Of the many and varied plots woven into Shakespeare's play, The Merchant of Venice, the story of Bassanio's rival affections for his friend Antonio and his future wife Portia is one of the most significant. Bassanio begins the story firmly in the affections and influence of his friend Antonio, the Venetian merchant who seems to overshadow all the action in the play. His courtship of Portia is nothing more than an attempt to obtain her wealth and he neither intends nor wishes to fall in love with her. This makes the story even more fascinating as Shakespeare shows the subtle change in Bassanio's affection from Antonio to his wife and the competition between the two as they attempt to gain, keep, or re-establish his love. Antonio is firmly in control of Bassanio at the beginning of the opera, but Portia triumphs in the end and wins her husband's devotion. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Antonio is the first main character to be introduced. He is portrayed as more serious and somber than his companions: “He seems older than the friends who surround him, and detached from their reckless extravagances” (Muir 36). He only seems to rejoice when Bassanio appears. Antonio establishes himself as the most important figure in the work: “the work is rightly named after the merchant, who is its center” (Evans 56). Everything moves around him. Bassanio's potential marriage depends on Antonio's approval and help. The villain is determined to take revenge on this particular merchant and no one else. From the beginning, Portia has formidable competition with Antonio. When Bassanio is first introduced in the play, he presents Antonio with his dilemma, establishing the fact that Antonio is both his friend and his mentor. Antonio has Bassanio's trust as his confidant, despite an apparent age disparity. Bassanio has already told him his financial situation: “It is not unknown to you, Antonio, / How much I have rendered my patrimony invalid” (Merchant of Venice, 1.1.121-122). He willingly tells Antonio his whole plan to win the hand of the beautiful Portia to secure his wealth. She wants Antonio's approval as much as his help. He already owes Antonio money, but as a friend, not as a business partner. Antonio obviously enjoys Bassanio's friendship and his dependence: “My purse, my person, my extreme means / A lie all open to your opportunities” (MV 1.1.138-139). He is not afraid of Bassanio's change of loyalty from friend to wife. Bassanio's initial opinion of Portia as he describes her to Antonio is anything but fond. He admires her greatly on the surface, but sees her more as an achievement and a means to financial security than as a woman whose love he can win. He describes her as “like a golden fleece / that makes her the seat of the strond of Belmont Colco, / and many Jasons come to seek her” (MV 1.1.170-172). She is a prize worth winning. The scene shifts to this Golden Fleece to be won and Portia is introduced for the first time. In this scene she is portrayed as a woman with intelligence and opinions, but without freedom. She is trapped by her late father's edict to marry any man who can divine the correct chest containing her portrait. She has no choice in the matter and must bend to her father's wishes in a world ruled by men: “she can neither choose who she wants – her choice has already been hinted at – nor reject who she does not like” (Parrott 141). It shows that it has a mind of its own and desires of its own. She and Nerissa make fun of some of her potential suitors. It ends with a memory of Bassanio: «He, among all the men that my / foolish eyes have ever looked at, was themore deserving" (MV 1.2.108-110). But despite her attraction to him, she cannot choose him and is forced to watch other men vie for her hand. Both scenes establish the fact that Bassanio is much loved and that two main characters strongly desire his affection. Antonio is certain to control Bassanio's love as both a friend and a benefactor. Portia's situation is less certain. She cannot act on her attraction to him because her father's will requires her to serve the suitors. At this point in the beginning of the play, Bassanio's loyalty is firmly in the hands of Antonio, not Portia. It doesn't take long, though, for things to start to change. Antonio has an easy chance to further ingratiate himself with Bassanio when Bassanio asks him for a loan of three thousand ductas to equip himself for his courting expedition. Antonio is forced to borrow money from the unscrupulous Jew Shylock and the payment represents the confiscation of his very life. Bassanio does not like this situation: “You will not seal such a bond for me! / I prefer to linger in my need” (MV 1.3.150-151). But Antonio concludes the deal, pledging to donate a pound of his own flesh if he fails to pay off the loan by the agreed deadline. Bassanio is now even more indebted to his friend. If Portia wins, she will have Antonio to thank for it. And if he fails to do so, he risks endangering Antonio, whose debt to Shylock could cost him his life: “we must also wish [Bassanio] to win her and her gold for Antonio's sake” (Evans 57). Even Portia's courtship is overshadowed by Antonio's situation. Bassanio leaves for Belmont to woo the lady. Now he is far from Venice and has left Antonio behind. Portia has her chance to win her lord. Despite his intentions, Bassanio seems to fall in love with the lady. His money no doubt helps the situation, but he seems to genuinely love her. Portia is also completely in love. Now he has the chance to take command and win Bassanio's complete loyalty. This is the first significant instance where it starts to take control. There has been some disagreement as to whether or not the song Portia plays as Bassanio attempts to choose the correct coffin is actually supposed to be a clue or whether it is simply a poetic accompaniment to his thoughts. Many scholars believe that Portia has too much honor to give him even a hint as to which casket to choose: “Portia was a woman of her word. To imagine that she had been disowned would diminish her moral stature” (Wilson 100). However, whether this is true or not, Portia has found the man she wants to marry, and although she is not willing to openly tell him which coffin to choose, she has reached the point