Page 3 - William_Shakespeare_-_The_Merchant_of_Venice_191

ACT ONE - Scene One (1.1)

Venice. Enter Antonio, Salarino, and Salanio

______________________________________________________ [added text]

++—Antonio 1
I know this hatred mocks° all Christian virtue / hate befouls / hatred fouls
But they I loathe: their very sight abhors me. 2
They are° but vile infractions° of nature, / They’re none // infracts
3
A plague on all that is righteous and good.
And the contracts they use to loan out money, 4 / they make to ply their loans
Made ‘neath the guile of friendship and trust 5 / guise of kindliness and friendship
Are none but instruments of fell deceit,
And sordid° means to fetch° another’s ruin. 6 / wretched // bring
7
They would have men sign bonds to borrow money,
And if the sums are° not repaid on time / loan is
Then, as forfeit, they would take everything;
All that the man has earned in his lifetime 8
Would come to naught and end in tearful ruin. 9
10
‘Tis an obscene,° despisèd greed they show— / It is a foul
11
These heartless usurers. There is a place° / There’s a special place
In hell made just° for them. 12 / reserved

1. These opening lines of Antonio are not found in the original play and were added to focus and clarify the central
conflict of the play (between Antonio and Shylock) which is principally over usury, not religion. In the original we
find Antonio musing over his serious and concerned demeanor (or “sadness’) yet such a theme has no direct
relevance to the plot nor does it set up a context for understanding the action of play. [To understand usury as it was
viewed in Elizabethan England, see Additional Note, 1.1.0]
2. / But I am sickened by their very sight
3. / A plague afflicting the goodness of man / A plague upon the righteousness of man / A plague afflicting the spirit
of man / A plague destroying the very heart of man / A plague that ravages the heart of man / A plague that crushes (/
destroys / ruins / shatters) the spirit of man / That which destroys the righteousness of man
4. / And all their contracts, listing penalties / And all the loans they make with forfeitures
5. / Made with a show of kindness and of friendship / Made under pretense of kindness and friendship / With shows
of kindness and seeming friendship
6. / Are none but fell deceit and thievery
7. Option, add line: +Taking a loan beyond their means to pay,,
8. / All one has worked for and gained in his life / All that a man has made and gained in life / All that a man has
gained in years of work
9. / Would soon come to a sad and ruinous end / / Would end in sorrow, pain, and tearful ruin / Would end in
sadness and a tearful ruin / Would come to sadness and ruin in the end.
10. / ‘Tis a greed most obscene and despicable / Showing a greed obscene and despicable / It is a show of greed,
gross and despicable
11. / They but entrap those who are most desperate:
Having them sign a bond to borrow money
For which they cannot repay, then as forfeit,
And after great despair, all that these men have
Is taken, all they have worked for is lost;
All is but gone to these heartless usurers.
12. / . . . and gained in life | Is lost—but gone to these heartless usurers. |
‘Tis an obscene, despisèd greed they show.