Now, what news on the Rialto?
Now, what news on the Rialto?
Now, what news on the Rialto?
Now, what news on the Rialto
Why, yet it lives there unchecked that Antonio hath a ship of rich
lading wrack’d on the narrow seas; the Goodwins, I think they call the
place, a very dangerous flat and fatal, where the carcasses of many a
tall ship lie buried, as they say, if my gossip Report be an honest
woman of her word.
Why, yet it lives there unchecked that Antonio has a ship of rich lading wrack’d on the narrow seas; the Goodwins, I think they call the place, a very dangerous flat and fatal, where the carcasses of many a tall ship lie buried, as they say, if my gossip Report be an honest woman of her word.
Why, yet it lives there unchecked that Antonio has a ship of rich lading wrack’d on the narrow seas; the Goodwins, I think they call the place, a very dangerous flat and fatal, where the carcasses of many a tall ship lie buried, as they say, if my gossip Report be an honest woman of her word.
Why, yet it lives there unchecked that Antonio has a ship of rich lading wrack’d on the narrow seas; the Goodwins, I think they call the place, a very dangerous flat and fatal, where the carcasses of many a tall ship lie buried, as they say, if my gossip Report be an honest woman of her word
I would she were as lying a gossip in that as ever knapped ginger or
made her neighbours believe she wept for the death of a third husband.
But it is true, without any slips of prolixity or crossing the plain
highway of talk, that the good Antonio, the honest Antonio,—O that I
had a title good enough to keep his name company!—
I would she were as lying a gossip in that as ever knapped ginger or made her neighbours believe she wept for the death of a third husband. But it is true, without any slips of prolixity or crossing the plain highway of talk, that the good Antonio, the honest Antonio,—O that I had a title good enough to keep his name company!—
I would she were as lying a gossip in that as ever knapped ginger or made her neighbours believe she wept for the death of a third husband. But it is true, without any slips of prolixity or crossing the plain highway of talk, that the good Antonio, the honest Antonio,—O that I had a title good enough to keep his name company!—
I would she were as lying a gossip in that as ever knapped ginger or made her neighbours believe she wept for the death of a third husband But it is true, without any slips of prolixity or crossing the plain highway of talk, that the good Antonio, the honest Antonio,—O that I had a title good enough to keep his name company —
Come, the full stop.
Come, the full stop.
Come, the full stop.
Come, the full stop
Ha, what sayest thou? Why, the end is, he hath lost a ship.
Ha, what sayest you? Why, the end is, he has lost a ship.
Ha, what sayest you? Why, the end is, he has lost a ship.
Ha, what sayest you Why, the end is, he has lost a ship
I would it might prove the end of his losses.
I would it might prove the end of his losses.
I would it might prove the end of his losses.
I would it might prove the end of his losses
Let me say “amen” betimes, lest the devil cross my prayer, for here he
comes in the likeness of a Jew.
Let me say “amen” betimes, lest the devil cross my prayer, for here he comes in the likeness of a Jew.
Let me say “amen” betimes, lest the devil cross my prayer, for here he comes in the likeness of a Jew.
Let me say “amen” betimes, lest the devil cross my prayer, for here he comes in the likeness of a Jew
You knew, none so well, none so well as you, of my daughter’s flight.
You knew, none so well, none so well as you, of my daughter’s flight.
You knew, none so well, none so well as you, of my daughter’s flight.
You knew, none so well, none so well as you, of my daughter’s flight
The 'Hath not a Jew eyes' speech is one of the most famous in the English language — and also one of the most misread. It is typically cited as Shakespeare's plea for Jewish humanity, a precursor to modern arguments for equality and dignity. But the speech's structure refuses that reading. Shylock begins by cataloguing the wrongs done to him, then argues that Jews share all human attributes — including the capacity for revenge. The logical conclusion he reaches is not 'therefore treat us equally' but 'therefore I will revenge as you would.' The claim for humanity is simultaneously the justification for his violence. Shakespeare is not writing a liberal pamphlet; he is writing a character whose grief has transformed into something the audience cannot fully endorse. The speech is powerful precisely because both things are true at once.
