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—Tubal
Your daughter spent in Genoa, as I heard, one night, eighty ducats. 57

—Shylock
Thou stick’st a dagger in me. I shall never see my gold again. Eighty ducats in one sitting!
Eighty ducats!

—Tubal
59
58
And, in my company to Venice, there came several of Antonio’s creditors who swear he
cannot chose but break. break: / go bankrupt / go bust

—Shylock
I am very glad of it. I’ll plague him, I’ll torture him. I am glad of it. 60

—Tubal
One of them showed me a ring that he had from your daughter—in exchange for a monkey.

—Shylock
61
63
62
Damn her for it. Thou torturest me, Tubal. It was my turquoise. I had it of Leah when I
was a bachelor. I would not have given it for a jungle full° of monkeys.
whole jungle: {wilderness} / whole jungle

b) I thank thee good Tubal. Good news. Good news! Ha, ha—what else did you hear in Genoa?
c) I thank thee good Tubal. Good news. What else did you hear in Genoa?
c) I thank thee good Tubal. What else did you hear in Genoa?
57. {four score ducats} / eighty / one hundred / two hundred / four hundred
The original reads, ‘four score ducats’ (or eighty ducats) and is here replaced with a more familiar and
recognizable amount of ‘eighty ducats.’ The term four score is not a number readily recognized by the modern
audience (and they would have to pause to mentally translate this term into ‘eighty.’) In addition, the term is strongly
associated with the opening of the Gettysburg Address and would direct most audience members to make that
irrelevant association.
Eighty ducats does not represent an amount whereby Shylock would feel as if someone had ‘stick’st a
dagger’ in him. Perhaps the intent of Shylock lamenting over ‘four score’ ducats—and repeating the term twice in
the following line—was meant to show his miserliness (for in the context of a 2000 ducat ring, and the 3000 ducat
bond, such an amount is too small to take up so much attention). One possible emendation would be to ‘up the ante’
and replace ‘four score ducats’ with ‘four hundred ducats’ which is an amount more likely to elicit such a strong
reaction.
58. in my company: / traveling with me / along with me
59. several of: {divers of} (> from ‘diverse’) / a number of / many of
60. At this point Shylock could direct the conversation back to talk of his daughter as opposed to having Tubal
always directing the subject of conversation toward Antonio Hence, Shylock could finish this line by adding, ‘And
what of my daughter?’ or ‘And is there any more news of my daughter?’
61. Damn her for it: {Out upon her}: Out of this world with her, to hell with her.
62. {Out upon her! Thou torturest me, Tubal.} This is Shylock’s initial response to Tubal. It begins with an attack
on Jessica; then addresses Shylock’s feelings, and then the ring. The order of the lines could be transposed where
Shylock’s initial response is about the ring, then Jessica, then himself
B) Shylock: That was my turquoise ring. I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor. I would not have
given it for a whole jungle of monkeys. Damn her for it. Thou torture me Tubal.
63. {I had it of Leah} / I received it from Lea
Shylock’s wife, Leah, is mentioned by name. Recall the story from Genesis that Shylock told to Antonio,
relating to Jacob attending to Laban’s sheep. [1.3.74-87]: Jacob’s somewhat deceitful actions could have been his
way to get even with Laban, his father-in-law, who had previously tricked Jacob into taking Leah (Laban’s daughter)
as his wife and not Rachel (whom Jacob desired).