It is worth taking a closer look at the marriage and trial plots in The Merchant of Venice. The antagonists of their respective storylines have similar goals; they seek access to power and privilege. However, the types of power they seek are very different. The methods used to gain power are also different. Bassanio succeeds in his aim, but Shylock fails. Focusing on the above-mentioned plots, some conclusions can be drawn about the reasons for the success and failure of this comedy. Now let's consider the wedding plot. Already in I,i Bassanio reveals his plans to woo Portia. He describes his undertaking as a quest; “her sunny curls/ hang on her temples like a golden fleece/ which makes her the seat of the strond of Belmont Colchos, / and many Jasons come in search of her.” (I, i, 169-172). We might notice how he describes Portia's appearance in an almost Petrarchan manner. She is describing a single feature of hers (her hair), and therefore objectifying it. But above all Bassanio's words tell us that he is aware of the economic advantages he can obtain through the marriage bond. This makes us ask an essential question: what does Bassanio want to achieve by courting Portia? According to Frank Whigham in "Ideology and Class Conduct in the Merchant of Venice", he wants power through assimilation into the elite. Bassanio has already lost initiatives (I, i, 123-135), but now ventures to free himself from financial worries. He tries to free himself from the fear shared by the Venetians when it comes to losing security and privileges through the loss of money (I, i, 31-34). To this we could add that he also seeks love in marriage. Since Bassanio spoke of his under...... middle of paper ......f flesh, and therefore of Antonio's life. One could argue that it is Shylock's honesty that becomes his undoing. Ultimately there is no doubt in anyone's mind that he, as a foreigner, has "sought the life of a citizen" (IV, i, 347), and that he is therefore liable to persecution. We can therefore say that the trial plot and the marriage plot can both be seen as evidence that determines access to power. Shylock fails because he fails to see the law as an ideological tool created by elites. He doesn't realize that the law is not literal and objective, it is created to protect its creators. The law, in this sense, becomes partial and dishonest. Bassanio, in his process, uses decorum and style to get what he wants. He is dishonest in his rhetoric when it comes to his desires for wealth, but by displaying the appropriate style, he gets what he wants.