ASSIGNMENT 24:: MERCHANT OF VENICE ROUGH DRAFT
2:42 AM
Revenge is something that we view as an option, whenever someone would bring unfortunate to us. So, it's only natural that people would seek for vengeance in such circumstances. And, once we execute it then, all of the past negativity that was harbored disappears into dust and, one begins anew. However, once an attempt on revenge is made it doesn’t end there but, becomes tainted. Dirty. In the play, Merchant of Venice written by William Shakespeare it portrays how revenge does not always guarantee satisfaction because, it can exacerbate the conditions . This notion revolves around a Jewish merchant, Shylock who agrees on a deal with the Christian Antonio, despite past religious discrimination. But things aren’t that excusable as Shylock sets a condition. Which is if Antonio fails to fulfill his part of the deal then, he has the right to claim a pound of flesh from him. As the story progresses, Shylock’s longing for revenge increases. But, once Shylock finally was able to execute it, it backfired. In conclusion, despite a person performing misconduct on another because, revenge is not always sweet as it can worsen your circumstances.
Revenge begins with the one who imposes on them. “You call me an infidel, a cutthroat dog, and you spit on my Jewish garments,” (1.3.107-108). In this line, Antonio asks Shylock to negotiate a deal however, Shylock responds with a long list of the various mistreatment that he had received from Antonio. To the dismay of Shylock, Antonio disregards that matter and continues to press on the deal. Which Shylock resolves with the concept of gaining retribution through this deal. “A pound of human flesh, taken from a man, is not so saleable, or profitable, as the flesh of mutton, beef or goats. I’m saying that to buy his goodwill, I offer this friendship,” (1.3.163-166). In this scene, Shylock makes a solution that is supposedly going to benefit only him by claiming a pound of flesh from his enemy, Antonio. Through attaining that pound of flesh according to Shylock’s theory the religious discrimination will be forgiven and bring great pleasure.
Revenge is fabricated with sweetness. “I’m glad of it. I’ll plague him. I’ll torture him. I’m glad of it!,” (3.1.96-97). At this point, Shylock’s close friend Tubal announces that Antonio is incapable of fulfilling his part of the deal which clearly delights Shylock. With Shylock’s enthusiasm he begins to dream of all the different possibilities that he could do when performing his revenge. This scene clearly displays on how revenge satiates one’s desire through bringing great happiness. However, much to Shylock’s dismay things didn’t exactly turn the way that he expected it to be. “Take your pound of flesh. But if, in cutting it, you shed one drop of Christian blood, your lands and goods, under the laws of Venice, will be confiscated to the state of Venice,” (4.1.305-309). Finally, when Shylock is about to execute revenge upon Antonio he is intervened by another character, Portia who declares from the contract that if any blood were to be shed then, his land and goods will be confiscated. From that point on, Shylock was never able to satiate their lust for the flesh and was disheartened. This represents how one might think that revenge is able to guarantee satisfaction but, in reality only harbors misfortune. In this case, Shylock was handicapped on the way to acquiring revenge on Antonio. To conclude, retribution is bitter.
From this, one can learn that revenge should not be used as an option as it can greatly backfire.
But at first, it’s understandable that one one would opt for revenge to let the inflictor receive the same kind of suffering that one endured. In this case, Shylock believed that because, Antonio had discriminated his religious identity that a pound of his flesh shall be cut. As the story progresses Shylock’s desire for vengeance increases to the point, that his mind is only consumed of attaining that flesh. Then, when it finally came to the point that Shylock is just about to obtain contentment, it is only interrupted by Portia which disables his acquirement by the contract he signed. To sum it up, in the journey of vengeance, one will never be able to find contentment but, an undesirable situation.
4 comments
BODY PARAGRAPHS NEEDS TO CONTAIN MORE DISCUSSION IN SUPPORT OF THE THEME, THEN YOU CAN SUPPORT IT WITH SUMMARY AND EVIDENCE FROM THE PLAY. CONCLUSION NEEDS TO END WITH LASTING INSIGHT, YOU NEED TO TELL US WHY THE ISSUE/THEME MATTERS TO USE, WHAT WE SHOULD LEARN FROM IT ALL, ETC. MS(3+)
ReplyDeletegood word choices. very big vocabulary. you should say why the issue matters to us.
ReplyDeleteI really like the way you explain things and how you put lots of detail to help to reader comprehend your theme. Although one thing I would say is to discuss more on your theme than the story because if you keep going back and forth it could get confusing. Also, in the body paragraphs you should come back to you're thesis and connect to make it stronger. And in the Introduction the sentence where it says,"... was able to execute it, it backfired." Maybe word it as "... was able to execute, it back fired." Overall, your rough draft is really detailed and intruiging, but with a little touch ups it could grow into something more.
ReplyDeleteKARI, your essay's theme is very evident and well explained. The first sentence already showed it's theme and made it easy to catch what the whole essay was going to be about. The quotes that you chose to talk about matched with the theme as well. Each paragraph explained the topics in clear detail making it easy to understand too. But there's like a random sentence that's kind of just "there" before the last paragraph. I don't know if you meant for it to be there but it seems like it wasn't. I don't know, I'm just letting you know. Overall, good essay, really detailed and well explained 👍
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