Anti-Semitism in the Climax

In The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare’s choices to have various characters constantly refer to Shylock’s cruelty and inhumanity while persuading him to spare Antonio reveals Shakespeare’s own view of Jews as hard-hearted and merciless. From the very start of the scene, Shakespeare makes Shylock out to be the villain who victimizes Antonio. The Duke refers to Shylock as “A stony adversary, an inhuman wretch/Uncapable of pity, void and empty/From any dram of mercy.” (4.1.3-5). Not only does the Duke imply that Shylock must be “an inhuman wretch” for not freeing Antonio, he also uses the word “uncapable” to insinuate that Shylock’s cruel behavior is an ingrained part of who he is, something that he cannot change about himself. The Duke implies that Shylock’s incapacity for pity is the way he was born, possibly even suggesting that his malice is because he is a Jew. Shakespeare’s implications become clearer later, when Antonio tells Bassanio that “you may as well do anything most hard/As seek to soften that–than which what’s harder?/His Jewish heart.” (4.1.77-79). Antonio reasons that the most difficult task to take on is to try to soften Shylock’s heart. But instead of simply referring to Shylock’s heart as “his heart,” Shakespeare has Antonio specifically say “his Jewish heart” to clarify that Shylock’s unforgiving nature is solely due to the fact that he is Jewish and that all Jews therefore are ruthless and unfeeling. Antonio also tells Bassanio not to try and reason with Shylock and to consider that “you question with the Jew.” (4.1.71). By calling Shylock “the Jew” and not “a Jew” Antonio also indicates that Shylock is a perfect representation of Jewish behavior, only furthering Shakespeare’s argument that Jews are all implacable villains. By calling Shylock cruel and directly associating his cruelty with his Judaism, Shakespeare reveals his disdainful attitude towards Jews despite the apparent sympathy he gave to Shylock earlier in the play.