S. Zou

 

The character I choose for the play “The Merchant of Venice”, which is written by Shakespeare, is Portia. Portiafirst enter the play is at Act 1 Scene 2. In a room in Portia’s house, talking with Nerissa. Portia is one of the most important characters in this play. In my opinion, she is the key of the whole play. She is the key that opened the play by become the reason of Bassanio came to Antonio to borrow money. Shakespeareuses her as a key opened the play and he also use her as a line, a line which connected all the character together. Eventually, Shakespeare used this beautiful lady as a stage, a foundation, all the characters enter the scene and act on this stage, on this foundation. In my personal opinion, she is the symbol of human desire. She is the symbol of beauty, love, money and conflict. Because of her, Bassanio wants to borrow money from Antonio to marry her — Man wants beautiful lady. Bassanio’s action leads us to see how much Antonio love him as a son. And also lead us to Shylock’s hatred to Antonio. To sum up, Portia’s function is the key, the line, also the foundation or stage of this play, because of her, every character gets the chance to enter the play and act.

The scene I picked is Act 1 Scene 2 which is Portia first enter the play. Here is the scene in Scenic Form Analysis. (SFA)

Portia Nerissa Serving-man Total
2 6 8
1 1 2
14      8 22
     3 1 4
4 1 5
7 1 8
9 2 11
8 1 9
5 2 7
5 3 8
5 6 11
5 3 8
1 2 3
2 2
1 4 5
8 8

In the SFA, we can easily see that Portia and Nerissa’s characteristic out of it. As the SFA shows, Portia talks a lot with Nerissa, but Nerissa didn’t talk a lot back. Nerissa’s words remind me about Antonio. In my opinion, Nerissa is a wise person too. She knows how to listen, and how to question. She is a person whom Portia wants to pour her heart out to. It’s very similar to the mixture of a mother and a close friend. And Nerissa is that person to Portia. Because she is the waiting-women to Portia, which means she knows Portia better than any of her friend. She knows what’s Portia’s life looks like. And because of the job, she have to learn how to listen and how to speak. That’s the reason why Portia said a lot to her but she only respond with a few important words. As for Portia. We can tell she talked a lot in front of Nerissa, she almost pull out her heart and show it to Nerissa. It shows me she was a woman who is good at catching detail in daily life. Unlike Antonio, she is also a lady who doesn’t want to hide all her thoughts in her mind. She is a clear-up-girl. She likes to release her pressure by talking to somebody who knows and understands her. That’s why I think she is such a God- blesse-lady or a lucky girl. In her life, there is another lady who knows her and understands her, ready all the time for her open her heart and release the pressure. That kind of person is very hard to find in our life. To sum up, that’s my Act 1 Scene 2’s SFA.

Original version Speech.

If to do were as easy as to know what were good to do,

chapels had been churches and poor men’s cottages

princes’ palaces. It is a good divine that follows his own

instructions; I can easier teach twenty what were good to

be done, than to be one of the twenty to follow mine own                    15

teaching. The brain my devise laws for the blood, but a

hot temper leaps o’er a cold decree; such a hare is

madness the youth, to skip o’er the meshes of good

counsel the cripple. But this reasoning is not in the

fashion to choose me a husband. O me, the word “choose”!                   20

I may neither choose who I would nor refuse who I

Dislike; so is the will of a living daughter curb’d by the

Will of a dead father. Is it not hard, Nerissa, that I cannot

Choose on nor refuse none?(Act 1.Scene 2.11~24)

 

 

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