Page 27 - William_Shakespeare_-_The_Merchant_of_Venice_191

—Bassanio
Have you ever heard any imputation° to the contrary? / accusation / charge

—Shylock
Oh, no, no, no, no. What I mean in saying, ‘he is a good man,’ is to have you understand that he
is sufficient +to cover the loan,. Yet his means° are in question.° He hath an argosy° bound for
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Tripolis,° another to the Indies. I understand, moreover, from word on the Rialto,° he hath a
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third at Mexico, a forth for England, and other ventures he hath scattered about. Yet ships are
but boards, sailors but men. There be land rats and water rats, land thieves and water thieves—I
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mean pirates. And then there is the peril of the water, wind, and rocks. The man is nonetheless
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sufficient. Three thousand ducats—I think I may take his bond. 12
—Bassanio
Be assured you may.° / With assurance you may

—Shylock
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I will be assured I may; and that I may be assured, I will think it over. May I speak with
Antonio? 14

— Bassanio
If it please you to° dine with us. / come

—Shylock
Yes, to smell pork, to eat of the swine° which your prophet, the Nazarite, conjured the devil

7. {upon} / from news on / as heard upon / upon word at
8. {squandered abroad} / extended abroad / flung about / at risk in foreign waters / ‘scattered recklessly’ (Onions).
Squander in this context does not carry the negative connotation of being ‘wasteful’ but pertains more to a sense of
‘over-reaching.’
9. There is no factual accuracy in this description, as no merchant of Venice would have such a varied range of
ventures. This long description serves to show Antonio’s standing as a grand merchant, and also to show that
Shylock is well aware of everything concerning Antonio and his ventures.
10. The original reads {there be land rats and water rats, water thieves and land thieves—I mean pirates.} Pirates
may be a ‘bad’ pun for pier-rats, which would indicate the rats which run about the pier and steal food. In this
emendation the terms land thieves and water thieves have been reversed. With this new order the term pirates is
clearly related to water-thieves. (The pun on pirates could also be made by the following word order: “There be land
rats and land thieves, water rats and water thieves—I mean pirates.” In some productions the term pirates is
pronounced as pie-rats; the meaning and reason for this emphasis is uncertain but it may indicate petty thieves who
steal crumbs (as rats steal the crumbs from pies).
11. is sufficient: has adequate wealth (and means) to cover the debt
12. his means: his business, his ventures, his means of making money
in question: {in supposition} / in doubt / questionable
an argosy: a merchant ship Tripolis: a port in Libya or Lebanon Rialto: merchant exchange in Venice
nonetheless: {notwithstanding} / nevertheless / despite all that
13. {I will bethink me}
14. Shylock already knows Antonio’s store and need not think it over {I will bethink me} to be assured; nor does he
need to discuss anything with Antonio to be assured. As we will see, none of the subsequent conversation with
Antonio lead’s to Shylock’s further assurance as he never once asks Antonio about the state of his ventures (or other
collateral that Antonio may have). Shylock is using this notion of needing to be assured as a rouse whereby he can
speak directly with Antonio both from a position of equals and from the position of superiority, where Antonio needs
his help. Shylock is taking this rare opportunity of engagement to confront Antonio about personal matters—such as
Antonio’s mistreatment of Shylock.