There is a fine line between those with malicious intent and good people succumbing to the physical and emotional stress that society puts on them. Such is the case in the drama, The Merchant of Venice by WIlliam Shakespeare; here, Shylock conveys that societal mistreatment along with tempting situations can cause a person to walk this line, and ultimately, can create a bad person where a good one once was. Throughout the entirety of his life, Shylock faces dehumanization, due to the fact that he is Jewish in a primarily Christian society, and does so with a patient shrug. He isn’t quick to resort to violence until they take away the one thing that matters in his life; his daughter. Antonio confesses to having “Spit on [Shylock]... spurn
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This leads to him ultimately choosing the path of evil over good and taking the first opportunity he gets to release his new-found rage, which is his bond with Antonio. Throughout Shylock’s life, his daughter is the one person he can trust not to belittle and dehumanize him after his wife dies. When his daughter abandons him for a Christian, this shows Shylock that even those he cares about the most will leave him in the end. With his daughter gone, all he has now is the rage that he is previously able to overlook. He realizes that the only way he can take this rage out is through his bond with antonio. His desperation for someone to feel the wrath he has been storing away for years leads to him refusing to “forfeit [his] bond,” even when he is offered “twice the sum” (69). At this point, Shylock’s only desire is getting his pound of flesh from “nearest [Antonio’s] heart.” He doesn’t feel any remorse for Antonio or those close to him because they never felt remorse when they were treating Shylock as if he were an animal. They were even calling him “harsh Jew” and “dog” (67) while in court, trying to plea for Shylock to release the bond. A lifetime of treatment such as this is enough to cause even the best of people to resort to the spiteful vengeance that comes out in Shylock, and can result in good people making reprehensible
This leads to him ultimately choosing the path of evil over good and taking the first opportunity he gets to release his new-found rage, which is his bond with Antonio. Throughout Shylock’s life, his daughter is the one person he can trust not to belittle and dehumanize him after his wife dies. When his daughter abandons him for a Christian, this shows Shylock that even those he cares about the most will leave him in the end. With his daughter gone, all he has now is the rage that he is previously able to overlook. He realizes that the only way he can take this rage out is through his bond with antonio. His desperation for someone to feel the wrath he has been storing away for years leads to him refusing to “forfeit [his] bond,” even when he is offered “twice the sum” (69). At this point, Shylock’s only desire is getting his pound of flesh from “nearest [Antonio’s] heart.” He doesn’t feel any remorse for Antonio or those close to him because they never felt remorse when they were treating Shylock as if he were an animal. They were even calling him “harsh Jew” and “dog” (67) while in court, trying to plea for Shylock to release the bond. A lifetime of treatment such as this is enough to cause even the best of people to resort to the spiteful vengeance that comes out in Shylock, and can result in good people making reprehensible