I bought this book mainly to see Julius’ analysis of The Merchant of Venice in particular and William Shakespeare in general. I have always been intrigued by this passage in The Merchant of Venice-
I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew’s eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer, as a Christian is?
If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?
If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in that. If a Jew wrongs a Christian, what is his humility? Revenge. If a Christian wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by Christian example? Why, revenge.
– Shylock – The Merchant of Venice Act III Scene I
The Merchant of Venice was written in 1594-97. Anti-Semitism was rife in London then. Is this a sympathetic portrayal of Shylock the Jew? Was Shakespeare really sympathetic to the Jews?
To that extent, I was disappointed with the book. It asserts without elaboration that the play was anti-Semitic (p 167), that it was a blood libel narrative (p 179). The Act III speech above was merely explained as ” The pathos of Shylock’s great speech is limited. It does not make the claim that a Jew is specifically capable of love- it is instead about the body’s capabilities only (‘affections’ and ‘passions’ rather than specific attachments), save for the reference to revenge. “. (p 184), ‘ this speech of Shylock’s is full of self-pity… He is a whinger.’ (p 190)
I was hoping for some references to other works that had analysed this passage. I was also hoping to see some discussion on whether William Shakespeare was anti-Semitic. Can an author be considered anti-Semitic just because the elements of his play reflect the ethos and beliefs of his era? It is a pity Julius did not comment more on James Shapiro’s book Shakespeare and the Jews.
Julius has covered much ground. His knowledge of the subject is learned. But overall this book is not for one new to the subject.