That’s certain, I, for my part, knew the tailor that made the wings she
flew withal.
That’s certain, I, for my part, knew the tailor that made the wings she flew withal.
That’s certain, I, for my part, knew the tailor that made the wings she flew withal.
That’s certain, I, for my part, knew the tailor that made the wings she flew withal
And Shylock, for his own part, knew the bird was fledged; and then it
is the complexion of them all to leave the dam.
And Shylock, for his own part, knew the bird was fledged; and then it is the complexion of them all to leave the dam.
And Shylock, for his own part, knew the bird was fledged; and then it is the complexion of them all to leave the dam.
And Shylock, for his own part, knew the bird was fledged; and then it is the complexion of them all to leave the dam
She is damn’d for it.
She is damn’d for it.
She is damn’d for it.
She is damn’d for it
That’s certain, if the devil may be her judge.
That’s certain, if the devil may be her judge.
That’s certain, if the devil may be her judge.
That’s certain, if the devil may be her judge
My own flesh and blood to rebel!
My own flesh and blood to rebel!
My own flesh and blood to rebel!
My own flesh and blood to rebel
Out upon it, old carrion! Rebels it at these years?
Out upon it, old carrion! Rebels it at these years?
Out upon it, old carrion! Rebels it at these years?
Out upon it, old carrion Rebels it at these years
I say my daughter is my flesh and my blood.
I say my daughter is my flesh and my blood.
I say my daughter is my flesh and my blood.
I say my daughter is my flesh and my blood
There is more difference between thy flesh and hers than between jet
and ivory, more between your bloods than there is between red wine and
Rhenish. But tell us, do you hear whether Antonio have had any loss at
sea or no?
There is more difference between your flesh and hers than between jet and ivory, more between your bloods than there is between red wine and Rhenish. But tell us, do you hear whether Antonio have had any loss at sea or no?
There is more difference between your flesh and hers than between jet and ivory, more between your bloods than there is between red wine and Rhenish. But tell us, do you hear whether Antonio have had any loss at sea or no?
There is more difference between your flesh and hers than between jet and ivory, more between your bloods than there is between red wine and Rhenish But tell us, do you hear whether Antonio have had any loss at sea or no
There I have another bad match, a bankrupt, a prodigal, who dare scarce
show his head on the Rialto, a beggar that used to come so smug upon
the mart; let him look to his bond. He was wont to call me usurer; let
him look to his bond: he was wont to lend money for a Christian cur’sy;
let him look to his bond.
There I have another bad match, a bankrupt, a prodigal, who dare scarce show his head on the Rialto, a beggar that used to come so smug upon the mart; let him look to his bond. He was wont to call me usurer; let him look to his bond: he was wont to lend money for a Christian cur’sy; let him look to his bond.
There I have another bad match, a bankrupt, a prodigal, who dare scarce show his head on the Rialto, a beggar that used to come so smug upon the mart; let him look to his bond. He was wont to call me usurer; let him look to his bond: he was wont to lend money for a Christian cur’sy; let him look to his bond.
There I have another bad match, a bankrupt, a prodigal, who dare scarce show his head on the Rialto, a beggar that used to come so smug upon the mart; let him look to his bond He was wont to call me usurer; let him look to his bond: he was wont to lend money for a Christian cur’sy; let him look to his bond
Why, I am sure if he forfeit, thou wilt not take his flesh! What’s that
good for?
Why, I am sure if he forfeit, you will not take his flesh! What’s that good for?
Why, I am sure if he forfeit, you will not take his flesh! What’s that good for?
Why, I am sure if he forfeit, you will not take his flesh What’s that good for
To bait fish withal; if it will feed nothing else, it will feed my
revenge. He hath disgrac’d me and hind’red me half a million, laugh’d
at my losses, mock’d at my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted my
bargains, cooled my friends, heated mine enemies. And what’s his
reason? I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs,
dimensions, senses, affections, passions? Fed with the same food, hurt
with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same
means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer as a Christian
is? If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not
laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we
not revenge? If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in
that. If a Jew wrong a Christian, what is his humility? Revenge. If a
Christian wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by Christian
example? Why, revenge! The villainy you teach me I will execute, and it
shall go hard but I will better the instruction.
