The Merchant of Venice

Is Shakespeare really as hard to read as people say?

Oh, Shakespeare! We all love reading him...right? When my literature teacher told us we were reading Shakespeare next, I definitely groaned internally (maybe I did it out loud too). Shakespeare is just not my thing, as many people would agree with. What are my impressions, though, after reading The Merchant of Venice?

First, the positive attributes of this play: The Merchant of Venice tells the story of a man named Bassanio who wants to court Portia, but to do so, he must borrow money from his best friend, Antonio. Antonio, a merchant of Venice, happily lends him money. But Antonio must sign a bond with Shylock, the Jew, who is a crafty man. Is Bassanio able to pass the test to marry Portia, and is Antonio able to hold up his bond? Read the play to find out! The plot was actually pretty interesting and very well-thought-out. Being a comedy, the play also had some jokes that Shakespeare sprinkled in. I will admit that I enjoyed the plot, and though it was boring at times, it was very well done.

The negatives consist of three things that I don’t like about reading Shakespeare in general. The first is quite obvious, and it is the old English. Since this was the language at the time, the people back then were able to understand it, but today we speak a very different form of English that is unlike the English found in Shakespeare. This makes it very hard to read, and I feel like I’m translating the book more than enjoying it. Besides this, Shakespeare also writes in a lot of poetry, which I don’t particularly like. Again, I feel like I’m translating it into prose, rather than just being able to enjoy it. Finally, since this is a play, I would much rather watch it performed (which was Shakespeare’s intent for these), rather than just read it, which can make it very dull at times.

Overall, I have mixed feelings about The Merchant of Venice. The plot was really well-written and intriguing, but the way in which the book was written made it quite dull at times. I would recommend it to those who already enjoy Shakespeare. You can buy it on Amazon.