Extract 1
Q.1. Where does this scene take place? What is meant by the 1st line of the extract?
Answer 1: This
scene takes place in a room in Portia's house at Belmont. The first line refers
to the fact that if Portia expressed her thought, people will think bad things
about her, so she can't speak of her desire. Portia says enough to convey to
Bassanio that she loved him. She is doubtful whether Bassanio has understood
what she has said and wanted to explain further. But then she is taken over by
her maidenly modesty.
Answer 2: At
the end of her speech, Portia says that she spoke at length to stretch the time
and delay Bassanio's act of choosing the caskets. This shows that she has
feelings of love for Bassanio and does not want to lose him soon.
Q.3. Why can't Portia teach Bassanio to choose the correct casket? If Bassanio were to make an incorrect choice what would Portia have wished?
Answer 3: Portia
cannot teach Bassanio to choose the correct casket as she has promised her
father not to reveal the secret of the caskets to anyone. She would never break
her promise. If Bassanio were to make an incorrect choice, Portia would have
wished that she had broken her promise.
q.4. Give the meaning of Beshrew your eyes.They hav'e overlooked me and divided me.
Answer 4: The
given lines mean, 'May your eyes be ccursed. They have cast a spell on me and
divided me'. Portia says that Bassanio's eyes have cast a spell on her and
divided her for she no longer seems to be herself. She says that half of her
belongs to him and the other half to her.
Answer 5: The
extract shows that as a lover, Portia loves Bassanio and does not want to lose
him and wants to detain him with her for a month or two. She says that
Bassanio's eyes have cast a spell on her and divided her. She affirms that she
is completely his. But as a dutiful daughter, she will never guide Bassanio to
choose the right casket as it would break her promise to her father.
Extract 2
Answer 1: It
means: If Bassanio were to lose Portia by choosing the wrong casket, then his
end will be accompanied by the fading music. There was a contemporary belief
that the swan, sang a beautiful song just before its death. The swan-song was
sung only once its life.
Answer 2: Portia
calls for music first of all to calm the excitement in her own heart. She
further says that if Bassanio fails, he will bid his last farewell to Portia,
with music in the background. This will be like a swan that sings before it
dies. And if Bassanio succeeds, the music will create the perfect moment for
celebration.
Answer 3: Portia
says that if Bassanio fails to choose the right casket, he will have a
swan-like end. Portia says that her eyes with tears will be Bassanio's watery
grave, just like the river is the grave for a dying swan.
Answer 4: If
Bassanio chooses the right casket in midst of the music being played, then
according to Portia, it is similar to the bridegroom waking up to the sound of
loud music outside his window. In medieval England there was a custom that the
bridegroom was woken by the sound of loud music outside his house, on his
wedding day.
Answer 5: In
the given scene, Portia acts as a romantic heroine. Her maidenly modesty and
cleverness is seen when she detains Bassanio a little longer before making his
choice. She expresses her affection for him. When Bassanio chooses correctly,
she is happy and surrenders herself, her property and her servants to Bassanio.
She also offers him a ring and makes him promise never to part with it.
The theme of love versus wealth is developed in the scene by comparing the
choice of casket made by Morocco and Arragon with that of Bassanio. Morocco and
Arragon were led, in their choiceby appearance of gold and silver. On the other
hand, Bassanio was not deceived with outward appearance. Therefore, he rejected
the glittering gold and pale silver and instead chose the unattractive dull
lead. Bassanio was able to make the right choice as his motive was love rather
than wealth.
Extract 3
Answer 1: Alcides
refers to young Hercules. In Greek mythology, he is depicted as a strong and
courageous young man.
'Virgin tribute' refers to Hesione, who was the daughter of King of Troy.
Hesione was tied to a rock, and offered as a sacrifice to a sea-monster.
Hercules saved her by killing the monster.
