Shakespeare's Fool

There is no specific character entitled the "fool" in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, but the concept of the fool is important throughout the context of the play. At various instances in the play, we see a variety of characters play the fool or refer to themselves as "fool". This is true with respect to Arragon, Gratiano, Launcelot Gobbo, Portia, Bassanio, Nerissa and Shylock. All of these characters at times play the fool, try to fool others, and/or are fooled by others. The concept of the fool is extremely important to the main themes of the play, justice, love, and greed. The concept of the fool is highly significant to the play because Shylock is fooled in his defense of himself through a legal flaw for which he does not account.

In The Merchant of Venice, only Launcelot Gobbo is labeled a clown. Gobbo is Shylock's servant who informs his blind father, Old Gobbo, that he wants to leave Shylock and work for Bassanio. Gobbo acts as comic relief in the play, a character that is particularly skilled at uttering puns, "There will come a Christian by / Will be worth a Jewess' eye" (Shakespeare 211). Gobbo is important because as the fool he is able to utter expressions others in the play would not so readily get away with saying in public. He also symbolizes the duality within the play between justice and injustice, Christianity and Judaism, and love and infidelity. He does so by working as the fool/servant for both the Jewish Shy

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r in the play. This is true even though he is legally valid in demanding his bond and the terms of his contract, just as much as he is valid in wanting his daughter returned. However, Shylock is made a fool of by Portia who points out that he cannot cut his "pound of flesh" from Antonio's breast unless he can do so without shedding a drop of blood. Shylock's lust for revenge against Antonio has made foolish in missing this oversight. Otherwise he is quite proficient in his affairs and prosecution. Yet his being made a fool of demonstrates another duality and thin line separating two themes of the play, self interest versus love. Shylock's end also shows that justice is another complex concept that is not always a black and white issue with concrete lines drawn with respect to decision-making. The character of Portia is quite a deception. Even the Prince of Arragon acknowledges the Portia he meets is quite at odds with the Portia he imagined, "How much unlike art thou to Portia! / How much unlike my hopes and my deservings!" (Shakespeare 214). Portia fools Bassanio and Gratiano when she and Nerissa act as counsel for Antonio, not too mention handily defeating Shylock and making the fool of him. However, all of the fooling

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