The Theme of Exchange in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice is a versatile play which can be interpreted in many ways. Antonio is the merchant of Venice and he is presented as the hero at the beginning of the comedy because he is a good Christian trying to help out a friend. Another merchant is Shylock, he is Jewish and he is presented as the villain. Through the character of Shylock Shakespeare attempts to explore many issues of indifference, justice, accountability …

…they exchange some important concepts and people in order to achieve their aims. Focusing on the before mentioned plots, Shylock tries to gain power, honor, and revenge but finally he fails, he has lost his ducats and his religion but Bassanio succeeds with his intend, in the end he gets what he wants. Overall, The Merchant of Venice explores the theme of exchange which is an issue that still has importance in our contemporary world.