Answer 2: Portia
compares Bassanio to Hercules. Just like Hercules saved Hesione, Bassanio can
save Portia. Portia says that Bassanio has the same dignity as Hercules, but he
has more love in his heart than Hercules had for Hesione.
Portia compares herself to Hesione. Hesione could have been eaten by a sea
monster, and Portia could have been married by monster (a cruel man), because
her marriage depends on the lottery of caskets.
Answer 3:
(a) howling Troy: the loud
lamentations of the people of Troy at the sacrifice of Hesione.
(b) bleared visages: means tear-stained faces.
(c) The issue of the exploit: It means the outcome of the rescue operation.
Answer 4: 'The
rest aloof' referred to in the extract are people in the room like Nerissa,
Gratiano and others whom Portia compares to Trojan women. Dardanian wives are
Trojan women. The Trojan women had assembled on the beach with tear-stained
faces to wait and watch the result of the encounter between Hercules and the
sea-monster.
Answer 5: Portia
asks Bassanio, 'Go Hercules' because in her opinion the similarity between
Bassanio and Hercules is complete and perfect. Portia tells Bassanio to go
ahead and choose the casket. While he is choosing she will be watching the test
with much more anxiety than Bassanio. She says that if he succeeds, she lives.
If he fails, it is death for her.
Extract 4
Answer 1: In the given extract
the theme of appearance and reality is highlighted. Bassanio, commenting on the
caskets, says that a pretty exterior may often hide a rotten interior. Most
people fall for the outward appearance instead of the inward appearance. He is highlighting
this theme by providing the examples of lawyers, religious beliefs and cases of
cowards who assume outward signs of valour.
Answer 2: Bassanio says that
every wrong has some appearance of virtue. He explains it through the example
of a lawyer. A lawyer can hide his weakness by his appearance and smooth talk.
This gives him the appearance of a wise man in front of people. Similarly,
religious preachers can justify any wrongdoing by claiming it is not a sin in
god's eyes.
Answer 3: 'Stairs of sand'
refer to a stairway made of shifting sand. Such a stairway is unreliable and
easily falls off. These stairs are compared to cowards who grow beards to give
them the appearance of great warriors like Hercules and Mars. They create this
appearance to make the people believe that they are brave and strong.
Answer 4: It was the belief of
the people of England that a brave man's liver was red in colour and the
cowards had white livers.
Answer 5: Hercules was a great
hero in the Greek mythology and Mars was the Roman God of war. Hercules and
Mars are referred to here because they represent strength, manliness and
bravery.
Extract 5
Answer 1: Bassanio says that
beauty can be easily achieved through chemicals i.e. by makeup. Cosmetics that
are used in makeup can be purchased from a shop. They change the appearance of
a woman. The word lightest has two meanings in the extract. One meaning is that
it makes the women fair in colour. The other meaning is that the person cannot
be trusted.
Answer 2: 'Crisped snaky golden locks' refer to wigs. Bassanio says
that people wear wigs to increase their beauty. This hair is not real. In fact,
the hair in the wigs belonged to dead people.
Answer 3: The 'dowry of a second head' refers to a wig worn by a
woman. A dead woman had bred this head. The head is now in a grave.
Answer 4: Bassanio says that outward appearance is always
deceptive. It is like the attractive sea shore that is very dangerous but
people visit the seashore attracted by its beauty.
Answer 5: Two examples mentioned by Bassanio are:
(i) The shiny golden wig that many women wear is made from the hair of dead
people.
(ii) The lovely stars that hides the ugly face of an Indian beauty.
Extract 6
Answer 1: The gentle scroll
was in the lead casket. On the scroll it was written that since he has not
chosen by outward appearances, he may be fortunate and make his choice as
wisely as he has done. Since this fortune has come to him, he should be
satisfied and seek nothing more for his happiness. If he is pleased with his
luck and feels that fate has brought him happiness, he should go to his beloved
and claim her as his own with a loving kiss.
