The Merchant of Venice: Shylock - Antagonist or Victim? In The Merchant of Venice, by William Shakespeare, Shylock appears - a Jew. As the play unfolds, Shylock is seen as the villain and is described as cold, unyielding and evil. Shylock can easily be assumed to be the antagonist of this play or, after careful research and study, he can also be seen as a haunted individual who resorts to revenge as a last resort after being pushed too far. Shylock we must first consider Elizabeathen's attitude towards the Jews. In the sixteenth century Jews were rarely, if ever, seen in England. In the Middle Ages Jews had fled to England to escape persecution in France under the Normans. Henry I obtained permission for them to enter England in exchange for a percentage of their profits from trading and moneylending. This is where the stereotype of Jews lending money was born. Because of the tariffs imposed on them by the crown, the Jews began charging high interest rates to ensure profits. Here we see echoes of Shylock with his wear and tear. The Jews were finally driven out of England in 1254 by Edward I. They did not return to England until the second half of the seventeenth century. (Lippman 3-4) Jews were also seen as devils by the Elizabethan public. Old stories described them as "bloodthirsty killers" who poisoned wells and killed Christian children for their bizarre Easter ritual! als. (Stirling 2:1) These were the stereotypes that Shakespeare's audience had about Jews. Shakespeare himself had never seen a Jew, but he goes out of his way to humanize Shylock even as he perpetuates the stereotype. In Act 1:3, before Shyl...... in the center of the sheet ......d, wounded with the same weapons, subjected to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and from the same summer as a Christian? (III,i,54-59)At this point in the play it seems that Shylock is no different from any other man except for the fact that his religion has made him an outcast from society. Our understanding of this fact does not diminish the horror we feel at his cruelty towards Antony, but we are able to remember that the passion for revenge is a common human weakness and not the unique characteristics of a ferocious and inhuman monster as the Elizabethans believed. (Lippman 3) Works Cited: Lippman, Laura. Merchant of Venice Princeton, NJ: Peterson's Guides, 1999. Stirling, Grant. "Shakespeare and Anti-Semitism: The Question of Shylock". February 1997. http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/7221.