Page 150 - William_Shakespeare_-_The_Merchant_of_Venice_191

A pound of flesh, to be by him cut off
Nearest the merchant’s heart. [to Shylock] Be merciful:
Take thrice thy money; bid me tear the bond.

—Shylock
When it is paid according to the tenor.° {tenure} / terms
It doth appear you are a worthy judge;
You know the law, your most learnèd opinion° 120 {exposition}
Has been most sound. I charge you by the law,
Whereof° you are a well-deserving° pillar, / Of which // unwavering / unfaltering
Proceed to judgement. By my soul I swear
There is no power in the tongue of man
To alter me. I stay here on° my bond. / stand fast to

—Antonio
Most heartily, do I beseech the court
To give the judgement.

—Portia Why then, thus it is:
You must prepare your bosom for his knife.

—Shylock
O noble judge! O excellent young man!

+The Duke bids Portia to approach him; they talk aside., 121

—Portia 122
For the intent and purpose of the law
Gives° full enforcement of° the penalty 123 / Holds / Bears {Hath full relation to}
Which here appeareth due upon the bond.

—Shylock

120. // your good interpreting / your interpretation
121. There is a break in rhythm here, (as well as between lines 301-02) which could suggest some type of staged
intervention in the ongoing dialogue. In the exchange between Portia and Shylock, the next three lines [244-46] are
essentially vacuous and a bland recap of what we’ve already heard, which suggests a break in the action, or that
Portia is thinking about something else (perhaps what had just been discussed with the Duke). A deletion of these
repetitive lines I snot needed but it might render the exchange more concise and powerful.
As a stage direction, the Duke could call Portia over after Shylock delivers line 243. The staged
conversation between Portia and the Duke could reveal that the Duke is not convinced about her course of action; we
could see Portia assuring the Duke (perhaps with a subtle hand motion) that she has no intention of letting Shylock
carry out the deed, as he intends, and that everything will be OK. Thus, after the silent aside, Portia returns and
repeats what has already been said, with lines 244-46, as a way to regain her bearings and continue the conversation
where she left off. (Portia’s silent aside with the Duke would command our full attention as these are the two most
powerful players on the stage, either of whom can determine Antonio’s fate.) A similar aside between the Duke and
Portia could also take place again, after line 310, where Shylock says, ‘Come, prepare!’ Here the Duke could call
Portia again, feeling that this has gone far enough, and now he wants closure. Thus, after this second aside, Portia is
ready for her coupe de grace, and utters the lines, ‘Tarry a little.’
122. As stated in the previous note, the following five lines are repetitive and could be deleted.
123. / Fully supports the given penalty / Gives full upholding to the penalty / Deems to fulfill the terms of penalty