Act I Scene 2
Extract I
Nerissa
Your
father was ever virtuos……………………..are already come?
1.
What has Portia just said in response to
which Nerissa speaks these words?
Portia
has just said that she can neither
choose the one she likes nor refuse the one she dislikes because the choice of
her husband depends on the lottery of caskets devised according to her late
father’s will.
2.
Describe the lottery referred to in the
extract.
The
lottery refers to the choice of the right casket containing Portia’s portrait
from a among the three caskets of gold, silver and lead. The suitor who will
make the right choice as per the will of Portia’s father will win her in
marriage.
3.
Give the reaction of Portia as well as of
Nerissa to the lottery.
Initially,
Portia appears to be anxious over the prospect of choosing her husband through
a lottery devised according to her
father’s will. She feels sad as she can neither choose the one she likes nor
refuse the one she dislikes as her husband. But later on she accepts her
father’s will. Nerissa’s reaction to the lottery was positive. She calls
Portia’s father pious and asserts that good men do have inspirations at the
time of death. She consoles Portia by saying that she will be chosen correctly
by a person whom she truly loves.
4.
Give the meaning of “never be chosen by
any rightly, but one who you shall rightly love.”
These
lines mean that Portia will be chosen correctly by a person whom she truly
loves.
5.
Portia is melancholic in the beginning of
the scene as it was the case with Antonio in the previous scene. What is the
difference between Antonio’s melancholy and that Portia?
Portia’s
melancholy is the result of her anxiety over the prospect of her future husband
while the cause of Antonio’s melancholy is unknown.
6.
How does this scene show a mood of melancholy, anxiety and suspense?
The
scene show a mood of melancholy, anxiety
and suspense. The mood of melancholy and anxiety is due to the prospect of
Portia’s future husband to be decided by the lottery designed according to her
deceased father’s will. This also creates an atmosphere of suspense. The
conversation between Nerissa and Portia, Portia’s comments on the suitors
and Nerissa’s reference to Bassanio as ‘the best deserving a fair lady’ increase the elements of anxiety
and suspense in the scene.
Extract
2
Portia:
He
doth nothing………………God defend me from these two!
1. Where
are Portia and Nerissa? What are they
generally discussing about? In what mood is Portia in the scene?
Portia and Nerissa are in a room in
Portia’s house at Belmont. They are discussing the lottery of caskets and about
the suitors who have already come to try their luck. In this scene, Portia is
in a mood of melancholy and anxiety.
2. Who
is County Palatine? Why has he come to Belmont?
County Palatine was the Count from
Palatinate, the region on the west bank of the Rhine in Germany. He was a
powerful lord who came to Belmont to win Portia’s hand.
3. Who
is the first prince described by Portia? What does she say about him?
The first prince described by Portia is
the Neapolitan Prince from Naples, Italy. Portia describes him as a
dashing youngster and as wild as a young
horse. He does nothing but talks of his horse. He further considers his ability
to shoe a horse himself as a great accomplishment.
4. Who
is the weeping philosopher? In which context is he referred to in the extract?
The weeping philosopher refers to
Heraclitus of Esphesus. He was a Greek philosopher who lamented the stupidity
and folly of mankind and wept at everything in the world. Portia refers to him
to describe County Palatine. She feels that since County Palatine is usually
gloomy in his young age, he will become a sad philosopher like Heraclitus when
he grows old.
5. Give
the meaning of:
A) An
you will not have me, choose
If you do not want me , choose anyone you
wish
B) A
death’s-head with a bone in his mouth
A skull with a bone in its mouth. The emblem
of a skull with two bones crossed underneath was usually known as ‘death’s
head.’
6. Give
a character-sketch of the County Palatine.
County Palatine is described as gloomy and
self-conceited person. He is always frowning
as if to say that if Portia will not marry him, she may choose someone
else. He is morose and sullen that even jovial stories don’t make him laugh. He
has an abrupt manner of speech and may become a sad philosopher like Heraclitus
when he grows old.
Extract III
Portia:
God made him, and therefore let him pass
for a man…….I shall never requite him.
1. What
has Portia said earlier about Neapolitan prince and his horse? Which
characteristic is common between Monseieur
Le Bon and the Count Palatine?
Earlier Portia described the Neapolitan
Prince as wild as a young horse and so attached to his horse that he always spoke about the horse only. The
Count Palatine and Le Bon share the common characteristic of frowning.
2. Give
the meaning of:
A) He
is every man in no man: He has every man’s characteristic but no personality of his own
B) He
falls straight a -capering: He starts to jump about. Monsieur Le Bon is so
fickle-minded that if he hears a thrush sing, he starts to jump about.
3. How
does the French lord react to the singing of a thrush?
When he hears the singing of a thrush, the
French Lord starts jumping immediately.
4. What
would happen:
a) If
Portia were to marry the Count?
It would be as if she were married to
twenty husbands as he is never one man but twenty men by turns.
b) If
he were to despise Portia?
If he were to despise Portia, Portia would
not be in least angry and would forgive
him.
c) If
he were to love Portia passionately?
Portia could never return his love since
she could never possibly love twenty husbands.
5. Give
any three negative qualities of the French Lord, as described by Portia.
Portia says that the French Lord is more attached
to his horse than the Neapolitan Prince and excels Count Palatine in frowning.
If he hears a thrush singing, he starts jumping immediately. Further, if he
does not have anybody to fence with, he will take his own shadow as adversary.
