Looking at the denouement of the play, do you think that MOV is really a comedy? Or rather, is it more of tragedy? Justify your answer.
I think "MOV" is comedy in label or nomenclature in the sense that it ended happily with the reconciliation of the two romantic couples and the good news about Antonio's ships. But if I will look deeper into it, I can consider it as tragic simply because not any of the major characters really exemplified the true spirit of mercy as advocated by Portia herself. Rather alienating Shylock (not in the sense that he will not be judged according to the law), they could have given him more guidance and chance for enlightenment. Maybe Shakespeare intended this really to happen such that the readers would see how Westerners, during those "golden years," rejoice in the downfall of other people--maybe the "cancer" in his society that Rizal also portrayed in Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.
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8 comments:
I think that MOV is more of a tragedy because Shylock had to experience discrimination (as a Jew) and resort to revenge just to prove himself worthy of respect from the Christians in the play.
Also, I consider it tragic that the couples in the play didn't have a strong foundation in their relationships before deciding to marry one another. I think that their "love" for one another isn't as deep and meaningful as they may think.
- Tricia R. II-4
I think when i first read the book...it was a tragedy story because...shylock wanted antonio's flesh as the payment of what he gave to bassanio, 3000 ducats... :>
trixie ocampo II - 1
I don't really get how it's supposed to be a comedy. Romeo and Juliet's Mercutio was funnier than Gratiano and Launcelet, or any other MoV character, for that matter.
For me, it's more of a tragedy. The happy ending might have overshadowed the more important conclusion, which was Shylock's defeat at the hands of the court. That in itself is a very sad and disappointing event, and so I think that this is a tragedy.
The Merchant of Venice, in my opinion, is not a very sad story to the extent of calling it a "tragedy" nor a very entertaining and happy story for it to be called a comedy.
It has the touch of both kinds, making it a very intersting story if we look deeper in to it. The characters had their own happy and joyful moments and there are characters such as Lancelet to make the play more comedic. But the story isn't all fun and happiness. It also has a darker side which is, for me, the whole point of Shylock's character [I really pity Shylock :(].
In the end, it is truly another one of Shakespeare's masterpieces. :)
~Pauline C., II-1
[I had to delete the former one since errors were commited]
I think it offers quite an equal amount of the two.
A first-time reader would see its quality as a comedy since it contains the same aspect in Shakespeare's other romantic comedies. It usually ends with a happy ending most of us are familiar of, the frequent wordplay such as using metaphors, puns, epigrams and such is also noted, there is the appearance of a foolish servant who is gregarious and loquacious [Launcelet] who manages to bring a comic relief to the play by his terse and bawdy statements. Mistaken identities are also seen [Solario and Salarino, the two almost-undistinguishable characters in the play] which also adds to the atmosphere of the comedy.
But if you look right through it, you can see it also offers its share of a Shakespearean tragedy.
According to Chandler, "the essence of Shakespeare's tragedies is the expression of one of the great paradoxes of life. We might call it the paradox of disappointment. Defeat, shattered hopes, and ultimately death face us all as human beings. They are all very real, but somehow we have the intuitive feeling that they are out of place."
We are only used to them as being read, spoken, seen, but we do not expect it to happen to us.
If Shylock were to tell MOV in his viewpoint, we would see it as a tragedy since the play ended with him being subjected to give half of his fortunes to Antonio for damaging his reputation and contriving against his life and the other to his daughter Jessica together with her husband Lorenzo.
It also displays discrimination [in the play's case, discrimination against Jews] and how it plays its effect in society. Jessica's purpose of bringing her father's moneys and jewelries shows that she's not yet quite accepted in society since she is the daughter of a Jew and is thus, seen as an outcast. In order to compensate for this insecurity, she gathers her riches to show that she can be considered as their equal in some ways.
There is also the matter of Shylock just losing everything from the ring of his wife Leah which he values so much, to Jessica his own daughter running away from him. This brings him a full emotional blow, hence the tragedy. Imagine losing just about everything [and literally, in the case of the play] ~jeline II - 2
It's hard to distinguish if MOVE is a tragedy or a comedy. For me, it's more of a tragedy. Seeing Shylock as my main reason for it, it's really more sad... :( especially shylock. everyone thought that he's the bad guy not seeing the whole truth. turns out, he was just an innocent man looking for people to love him. Thinking he was the "criminal" in the story, we was actually the victim.. :(
poor Shylock...
Louise Lim II-2
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