Yes, truly, for look you, the sins of the father are to be laid upon
the children, therefore, I promise you, I fear you. I was always plain
with you, and so now I speak my agitation of the matter. Therefore be
of good cheer, for truly I think you are damn’d. There is but one hope
in it that can do you any good, and that is but a kind of bastard hope
neither.
Yes, truly, for look you, the sins of the father are to be laid upon the children, therefore, I promise you, I fear you. I was always plain with you, and so now I speak my agitation of the matter. Therefore be of good cheer, for truly I think you are damn’d. There is but one hope in it that can do you any good, and that is but a kind of bastard hope neither.
Yes, truly, for look you, the sins of the father are to be laid upon the children, therefore, I promise you, I fear you. I was always plain with you, and so now I speak my agitation of the matter. Therefore be of good cheer, for truly I think you are damn’d. There is but one hope in it that can do you any good, and that is but a kind of bastard hope neither.
Yes, truly, for look you, the sins of the father are to be laid upon the children, therefore, I promise you, I fear you I was always plain with you, and so now I speak my agitation of the matter Therefore be of good cheer, for truly I think you are damn’d There is but one hope in it that can do you any good, and that is but a kind of bastard hope neither
And what hope is that, I pray thee?
And what hope is that, I pray you?
And what hope is that, I pray you?
And what hope is that, I pray you
Marry, you may partly hope that your father got you not, that you are
not the Jew’s daughter.
Marry, you may partly hope that your father got you not, that you are not the Jew’s daughter.
Marry, you may partly hope that your father got you not, that you are not the Jew’s daughter.
Marry, you may partly hope that your father got you not, that you are not the Jew’s daughter
That were a kind of bastard hope indeed; so the sins of my mother
should be visited upon me.
That were a kind of bastard hope indeed; so the sins of my mother should be visited upon me.
That were a kind of bastard hope indeed; so the sins of my mother should be visited upon me.
That were a kind of bastard hope indeed; so the sins of my mother should be visited upon me
Truly then I fear you are damn’d both by father and mother; thus when I
shun Scylla your father, I fall into Charybdis your mother. Well, you
are gone both ways.
Truly then I fear you are damn’d both by father and mother; thus when I shun Scylla your father, I fall into Charybdis your mother. Well, you are gone both ways.
Truly then I fear you are damn’d both by father and mother; thus when I shun Scylla your father, I fall into Charybdis your mother. Well, you are gone both ways.
Truly then I fear you are damn’d both by father and mother; thus when I shun Scylla your father, I fall into Charybdis your mother Well, you are gone both ways
I shall be saved by my husband. He hath made me a Christian.
I shall be saved by my husband. He has made me a Christian.
I shall be saved by my husband. He has made me a Christian.
I shall be saved by my husband He has made me a Christian
Truly the more to blame he, we were Christians enow before, e’en as
many as could well live one by another. This making of Christians will
raise the price of hogs; if we grow all to be pork-eaters, we shall not
shortly have a rasher on the coals for money.
Truly the more to blame he, we were Christians enow before, e’en as many as could well live one by another. This making of Christians will raise the price of hogs; if we grow all to be pork-eaters, we shall not shortly have a rasher on the coals for money.
Truly the more to blame he, we were Christians enow before, e’en as many as could well live one by another. This making of Christians will raise the price of hogs; if we grow all to be pork-eaters, we shall not shortly have a rasher on the coals for money.
Truly the more to blame he, we were Christians enow before, e’en as many as could well live one by another This making of Christians will raise the price of hogs; if we grow all to be pork-eaters, we shall not shortly have a rasher on the coals for money
I’ll tell my husband, Launcelet, what you say. Here he comes.
I’ll tell my husband, Launcelet, what you say. Here he comes.
I’ll tell my husband, Launcelet, what you say. Here he comes.
I’ll tell my husband, Launcelet, what you say Here he comes
Launcelet Gobbo's wordplay scenes — 2-2, 3-5, and scattered interventions elsewhere — function as pressure valves in a play that is otherwise building toward a life-or-death courtroom confrontation. His joke theology in 3-5 (you're damned, pork will get expensive) touches the play's rawest themes — Jewish identity, conversion, religious belonging — and makes them laugh-able, which simultaneously discharges some tension and produces a kind of discomfort: should we be laughing at this? The clown is also the character who most directly articulates what the Christian characters believe about Jews but won't say plainly: Jessica is damned by lineage, and no conversion fixes that. He says it as a joke. The play lets it land.
I shall grow jealous of you shortly, Launcelet, if you thus get my wife
into corners!
I shall grow jealous of you shortly, Launcelet, if you thus get my wife into corners!
I shall grow jealous of you shortly, Launcelet, if you thus get my wife into corners!