Extract IV
Portia
You know I say nothing……………………and his
behaviour everywhere.
1. How
is the young baron’s external appearance described in the passage? What light
does it throw on the national pattern of clothes of Englishmen?
The baron’s external appearance is
described as odd and strange. He is oddly dressed and very odd in behaviour
too. He wears an Italian jacket and breeches in the French fashion. He seems to
have got his hat from Germany and his manners from everywhere. Englishmen of
Shakespeare’s days had fondness for the manners and clothes of foreigners.
2. What
shows that the English Lord has poor knowledge of the European languages? Why
does Portia find it difficult to interact with him?
Portia’s sentiment that the Englishman did
not know Latin, French or Italian shows that he had very poor knowledge of
European Languages. Portia found it difficult to converse with him as he did
not know Latin, French or Italian and Portia’s knowledge of English was very
poor.
3. Give
the meaning of:
a) He
is a proper man’s picture
He is handsome and fine-looking
b) How
oddly he suited: He is dressed very strangely
4. What
is referred to as a ‘dumb show’? why is the baron said to be a dumb show?
The word dumb-show refers to a play in
which all characters act without speaking , that is by gestures. A pantomime is
a dumb show. Here it means that the Englishman is unable to speak foreign
languages and had to converse by means of signs as in a dumb show.
5. Give
a brief description of the Scottish Lord
The Scottish Lord is not impressive.
Portia speaks about his cowardice in a sarcastic way by calling him
kind-hearted as he did not return the Englishman’s blow immediately.
6. What
type of contemporary relationship among England, Scotland and France is
reflected in the description of the Scottish Lord?
The description of the Scottish Lord is a reference to
the frequent alliances between the Scots and the French again England when
Scotland was at war with England.
Extract V
Portia
Very vilely in the
morning, when he is sober………………..ere I will be married to a sponge.
1.
How does
the young German behave when he is sober and when he is drunk? If the
worse happens to Portia which would compel her to marry him, what would she do?
When
sober, the young German is less than a man in behaviour and when drunk he is no better than a beast.
If the worse happens to Portia, she will manage to do without him.
2.
Give the meaning of:
a) When
he is worst, he is little better than a beast
When is drunk, he is no better than a
beast
b) Set
a deep glass of Rhenish wine on the contrary casket
Place a
tall goblet of Rhenish wine on the wrong casket
3.
What plan does Portia make to prevent the young German from
choosing the right casket?
To
prevent the young German from choosing the right casket, Portia instructed
Nerissa to place a tall goblet of Rhenish wine on the wrong casket. Portia was
sure that the German suitor will not be
able to resist the temptation of his national drink even if the picture of the
devil himself was within.
4.
Why is the young German referred to as a
‘sponge’?
A
sponge constantly absorbs water. Similarly, a drunkard, who constantly take
liquor is called a sponge. Since the young German is a drunkard, Portia calls
him a sponge.
5.
After
Portia’s speech, what does
Nerissa say to console her about the suitors?
Nerissa
tells Portia to set aside her fears concerning the suitors. She says that they
have informed her of their decision to
go back home and not to press their courtship further unless Portia’s father’s decree concerning the caskets can be
set aside and they may woo her in an ordinary way.
Extract
VI
Portia
If
I live to be as old as Sibylla…………………..a fair departure.
1. What
was Portia’s father’s will as far as Portia’s marriage is concerned?
Portia’s father’s will was that her
marriage will be decided by the lottery of the three caskets. The suitor, who
chooses the right casket containing Portia’s picture will be her husband.
2. Who
is Sibylla and who is Diana? Why are they referred to in the extract?
In Ovid’s metamorphoses, Sibyl was
prophetess. She was granted a wish by god Appllo that she would live for as
many years as the grains of sand she held in her hand. She was the ageless old
woman.
Diana was the goddess of moon and hunting.
She is known as the virgin goddess. They are referred to here to explain
Portia’s resolve to remain a virgin like Diana even if she lives to be as old as Sibyl of Cumae
unless she is won in marriage by some suitor in the lottery of casket.
3. What
does Nerissa say to introduce Bassanio? What were the feelings of Portia for
Bassanio in this scene?
To introduce Bassanio, Nerissa recalls the
visit of a young Venetian along with the Marquis o f Montferrat, when Portia’s
father was alive. He was a scholar and a soldier. In this scene, Portia’s
feelings for Bassanio are quite positive. She recalls his name and tells
Nerissa that he fully deserves her praise. Her simple reply shows that she is
already in love with Bassanio.
4. In
what scene can we say that the opening of the first two scenes of Act I give
the plots of the play?
The opening of the first two scenes of Act
I gives the plot of the paly. The two main plots of the play are the bond-story
and the casket -story. The bond-story is initiated in Scene I while the
casket-story is initiated in Scene 2 of Act I.
5. Name
the six suitors given in this scene. Give two characteristics of each suitor
described by Portia.
i)
The Neapolitan Prince from Naples, Italy,
was a dashing youngster, as wild as a horse. He always talked about his horse.
ii)
The County Palatine was always
frowning and unusually gloomy.
iii)
Le Bon is from France, who had the
characteristic of every man and had no personality of his own.
iv)
Falconbridge from England, though handsome
was strangely and unmannerly dressed and did not know Latin, French or Italian.
v)
The Scottish Lord, was a coward and did
not repay the Englishman who gave him a blow.
vi)
The Duke of Saxony was drunkard. He in his
sober moments, behaved less than a man
and when drunk no better than a beast.