To bait fish withal; if it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge. He has disgrac’d me and hind’red me half a million, laugh’d at my losses, mock’d at my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, heated mine enemies. And what’s his reason? I am a Jew. has not a Jew eyes? has not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? Fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer as a Christian is? If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge? If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in that. If a Jew wrong a Christian, what is his humility? Revenge. If a Christian wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by Christian example? Why, revenge! The villainy you teach me I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction.
To bait fish withal; if it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge. He has disgrac’d me and hind’red me half a million, laugh’d at my losses, mock’d at my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, heated mine enemies. And what’s his reason? I am a Jew. has not a Jew eyes? has not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? Fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer as a Christian is? If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge? If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in that. If a Jew wrong a Christian, what is his humility? Revenge. If a Christian wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by Christian example? Why, revenge! The villainy you teach me I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction.
To bait fish withal; if it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge He has disgrac’d me and hind’red me half a million, laugh’d at my losses, mock’d at my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, heated mine enemies And what’s his reason I am a Jew has not a Jew eyes has not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions
The ring Leah gave Shylock when he was a bachelor is mentioned in one sentence — and that sentence is one of the most carefully placed in the play. We have just heard Shylock apparently equate his daughter with his ducats (in his reported street cry, and in his oscillating grief-and-elation with Tubal). Then comes the turquoise ring, and the sentence: 'I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor. I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys.' This is irreducible feeling — not financial calculation, not racial obsession, but a dead wife and a piece of turquoise and the young man who once received it. Shakespeare puts this line here to make sure we cannot dismiss Shylock entirely. However much we have been encouraged to laugh at him by Salarino and Solanio, this sentence insists: there is a person here who has lost more than money.
Gentlemen, my master Antonio is at his house, and desires to speak with
you both.
Gentlemen, my master Antonio is at his house, and desires to speak with you both.
Gentlemen, my master Antonio is at his house, and desires to speak with you both.
Gentlemen, my master Antonio is at his house, and desires to speak with you both
We have been up and down to seek him.
We have been up and down to seek him.
We have been up and down to seek him.
We have been up and down to seek him
Here comes another of the tribe; a third cannot be match’d, unless the
devil himself turn Jew.
Here comes another of the tribe; a third cannot be match’d, unless the devil himself turn Jew.
Here comes another of the tribe; a third cannot be match’d, unless the devil himself turn Jew.
Here comes another of the tribe; a third cannot be match’d, unless the devil himself turn Jew
How now, Tubal, what news from Genoa? Hast thou found my daughter?
How now, Tubal, what news from Genoa? Hast you found my daughter?
How now, Tubal, what news from Genoa? Hast you found my daughter?
How now, Tubal, what news from Genoa Hast you found my daughter
I often came where I did hear of her, but cannot find her.
I often came where I did hear of her, but cannot find her.
I often came where I did hear of her, but cannot find her.
I often came where I did hear of her, but cannot find her
Why there, there, there, there! A diamond gone cost me two thousand
ducats in Frankfort! The curse never fell upon our nation till now, I
never felt it till now. Two thousand ducats in that, and other
precious, precious jewels. I would my daughter were dead at my foot,
and the jewels in her ear; would she were hearsed at my foot, and the
ducats in her coffin. No news of them? Why so? And I know not what’s
spent in the search. Why, thou—loss upon loss! The thief gone with so
much, and so much to find the thief, and no satisfaction, no revenge,
nor no ill luck stirring but what lights o’ my shoulders, no sighs but
o’ my breathing, no tears but o’ my shedding.