I shall grow jealous of you shortly, Launcelet, if you thus get my wife into corners
Nay, you need not fear us, Lorenzo. Launcelet and I are out. He tells
me flatly there’s no mercy for me in heaven, because I am a Jew’s
daughter; and he says you are no good member of the commonwealth, for
in converting Jews to Christians you raise the price of pork.
no, you need not fear us, Lorenzo. Launcelet and I are out. He tells me flatly there’s no mercy for me in heaven, because I am a Jew’s daughter; and he says you are no good member of the commonwealth, for in converting Jews to Christians you raise the price of pork.
no, you need not fear us, Lorenzo. Launcelet and I are out. He tells me flatly there’s no mercy for me in heaven, because I am a Jew’s daughter; and he says you are no good member of the commonwealth, for in converting Jews to Christians you raise the price of pork.
no, you need not fear us, Lorenzo Launcelet and I are out He tells me flatly there’s no mercy for me in heaven, because I am a Jew’s daughter; and he says you are no good member of the commonwealth, for in converting Jews to Christians you raise the price of pork
I shall answer that better to the commonwealth than you can the getting
up of the negro’s belly! The Moor is with child by you, Launcelet.
I shall answer that better to the commonwealth than you can the getting up of the negro’s belly! The Moor is with child by you, Launcelet.
I shall answer that better to the commonwealth than you can the getting up of the negro’s belly! The Moor is with child by you, Launcelet.
I shall answer that better to the commonwealth than you can the getting up of the negro’s belly The Moor is with child by you, Launcelet
It is much that the Moor should be more than reason; but if she be less
than an honest woman, she is indeed more than I took her for.
It is much that the Moor should be more than reason; but if she be less than an honest woman, she is indeed more than I took her for.
It is much that the Moor should be more than reason; but if she be less than an honest woman, she is indeed more than I took her for.
It is much that the Moor should be more than reason; but if she be less than an honest woman, she is indeed more than I took her for
How every fool can play upon the word! I think the best grace of wit
will shortly turn into silence, and discourse grow commendable in none
only but parrots. Go in, sirrah; bid them prepare for dinner.
How every fool can play upon the word! I think the best grace of wit will shortly turn into silence, and discourse grow commendable in none only but parrots. Go in, sirrah; bid them prepare for dinner.
How every fool can play upon the word! I think the best grace of wit will shortly turn into silence, and discourse grow commendable in none only but parrots. Go in, sirrah; bid them prepare for dinner.
How every fool can play upon the word I think the best grace of wit will shortly turn into silence, and discourse grow commendable in none only but parrots Go in, sirrah; bid them prepare for dinner
That is done, sir, they have all stomachs.
That is done, sir, they have all stomachs.
That is done, sir, they have all stomachs.
That is done, sir, they have all stomachs
Goodly Lord, what a wit-snapper are you! Then bid them prepare dinner.
Goodly Lord, what a wit-snapper are you! Then bid them prepare dinner.
Goodly Lord, what a wit-snapper are you! Then bid them prepare dinner.
Goodly Lord, what a wit-snapper are you Then bid them prepare dinner
That is done too, sir, only “cover” is the word.
That is done too, sir, only “cover” is the word.
That is done too, sir, only “cover” is the word.
That is done too, sir, only “cover” is the word
Will you cover, then, sir?
Will you cover, then, sir?
Will you cover, then, sir?
Will you cover, then, sir
Not so, sir, neither. I know my duty.
Not so, sir, neither. I know my duty.
Not so, sir, neither. I know my duty.
Not so, sir, neither I know my duty
The Lorenzo-Jessica relationship is the play's least examined romantic pair — and the most interesting in some ways. They elope, they arrive at Belmont, Lorenzo brags about his wife, Jessica deflects the praise. The final exchange of this scene — 'even such a husband hast thou of me / Nay, but ask my opinion too of that' — is small and easy to miss. But it is the only moment in their scenes together where Jessica asserts any independent perspective on the marriage. She doesn't answer the question. She says: ask me. This is different from Portia and Bassanio's exchange, where feelings are stated with full romantic intensity. Jessica's 'ask my opinion' keeps her interiority slightly closed. We don't know what she thinks about the marriage she just made. The play doesn't tell us.
Yet more quarrelling with occasion! Wilt thou show the whole wealth of
thy wit in an instant? I pray thee understand a plain man in his plain
meaning: go to thy fellows, bid them cover the table, serve in the
meat, and we will come in to dinner.
Yet more quarrelling with occasion! will you show the whole wealth of your wit in an instant? I pray you understand a plain man in his plain meaning: go to your fellows, bid them cover the table, serve in the meat, and we will come in to dinner.
Yet more quarrelling with occasion! will you show the whole wealth of your wit in an instant? I pray you understand a plain man in his plain meaning: go to your fellows, bid them cover the table, serve in the meat, and we will come in to dinner.
Yet more quarrelling with occasion will you show the whole wealth of your wit in an instant I pray you understand a plain man in his plain meaning: go to your fellows, bid them cover the table, serve in the meat, and we will come in to dinner
For the table, sir, it shall be served in; for the meat, sir, it shall
be covered; for your coming in to dinner, sir, why, let it be as
humours and conceits shall govern.
For the table, sir, it shall be served in; for the meat, sir, it shall be covered; for your coming in to dinner, sir, why, let it be as humours and conceits shall govern.
