions? 2. Theme: How does the theme of love and betrayal inform how characters respond to condemn themselves to a cycle of misfortune? 3. Language: How does Shakespeare's language in Shylock's scenes dictate the reader's empathy or apathy to his character? 4. Structure: How does the shift between prose and Shakespearian verse create dimension in characters' personal relationships?
Compare Portia's treatment of her suitors and the treatment of Shylock at the hands of the Venetian, how does wealth and social status affect the treatment of the other?
How does Shakespeare imply the importance of law throughout the play?
Analyze and compare the difference in what justice is between Shylock and Antonio
How does family and marriage factor in to the importance and idea of promises and bonds across both religious and monetary groups?
Which type of love is shown to be the strongest in the play: familial, romantic, or superficial (love of money/possessions)? What tension exists within and between these relationships? What is the play’s larger message about the nature of love?
How does Shylock’s use of language, including metaphors and repetition, reflect his character as a whole?
Is the Merchant of Venice a comedy or tragedy? -Rebecca
1) How does Portia's dependence on men affect the power dynamic of the characters?
2) In which ways does Shakespeare use the theme of revenge to cause the reader to sympathize with Shylock?
3/5) In Shylock's monologue, what tones are used to illustrate his hatred for Antonio, and why did Shakespeare choose to make Shylock have this type of reaction?
4) Why did Shakespeare decide to format the play in the order he did, and did that benefit or damage the message he was trying to get across?
1) How does Portia interact with men as a woman v as a man, and who holds the power? 2) Looking through the play, what does the stripping of Shylocks religion mean in the wider context? 3) Look closely at the language during the casket and court scenes- what does language reveal about the control that Portia has? 4) Notice how Shakespeare pairs off characters- how do these pairs interact with each other and how do they inform each other's identity throughout the play?
Which characters possess the most control throughout the play, men or women?
What about this play makes it a comedy? Which pieces in particular mock the social paradigms of the era? Where could the Elizabethan audience find humor in the story or characters?
To what extent is justice served by the end of the play? Which characters did/did not deserve the situation that they were in at the end of the play?
12 comments:
Character: To what extent is Shylock a sympathetic character? How did Shakespeare intend his audience to feel about him?
Theme: What effect does the contrast between Portia’s relationship with her father, and Jessica’s relationship with her father have on the play? What does it reveal about these two characters?
Language: How does Shakespeare's use of mythic imagery contribute to the overall tone of the text, and/or how does it influence the reader’s view of the characters that use it? (ex. Prince of Morocco, Bassanio, Shylock).
Structure: How does Shakespeare establish a contrast between Venice and Belmont, and what effect does the juxtaposition of these two places have on the play?
-Renee
Character: Focusing on Shylock and Antonio, when do they undergo changes in their character, and how do these changes compare and contrast with one another?
Theme: What is justice for both Antonia and Shylock? How do they justify it in their own eyes?
Language: How do literary devices, such as hyperboles, similes, and metaphors, impact the way a character is speaking, and how they are received by other characters?
Structure: How does the order of the scenes help to build tension and suspense, but also add comedic relief at appropriate times?
-Aidan
Character: Is Shylock the villain of "The Merchant of Venice"? How does his role for an Elizabethan audience compare to his role when presented to a modern audience?
Theme: Is justice served at the end of the play? How does the prejudice towards Shylock darken the seemingly fairytale ending?
Language: How does Shylock and Portia's rhetoric in the courtroom illustrate the contrast between the oppressor and the oppressed?
Structure: How does Shakespeare establish a divide between the justice in the courtroom and the injustice in Venice?
-Michael
1. Character: To what extent do the relationships between father and daughter influence self-motivated decisions?
2. Theme: How does the theme of love and betrayal inform how characters respond to condemn themselves to a cycle of misfortune?
3. Language: How does Shakespeare's language in Shylock's scenes dictate the reader's empathy or apathy to his character?
4. Structure: How does the shift between prose and Shakespearian verse create dimension in characters' personal relationships?
1. What do the characters and their portrayal say about Shakespeare’s embracement or rejection of stereotypes?
2. How does the theme of justice or the law define who is the "bad guy" in the play?
3. How does the language set the Venetian scenes and differentiate them from the English scenes?
4. In what way does the structure of the play reveal how Venetian society operates and treats people?
Compare Portia's treatment of her suitors and the treatment of Shylock at the hands of the Venetian, how does wealth and social status affect the treatment of the other?
How does Shakespeare imply the importance of law throughout the play?
Analyze and compare the difference in what justice is between Shylock and Antonio
How does family and marriage factor in to the importance and idea of promises and bonds across both religious and monetary groups?
Is Shylock a villain or victim?
Which type of love is shown to be the strongest in the play: familial, romantic, or superficial (love of money/possessions)? What tension exists within and between these relationships? What is the play’s larger message about the nature of love?
How does Shylock’s use of language, including metaphors and repetition, reflect his character as a whole?
Is the Merchant of Venice a comedy or tragedy?
-Rebecca
1. Character, 2. Theme, 3. Language, 4. Structure
1) How does Portia's dependence on men affect the power dynamic of the characters?
2) In which ways does Shakespeare use the theme of revenge to cause the reader to sympathize with Shylock?
3/5) In Shylock's monologue, what tones are used to illustrate his hatred for Antonio, and why did Shakespeare choose to make Shylock have this type of reaction?
4) Why did Shakespeare decide to format the play in the order he did, and did that benefit or damage the message he was trying to get across?
1) How does Portia interact with men as a woman v as a man, and who holds the power?
2) Looking through the play, what does the stripping of Shylocks religion mean in the wider context?
3) Look closely at the language during the casket and court scenes- what does language reveal about the control that Portia has?
4) Notice how Shakespeare pairs off characters- how do these pairs interact with each other and how do they inform each other's identity throughout the play?
-Gray Downs
How does the arc of Shylock's character throughout the play inform the way we view him?
In what way do the characters rely on laws and rules to inform their decisions and actions?
How does Antonio's tone and language change while speaking to Bassanio?
How does the intertwining of the suiting of Portia in the beginning of the play change your perspective for the rest of of the play?
Which characters possess the most control throughout the play, men or women?
What about this play makes it a comedy? Which pieces in particular mock the social paradigms of the era? Where could the Elizabethan audience find humor in the story or characters?
To what extent is justice served by the end of the play? Which characters did/did not deserve the situation that they were in at the end of the play?
Which character is the most sympathetic?
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