Why there, there, there, there! A diamond gone cost me two thousand ducats in Frankfort! The curse never fell upon our nation till now, I never felt it till now. Two thousand ducats in that, and other precious, precious jewels. I would my daughter were dead at my foot, and the jewels in her ear; would she were hearsed at my foot, and the ducats in her coffin. No news of them? Why so? And I know not what’s spent in the search. Why, you—loss upon loss! The thief gone with so much, and so much to find the thief, and no satisfaction, no revenge, nor no ill luck stirring but what lights o’ my shoulders, no sighs but o’ my breathing, no tears but o’ my shedding.
Why there, there, there, there! A diamond gone cost me two thousand ducats in Frankfort! The curse never fell upon our nation till now, I never felt it till now. Two thousand ducats in that, and other precious, precious jewels. I would my daughter were dead at my foot, and the jewels in her ear; would she were hearsed at my foot, and the ducats in her coffin. No news of them? Why so? And I know not what’s spent in the search. Why, you—loss upon loss! The thief gone with so much, and so much to find the thief, and no satisfaction, no revenge, nor no ill luck stirring but what lights o’ my shoulders, no sighs but o’ my breathing, no tears but o’ my shedding.
Why there, there, there, there A diamond gone cost me two thousand ducats in Frankfort The curse never fell upon our nation till now, I never felt it till now Two thousand ducats in that, and other precious, precious jewels I would my daughter were dead at my foot, and the jewels in her ear; would she were hearsed at my foot, and the ducats in her coffin No news of them
Yes, other men have ill luck too. Antonio, as I heard in Genoa—
Yes, other men have ill luck too. Antonio, as I heard in Genoa—
Yes, other men have ill luck too. Antonio, as I heard in Genoa—
Yes, other men have ill luck too Antonio, as I heard in Genoa—
What, what, what? Ill luck, ill luck?
What, what, what? Ill luck, ill luck?
What, what, what? Ill luck, ill luck?
What, what, what Ill luck, ill luck
The scene between Shylock and Tubal is one of the play's most extraordinary pieces of dialogue: a man being rocked between grief and exaltation, line by line, as his agent delivers alternating news about Jessica's expenditure and Antonio's ruin. Shylock's emotions don't build — they swing. Antonio is ruined (joy) — Jessica spent eighty ducats (agony) — Antonio's creditors are here (elation) — the ring from Leah (devastation). Directors and actors have approached this in many ways: playing it for dark comedy, for horror, for empathy, for something between all three. Shakespeare gives no stage direction, no emotional instruction. He just writes the oscillation and trusts that the effect — a man too overwhelmed to maintain any coherent emotional register — will land.
—hath an argosy cast away coming from Tripolis.
—has an argosy cast away coming from Tripolis.
—has an argosy cast away coming from Tripolis.
—has an argosy cast away coming from Tripolis
I thank God! I thank God! Is it true, is it true?
I thank God! I thank God! Is it true, is it true?
I thank God! I thank God! Is it true, is it true?
I thank God I thank God Is it true, is it true
I spoke with some of the sailors that escaped the wrack.
I spoke with some of the sailors that escaped the wrack.
I spoke with some of the sailors that escaped the wrack.
I spoke with some of the sailors that escaped the wrack
I thank thee, good Tubal. Good news, good news! Ha, ha, heard in Genoa?
I thank you, good Tubal. Good news, good news! Ha, ha, heard in Genoa?
I thank you, good Tubal. Good news, good news! Ha, ha, heard in Genoa?
I thank you, good Tubal Good news, good news Ha, ha, heard in Genoa
Your daughter spent in Genoa, as I heard, one night, fourscore ducats.
Your daughter spent in Genoa, as I heard, one night, fourscore ducats.
Your daughter spent in Genoa, as I heard, one night, fourscore ducats.
Your daughter spent in Genoa, as I heard, one night, fourscore ducats
Thou stick’st a dagger in me. I shall never see my gold again.