For the table, sir, it shall be served in; for the meat, sir, it shall be covered; for your coming in to dinner, sir, why, let it be as humours and conceits shall govern.
For the table, sir, it shall be served in; for the meat, sir, it shall be covered; for your coming in to dinner, sir, why, let it be as humours and conceits shall govern
O dear discretion, how his words are suited!
The fool hath planted in his memory
An army of good words, and I do know
A many fools that stand in better place,
Garnish’d like him, that for a tricksy word
Defy the matter. How cheer’st thou, Jessica?
And now, good sweet, say thy opinion,
How dost thou like the Lord Bassanio’s wife?
O dear discretion, how his words are suited! The fool has planted in his memory An army of good words, and I do know A many fools that stand in better place, Garnish’d like him, that for a tricksy word Defy the matter. How cheer’st you, Jessica? And now, good sweet, say your opinion, How do you like the Lord Bassanio’s wife?
O dear discretion, how his words are suited! The fool has planted in his memory An army of good words, and I do know A many fools that stand in better place, Garnish’d like him, that for a tricksy word Defy the matter. How cheer’st you, Jessica? And now, good sweet, say your opinion, How do you like the Lord Bassanio’s wife?
O dear discretion, how his words are suited The fool has planted in his memory An army of good words, and I do know A many fools that stand in better place, Garnish’d like him, that for a tricksy word Defy the matter How cheer’st you, Jessica And now, good sweet, say your opinion, How do you like the Lord Bassanio’s wife
Past all expressing. It is very meet
The Lord Bassanio live an upright life,
For having such a blessing in his lady,
He finds the joys of heaven here on earth,
And if on earth he do not merit it,
In reason he should never come to heaven.
Why, if two gods should play some heavenly match,
And on the wager lay two earthly women,
And Portia one, there must be something else
Pawn’d with the other, for the poor rude world
Hath not her fellow.
Past all expressing. It is very meet The Lord Bassanio live an upright life, For having such a blessing in his lady, He finds the joys of heaven here on earth, And if on earth he do not merit it, In reason he should never come to heaven. Why, if two gods should play some heavenly match, And on the wager lay two earthly women, And Portia one, there must be something else Pawn’d with the other, for the poor rude world has not her fellow.
Past all expressing. It is very meet The Lord Bassanio live an upright life, For having such a blessing in his lady, He finds the joys of heaven here on earth, And if on earth he do not merit it, In reason he should never come to heaven. Why, if two gods should play some heavenly match, And on the wager lay two earthly women, And Portia one, there must be something else Pawn’d with the other, for the poor rude world has not her fellow.
Past all expressing It is very meet The Lord Bassanio live an upright life, For having such a blessing in his lady, He finds the joys of heaven here on earth, And if on earth he do not merit it, In reason he should never come to heaven Why, if two gods should play some heavenly match, And on the wager lay two earthly women, And Portia one, there must be something else Pawn’d with the other, for the poor rude world has not her fellow
Even such a husband
Hast thou of me as she is for a wife.
Even such a husband Hast you of me as she is for a wife.
Even such a husband Hast you of me as she is for a wife.
Even such a husband Hast you of me as she is for a wife
Nay, but ask my opinion too of that.
no, but ask my opinion too of that.
no, but ask my opinion too of that.
no, but ask my opinion too of that
I will anon. First let us go to dinner.
I will soon. First let us go to dinner.
I will soon. First let us go to dinner.
I will soon First let us go to dinner
Nay, let me praise you while I have a stomach.
no, let me praise you while I have a stomach.
no, let me praise you while I have a stomach.
no, let me praise you while I have a stomach
No pray thee, let it serve for table-talk.
Then howsome’er thou speak’st, ’mong other things
I shall digest it.
No pray you, let it serve for table-talk. Then howsome’er you speak’st, ’mong other things I shall digest it.
No pray you, let it serve for table-talk. Then howsome’er you speak’st, ’mong other things I shall digest it.
No pray you, let it serve for table-talk Then howsome’er you speak’st, ’mong other things I shall digest it
Well, I’ll set you forth.
Well, I’ll set you forth.
Well, I’ll set you forth.
Well, I’ll set you forth
The Reckoning
A comic interlude between the high-stakes action of 3-4 and the trial in Act 4, this scene does more tonal work than structural work. It relaxes the tension with Launcelet's extended wordplay games — and then quietly raises a question in the final exchange. Jessica's praise of Portia is extraordinary, genuinely worshipful. Lorenzo's response ('even such a husband hast thou of me') is a little boastful and a little insecure. Jessica's 'nay, but ask my opinion too of that' keeps the audience gently wondering: how is that marriage, actually?
If this happened today…
A house-sitter and an elopement refugee are killing time in someone else's mansion. The ex-employee clown is still around and starts winding her up about eternal damnation. Her husband shows up and gets into an increasingly absurd fight with the clown about whether 'cover the table' means put a lid on it or lay the tablecloth. The clown leaves. The husband turns to his new wife: 'So — what do you think of Portia?' She gives him a speech that basically compares Portia to a goddess. He nods and says: 'I'm kind of like that for you.' She gives him a look: 'Ask me that question another time.'