Answer 2: The speaker has won Portia. The speaker chose the correct
casket i.e the lead casket containing Portia's portrait. Bassanio was impressed
by the simplicity of the lead casket. Besides the inscription on the casket
said that the man who chooses it must give and hazard all he has.
Answer 3: The speaker was asked to go to the lady and claim her as
his own with a loving kiss and receive a kiss from her.
Answer 4:
(a) Loud applause of joy.
(b) Completely filled with joy.
Answer 5: Bassanio compares himself to a participant who is trying to
win a contest. He compares himself to someone who wins the prize in the
contest.
Bassanio is full of joy after choosing the correct casket. He
hears a loud applause from the people in the room. He is so much in shock that
he can't believe that he has made the correct choice.
Extract 7
1. After Bassanio chooses
the correct casket, Portia transfers her mansion, her servants, herself and all
her possessions to him.
2. Portia, for Bassanio's
sake, wishes that she were 60 times better, 1000 times more beautiful and
10,000 times wealthier. These wishes express her desire to excel in everything
for the sake of Bassanio.
3. As a token of her love to
Bassanio, Portia gives him a ring. She warns him that if he parts with the
ring, or loses it, or gives it away, that will be a sign that his love for her
is dead. The ring becomes a part of the main plot of the play when Bassanio
gives it away to Portia, who was disguised as a judge, towards the end of the
play.
4. The given lines mean 'let
that be a sign that your love for me is dead and it will give an opportunity
for me to excuse you for that'.
5. After Portia's speech,
Bassanio is overpowered with emotion and he tells Portia that her love has made
him speechless. Regarding the ring, Bassanio promises Portia he will part with
the ring only at his death.
Extract 8
1. Gratiano speaks these
words after Bassanio's selection of the casket. Bassanio has chosen the correct
casket and won Portia's hand in marriage. Gratiano wishes Portia and Bassanio
all the joy and happiness they desire.
2. Gratiano requests
Bassanio to grant him a favour. The favour was to permit him to marry Nerissa
at the ceremony of Portia and Bassanio's wedding.
3. Bassanio gives the
condition that if Gratiano finds a woman to marry him, if he can marry her at
Portia and Bassanio's wedding.
4. Nerissa had told Gratiano
that she would marry him only if Bassanio chooses the correct casket. Thus,
Gratiano's fortune too stood on the caskets.
5. The Gratiano-Nerissa
episode has added humour to the story. Gratiano, with his sense of humour,
produces laughter in the scene.
The other ordinary couple mentioned in the play are Jessica and
Lorenzo. They will be United when Shylock loses the suit against Antonio and
his wealth it is given to Jessica and Lorenzo.
Extract 9
1. The scene takes place in
a room in Portia's house at Belmont. Salario brings the letter from Antonio to
Bassanio.
2. Portia concludes that there
is some bad news in the letter because when Bassanio reads the letter, his face
turns pale and he becomes greatly worried. According to Portia, the bad news in
the letter must be about the loss of someone who was close to Bassanio.
3. As Portia and Bassanio's
wedding is now fixed, Portia has the right to know the contents of the letter.
4. Bassanio tells Portia
that the letter contains some of the most unwelcome news. He tells Portia that
he is deeply indebted to a kind friend. This friend agreed to a bond with his
enemy to allow Bassanio to come to Belmont and woo Portia. Bassanio looks upon
the letter as if it is Antonio's body and the words in the letter are Antonio's
wounds. He tells her that Antonio's ships have been wrecked in the sea.
5. Salario said that Shylock
was a greedy man, who could destroy another man for the sake of money and
revenge. So remember merchants, the Duke and the noble men could not change
Shylock's mind to give up his revenge. Therefore, even if Antonio had
sufficient money, Shylock would not accept it because he wanted revenge.
At the end of the play, Shylock lost the bond and he had to lose
his property, his daughter and his religion.
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