MERCHANT OF VENICE,THE - Wordsworth N/E

The Wordsworth Classic's Shakespeare Series presents a newly-edited sequence of William Shakespeare's works. The textual editing endeavors to take account of recent scholarship while giving the material a careful reappraisal. The Merchant of Venice is one of Shakespeare's most popular comedies, but it remains deeply controversial.

The text may well seem anti-Semitic; yet repeatedly, in performance, it has revealed a contrasting nature. Shylock, though vanquished in law-court, often triumphs in the theatre. He is a character so intense that he can dominate the play, challenging abrasively its romantic and lyrical affirmations. What results is a bitter-sweet drama, both gratifying and troubling. The lovers may eventually rejoice, but there are strange discords before the final harmony is achieved.

Though The Merchant of Venice offers some of the traditional pleasures of comedy, it also exposes the perennial operations of prejudice. Thus Shakespeare remains our contemporary.