And so Bassanio finally comes to choose the least likely looking casket — the leaden one — and, of course, his choice is the right one. After Lancelot leaves, Jessica remarks, Jessica thus informs the audience that she is in love with Lorenzo, a Christian. She continues, and her attempts to verbally circumvent stating outright her feelings for Bassanio lead her to utter absolute nonsense. Jessica testifies to her father's determination to "have Antonio's flesh" rather than accept "twenty times the value of the sum" that Antonio owes. Portia agrees to the double wedding, and Gratiano boastfully wagers that he and Nerissa produce a boy before they do. Original Text Act III Scene II. We are never allowed to forget her intelligence because this element will be the key ingredient in the play's climactic scene. Bassanio, she says, must “First go with me to church and call me wife, / And then away to Venice to your friend!” With such decisive ingenuity, it comes as no real surprise to us later when she is able both to conceive and successfully execute the strategy of the lawyer’s disguise and the courtroom victory over Shylock. His anxiety is too great. Chapter Summary for William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, act 3 scene 1 summary. . Merchant of Venice Act 3, Scene 2 Modern English Translation Meaning Annotations – ICSE Class 10 & 9 English. Alongside Portia's portrait, there is a scroll which tells him, "Turn you where your lady is / And claim her with a loving kiss." The song which is sung, beginning "Tell me where is fancy bred," has ominous lyrics. Bassanio rejects both of these caskets, and his reasons are significant in the total meaning of the play. Merchant of Venice. . she tells him, as her newly bethrothed lover makes ready to leave for Venice. Read the full text of The Merchant of Venice Act 3 Scene 3 with a side-by-side translation HERE. Setting : Venice Characters : Portia, Nerissa, Gratiano. The central idea in the song that is used as background music while Bassanio is making his choice of caskets focuses on the word "fancy." She is sad to know Launcelot is leaving but understands the reason. Portia asks Nerissa to go and get the signature of Shylock on the deed of gift. This witty wordplay has the effect of delaying the choice of caskets and further allowing Portia to relax and display her spirit and sense of wit. Still giddy from his success, Bassanio does so, and Portia, who only a moment before was mistress of herself and of all her possessions, now commits herself and all she owns to her new lord. Although silver is valued as a precious metal, more often than not it is a medium of exchange — money — and again, we think of Shylock's misplaced values, which make silver an end in itself. Bassanio then reads to Portia the full contents of Antonio's letter. Bassanio picks up on this idea and elaborates on it when he meditates on the way in which "outward shows" mislead or deceive the observer. Merchant of Venice Act 3 Scene 2 Summary. Essentially, this speech is evidence for us of Portia's love for Bassanio, and the charm of her speech lies in the fact that Portia cannot openly admit her love. ICSE SolutionsSelina ICSE SolutionsML Aggarwal Solutions, At Belmont, Portia would like Bassanio to delay before he chooses one of the caskets. Bassanio inf… Gratiano has worked at it "until I sweat again," and he offers to bet that he and Nerissa will be the first of the two couples to produce a child, which rounds off the whole sequence with a typical coarse jest. Antonio, however, denies that he is worried about his ships and remains depressed. Summary and Analysis Act III: Scene 4 Summary At Belmont, following the departure of Bassanio, Lorenzo commends Portia for her perfect understanding … While the lovers are enjoying their happiness, Lorenzo, Jessica, and Salerio arrive. So far, Venice and Belmont — the world of mercantile ventures and the world of love — have been kept separate. Gratiano has worked at it “until I sweat again,” and he offers to bet that he and Nerissa will be the first of the two couples to produce a child, which rounds off the whole sequence with a typical coarse jest. Living in Shylock's house is apparently miserable, and Lancelot was always a good distraction from the surrounding misery. Actually understand The Merchant of Venice Act 3, Scene 2. Read the full text of The Merchant of Venice Act 3 Scene 2 with a side-by-side translation HERE. Portia comprehends the gravity of the situation. Bassanio must leave at once. The central idea in the song that is used as background music while Bassanio is making his choice of caskets focuses on the word “fancy.” Fancy, for Elizabethans, carried the meaning of whimsical affection. When Bassanio's choice is made, Portia prays in an aside for help in containing her emotions. Bassanio sees wealth as useful only in securing love and happiness. . This witty wordplay has the effect of delaying the choice of caskets and further allowing Portia to relax and display her spirit and sense of wit. And so Bassanio finally comes to choose the least likely looking casket — the leaden one — and, of course, his choice is the right one. Has not a single one of Antonio's ships returned safely? She has not complained, but we now see that her role in this casket contest contains special intensity. Another idea that Shakespeare is developing here is concerned, again, with wealth. Merchant of Venice. So far, Venice and Belmont — the world of mercantile ventures and the world of love — have been kept separate. English Maths Physics Chemistry Biology. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. This causes us to think of the play's Midas-figure — Shylock, for whom wealth is, in itself, something of final, ultimate value. Nerissa and Gratiano congratulate the lovers and announce that they also have made a match and ask permission to be married at the wedding ceremony of Portia and Bassanio. Summary Act 3 Scene 2. “O love, dispatch all business, and be gone!” she tells him, as her newly beth-othed lover makes ready to leave for Venice. Salarino tells Salanio that Bassanio and Gratiano have sailed for Belmont and Lorenzo was not with them. Act 2 : Scene 8 Summary – The Merchant of Venice. Are you sure you want to remove #bookConfirmation# Portia and Bassanio have presented their idyllic romantic love as something ideal; Gratiano readjusts the balance by the reminder that love is a physical as well as a spiritual union. He calls gold “hard food for Midas”; Midas imagined that gold itself could be something nutritive or life giving, and he starved to death for his mistake. On a street in Venice, Shylock presses the jailer to go after Antonio, calling Antonio a fool who lent out money for free. The exchange of vows between Portia and Bassanio is conducted at an intense and exalted level. She says she is half tempted to … "O love, dispatch all business, and be gone!" Notes. Summary Act 3. Salerio says that he has come with a letter from Antonio to Bassanio, and that he met Lorenzo and Jessica, whom he persuaded to come with him. She begs him to share the cause of his anguish, and he tells her that he has just read "the unpleasant'st words / That ever blotted paper." 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