COMMON MODULE - texts and human experiences

• Antisemitism quote 1 - shylock

  "You call me misbeliever, cutthroat dog, and spit upon my Jewish gabardine"
• Antisemitism analysis 1 - shylock

  shylocks cathartic tone repeating Antonio's metaphorical insults underscore the depth of prejudice faced, aiming to not only degrade but dehumanize him, portraying him as an outsider Venetian Christian society
• Antisemitism quote 2 - shylock

  "you that did rheum upon my beard and foot me as you spurn a stranger cur over your threshold"
• Antisemitism analysis 2

  This simile symbolises the further dehumanisation of shylock through animal comparison.
• Antisemitism quote 3

  "Fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same disease, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer as a Christian is"
• Antisemitism analysis 3

  the anaphoric use of "the same" ignites the idea that although they're from different religions, they're all form one humanity, highlighting the inconsistencies shylock as a jew faces from the Christian dominant society.
• Antismetism quote 4

  "Hath a jew not eyes ........ shall we not revenge"
• Antismetism analysis 4

  the repetition of hath not and the structure of if we, do you not, is used to further emphasise the similarities between Jews and Christians, reinforcing the argument that both religions share the same human traits and experiences as each other.
• Love quote 1

  "O Lorenzo! If thou keep a promise, I shall end this strife. become a Christian and thy loving wife"
• love analysis 1

  This encapsulates the human capacity to prioritise happiness and love over deeply ingrained religious and societal norms. Shakespeare's use of iambic pentameter reinforces the audience Jessica's willingness to leave behind her father and Jewish religion in pursuit of marital bliss, illustrating the profound lengths individuals will go to fulfil their desires.
• Love quote 2

  "But love is blind, and lovers cannot see, the follies that they themselves commit"
• Love analysis 2

  Jessica muses, acknowledging through personification, the irrational and often blinding nature of love. This reflects its transformative power to prioritise emotions over rationality, and societal constraints. Jessica's insights underscore love's universal impact on human behaviour, illustrating ist capacity for both beauty and folly.
• Love quote 3

  "now by my hood, a gentle and no jew"
• love analysis 3

  here, despite shylocks identity as a Jewish moneylender, Graziano sees Jessica's inherent goodness and virtue, demonstrating the human ability to transcend religious prejudice and recognize the humanity in others, as ironically, society refuses to do for shylock.
• Love quote 4

  "shall she be placed in my constant soul"
• Love analysis 4

  underscores the universal nature of human affection, which can thrive even when confronted with religious and cultural differences, embodying the renaissance humanism movement through the Christians seeing the good in Jessica, beyond her religion.