Fourscore ducats at a sitting! Fourscore ducats!
you stick’st a dagger in me. I shall never see my gold again. Fourscore ducats at a sitting! Fourscore ducats!
you stick’st a dagger in me. I shall never see my gold again. Fourscore ducats at a sitting! Fourscore ducats!
you stick’st a dagger in me I shall never see my gold again Fourscore ducats at a sitting Fourscore ducats
There came divers of Antonio’s creditors in my company to Venice that
swear he cannot choose but break.
There came divers of Antonio’s creditors in my company to Venice that swear he cannot choose but break.
There came divers of Antonio’s creditors in my company to Venice that swear he cannot choose but break.
There came divers of Antonio’s creditors in my company to Venice that swear he cannot choose but break
I am very glad of it. I’ll plague him, I’ll torture him. I am glad of
it.
I am very glad of it. I’ll plague him, I’ll torture him. I am glad of it.
I am very glad of it. I’ll plague him, I’ll torture him. I am glad of it.
I am very glad of it I’ll plague him, I’ll torture him I am glad of it
One of them showed me a ring that he had of your daughter for a monkey.
One of them showed me a ring that he had of your daughter for a monkey.
One of them showed me a ring that he had of your daughter for a monkey.
One of them showed me a ring that he had of your daughter for a monkey
Out upon her! Thou torturest me, Tubal. It was my turquoise, I had it
of Leah when I was a bachelor. I would not have given it for a
wilderness of monkeys.
Out upon her! you torturest me, Tubal. It was my turquoise, I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor. I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys.
Out upon her! you torturest me, Tubal. It was my turquoise, I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor. I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys.
Out upon her you torturest me, Tubal It was my turquoise, I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys
But Antonio is certainly undone.
But Antonio is certainly undone.
But Antonio is certainly undone.
But Antonio is certainly undone
Nay, that’s true, that’s very true. Go, Tubal, fee me an officer;
bespeak him a fortnight before. I will have the heart of him if he
forfeit, for were he out of Venice I can make what merchandise I will.
Go, Tubal, and meet me at our synagogue. Go, good Tubal, at our
synagogue, Tubal.
no, that’s true, that’s very true. Go, Tubal, fee me an officer; bespeak him a fortnight before. I will have the heart of him if he forfeit, for were he out of Venice I can make what merchandise I will. Go, Tubal, and meet me at our synagogue. Go, good Tubal, at our synagogue, Tubal.
no, that’s true, that’s very true. Go, Tubal, fee me an officer; bespeak him a fortnight before. I will have the heart of him if he forfeit, for were he out of Venice I can make what merchandise I will. Go, Tubal, and meet me at our synagogue. Go, good Tubal, at our synagogue, Tubal.
no, that’s true, that’s very true Go, Tubal, fee me an officer; bespeak him a fortnight before I will have the heart of him if he forfeit, for were he out of Venice I can make what merchandise I will Go, Tubal, and meet me at our synagogue Go, good Tubal, at our synagogue, Tubal
The Reckoning
The pivotal scene of the play's middle section. Shylock arrives a figure of mockery (Solanio announces him as 'the devil in the likeness of a Jew') and leaves a figure who has decided to destroy a man. In between, Shakespeare gives him one of the most powerful speeches in the canon — and then gives the speech an ending that most discussions quietly skip past. 'Hath not a Jew eyes' is not a plea for tolerance. It is an argument for revenge. The Tubal sequence that follows is the scene's other extraordinary passage: Shylock oscillating between grief at Jessica and elation at Antonio's ruin, his emotional register swinging line by line. And then: the ring Leah gave him. One line. It lands like a stone.
If this happened today…
A man comes into a public space where people who hate him are gathered. They mock his reaction to his daughter running away — they were there. He tries to make them see him as a person. He succeeds, briefly, at making the argument. Then he pivots: 'and if you do it, I'll do it back.' His lawyer friend comes in. They step aside. Good news: the guy who borrowed your money is ruined. Bad news: your daughter spent your savings in one night. Good news: more ships wrecked. Bad news: she sold your dead wife's ring for a monkey. He is silent for a moment. Then: 'Get me an officer. Have him ready.'