In The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare juxtaposes two different ideas of justice: that of Christian justice, in which mercy is paramount; and justice as represented by Shylock, who argues for law and restitution. The two worldviews battle for supremacy throughout the play.
Christian justice is best shown by Portia’s speech, in which she calls for Shylock to have mercy and free Antonio from his bond. The speech begins by defining the virtues of mercy:
The quality of mercy is not strain'd,
It droppeth, as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice bless'd;
It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes:
'Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown
Portia argues that mercy is a divine force that improves everyone it touches. Furthermore, she believes that mercy d power better than a physical symbol such as a crown. The other Venetians in the room might agree, but all were born into positions of power and privilege. Shylock, the intended recipient of this monologue, likely finds such a concept alien. As a moneylender, mercy would ruin his business: retribution and repayment are the foundations upon which his livelihood rests. Portia further states:
That in the course of justice, none of us
Should see salvation: we do pray for mercy;
And that same prayer, doth teach us all to render
The deeds of mercy.
A dichotomy between justice and salvation is presented, the implication being that Shylock will never attain salvation if he does not show Antonio mercy. For all that Portia argues in favor of mercy and compassion, however, she shows none. She refers to Shylock only as “Jew” during her arguments, and later denies Shylock the very mercy she had preached to him.
Shylock argues for a different kind of justice, one which relies on the letter of the law rather than mercy:
My deeds upon my head! I crave the law,
The penalty and forfeit of my bond.
Shylock craves revenge, but seeks it only within the boundaries of the law. He tells Salerio in a famous monologue:
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
wrong a Christian, what is his humility? revenge. If a
Christian wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by
Christian example? why, revenge. The villany you teach
me I will execute; and it shall go hard but I will better
the instruction.
This adds depth to Shylock's means of revenge: he claims that it was learned from the very Christians who preach mercy when Shylock is in a position of power. The hypocrisy of the Venetians is quite clear.
Justice is a complex issue in The Merchant of Venice: while Shylock is wrong in aiming to kill a man, he nonetheless comes across as a victim. He is discriminated against due to his faith, loses his daughter, and is mocked by the Venetians; at the end of the play, half of his fortune is taken away, he must declare Lorenzo as his heir, and he is forced to convert to Christianity. Mercy has clearly been denied to him. Shylock can do nothing to stop this, and says even before his forced conversion:
Nay, take my life and all; pardon not that:
You take my house when you do take the prop
That doth sustain my house; you take my life,
When you do take the means whereby I live.
Yet the outcome of the trial is celebrated, and seen as just. Justice is not clear-cut in The Merchant of Venice.
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