The Merchant of Venice Introduction Analysis

1. In this passage of The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare is introducing the audience to Bassanio and Antonio, and their relationship. Bassanio wants to win over Portia, but he does not have the funds to do so, which leads to him approaching his fiscally stable best friend, Antonio, who cannot offer Bassanio money but does offer Bassanio his credit. Shakespeare conveys that Bassanio is arrogant and views himself as a hero, like Jason, because he compares Portia’s hair to the “golden fleece” (1.1.177), and he compares the other men who have tried to win her hand to “Jasons [who have] come in quest of her” (1.1.179).
2. While being heavily implied, Bassanio indicates that he is very much interested in the wealth of Portia. In line 168, Bassanio begins by saying, “In Belmont is a lady richly left” (1.1). This is the way Bassanio introduces Portia to Antonio, and while Bassanio does go on to discuss how “fair” (1.1.169) and beautiful she is, it still remains that Bassanio thought it was important enough to begin with Portia’s wealth. Shakespeare also sets up that Antonio is the responsible one of the two, a kind of father figure to Bassanio, because Antonio is fiscally stable and has good credit since he tells Bassanio to “try what my credit can in Venice do” (1.1.187).
3. When Bassanio is speaking, twice he uses phrases with multiple meanings when he says, “Nor is the wide world ignorant of her worth” (1.1.174), and “That I should questionless be fortunate” (1.1.183). The word “worth” has a double meaning when Bassanio says it, because it can mean both her worth in a sense of her physical being and what she would mean to him if he loved her, but it also means Portia’s financial worth because Bassanio has already mentioned that she is extremely rich. When Bassanio says “fortunate,” it again has a double meaning, since it can either mean that Bassanio would be very lucky to have the beautiful and lovely Portia as his wife, but it can also means that he will inherit a fortune since she is very rich.
4. From these lines, I can assume that Bassanio is kind of arrogant since, in lines 177-179, he compares himself to the great hero and leader, Jason, and he thinks very highly of himself (1.1). I can infer that Antonio is responsible since he is fiscally stable and knows how to handle his money, and he also mentions that he has good credit in line 187 (1.1). I cannot infer much about Portia since I do not get to actually see her speak in these lines, but based upon what Bassanio has said about her, she is beautiful and very rich.
5. The overall mood and tone is fairly jovial and friendly. Bassanio goes on a bit of a tangent while laying out his plan for Antonio and discussing how fair she is (1.1.169), repeatedly, and makes this extended comparison between him and Jason and the Argonauts. Antonio responds in a very positive, kind-hearted way, and agrees to help Bassanio. The entire exchange makes is seem like Antonio and Bassanio have a father-son type relationship.
6. It was not explicitly stated that Bassanio is arrogant, but, as previously mentioned, by comparing himself to a hero, it is clear that he thinks highly of himself. It also was not explicitly stated that Antonio is responsible, but it is implied since he manages his money well and is fiscally responsible.
7. There is a metaphor of comparing Bassanio and his quest for Portia to Jason and the Argonauts quest for the Golden Fleece. Bassanio compares Portia’s hair to the “golden fleece” (1.1.177) and explains that “many Jasons come in quest of her” (1.1.179). Through this extended metaphor, Shakespeare makes it seem that Bassanio does not view Portia as this woman whom he will love, but instead as a conquest and an end goal. This also makes Bassanio seem more arrogant since he believes he is comparable to the hero and leader Jason.