Manipulation of the Law in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice
In reading Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, several themes seem to emerge and cause the audience to question the nature of man's place within his society. One such theme is the nature of the law, and man's abiding by it, or refusal to do so. Certainly, the play causes the audience to question whether or not compliance with the law of men is always the right thing to do. In Merchant of Venice, the audience is faced with examples of why this may not always be the best of choices in a given set of circumstances.
The Merchant of Venice depends heavily upon laws and rules·the laws of the state of Venice and the rules stipulated in contracts and wills·such as the will of Portia's father, which stipulates that Portia must marry the man who correctly chooses one of the three caskets. Laws are certainly capable of producing good when executed by the right people. The problem that is found within this arrangement, however, is that laws and rules can be manipulated for cruel or wanton purposes when executed by the wrong individuals. For instance, Portia's virtual imprisonment by the game of caskets seems, at first, like a questionable rule at best, but her likening of the game to a lottery system is belied by the fact that, in the end, it works perfectly.
This contest for Portia's hand, in which suitors from various countries choose among a gold, a silver, and a lead casket, resembles the cultural and legal system of Venice in some respects. Like the Venice of the play, the casket contest presents the same opportunities and the same rules to men of various nations, ethnicities, and religions. Also like Venice, the hidden bias of the casket test is fundamentally Christian. To win Portia, Bassanio must ignore the gold casket, which bears the inscription, "Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire" (II.vii.5), and the silver casket, which says, "Who chooseth me shall ge...