where leaving her fate to chance seems to be a futile task. risk. She plays music in which many words rhyme with "lead" and "Let us all ring the bell of imagination" (MV 3.2.70), warning him not to choose the most elaborate caskets. Bassanio gives some indication that he understood the meaning of the song, repeating some of the rhyming words in his subsequent comments: "The echoes of these rhyming words clearly indicate that Bassanio has, indeed, heard Portia's song and the important clues it provides " (Rasmussen 12). There is no doubt that Portia is smart enough to think of this way to help win over her lord without actually going against her father's commands. He certainly has a manipulative mind, as seen later in the play. Whether it is because of himself or Portia, Bassanio makes the right choice and joins his lady permanently. He has his chance to truly begin to win his ultimate love. At this point,Bassanio still considers Antonio his greatest friend, but he is now torn in two ways. Portia gives him her ring: “May when you part, lose or give away, / be a harbinger of the ruin of your love / and be my advantage to exclaim over you” (MV 3.2.172-174). He is giving Bassanio an indication of his desire to reclaim his loyalty. Bassanio seems sincere when he vows to protect the ring, as a symbol of his loyalty above all others: “But when this ring / Starts from this finger, then separates life from here; / Oh then have the courage to say that Bassanio is dead!” (MV 3.2.183-185). But it doesn't take long for Bassanio to remember his former loyalty to Antonio. Bassanio discovers that Antonio's investments have all failed. His attentions immediately turn to Antonio: “the dearest friend to me, the kindest man, / the most conditioned and tireless spirit / in doing courtesies” (MV 3.2.292-294). Antonio writes to him telling him of his misfortunes and saying: «if your love does not persuade you to come, do not leave my letter» (MV 3.2.320-321). He reminds Bassanio of his former loyalty. Antonio still has a hold on Bassanio. Now that he is about to die giving his pound of flesh to Shylock, Bassanio will always be in his debt. In a way, this situation is to Antonio's advantage in his play for Bassanio's affection: "He predicts that his sacrifice will forever cast Portia's love for Bassanio into the shadow of her greater love" (Hamill 232 ). However, Portia began to take more control of the situation: “First come with me to church and call me wife, / And then off to Venice to your friend!” (MV 3.2.303-304). He intends to turn Antonio's trial in his favor. Portia's plan is cunning on multiple levels. When Bassanio leaves as soon as he is married to Portia, she realizes that her loyalty lies first and foremost with Antonio. He recognizes that to win Bassanio's respect over his friend, he must first win Antonio's respect. She gives Bassanio more than enough money to repay the debt, which would certainly not only put Bassanio more firmly in her affections, but would also subordinate Antonio to her. When she plans to become “dressed as young men” (MV 3.363), she essentially plans to infiltrate Antonio's world and, by saving him, rise above him. In Venice Portia will make her second attempt to conquer Bassanio. He appears at the trial and, in short, demonstrates keen intelligence and cunning as he outwits Shylock at his own game and exacts justice on the evil Jew. Antonio is saved and almost prostrates himself with gratitude to the young lawyer who helped him. Bassanio is equally grateful. Portia, however, is still not satisfied. During the trial, Bassanio makes it very clear which person he loves most when he tells Antonio: «Life itself, my wife and all the world / are not esteemed with me above your life» (MV 4.1.282-283) . Portia's reply is sharp, even if Bassanio does not recognize the full implication coming from an unknown doctor of law: “Your wife would thank you little for it / If she were here to hear you make an offer” (286-287). Simply having the gratitude of Antonio and Bassanio is not enough for her. Draw up a test for Bassanio. As a gift for his services, she asks Bassanio for the ring she herself had given him and makes him swear to protect it as a symbol of his love for her. She asks him, hoping that he won't give up and thus he will demonstrate his devotion to her. At first he seems to pass the test: «this ring was given to me by my wife, / and when she put it on she made me a vow / that I will neither sell it nor give it away nor lose it» (MV 4.1.440-442 ). ). Portia is satisfied and takes her leave. However, Antonio here shows that he still has influence over Bassanio, at least to some extent. He urges him to give up the ring: «Ihis merits, and with it my love, be weighed against the command of your wife" (MV 4.1.448-449). To Portia's dismay, Bassanio listens to his friend and gives up the ring. She has not yet established herself on Antonio. Antonio was given a surprising second chance. Although his rather poetic moment of self-sacrifice is now lost, due to Portia's intervention, he still has Bassanio's affection. But this won't last long. It is interesting to note that when, as a sign of gratitude, Antonio asked Portia, still in disguise, what she would want from him for his services, Portia demanded his gloves: "Give me your gloves; I will wear them for you" (MV 4.2.424 ) Portia is taking the position of an unsuspecting Antonio. She will become for Bassanio what Antonio had been. Finally, the scene returns to Belmont, where Portia is in her element and makes her third and final major work for the love of. Bassanio arrives just before her husband and Antonio and prepares to receive them and carry out the final act of her plans. She is very aware that Bassanio still has Antonio's devotion over her own, but now she is wearing Antonio's gloves, in a sense. figurative and literal, and has both men irrevocably indebted: “Portia gives more than Bassanio can ever repay, first to him, then to Antonio” (Newman 26). Nerissa, Portia drives Antonio into a state of abject terror and utter guilt for giving up the ring. He bitterly regrets it: “Well, I had better cut off my left hand / And swear I lost the ring that defended it” (MV 5.1.177-178). Acting surprised, Portia's anger is righteous and eloquent. Remind Bassanio of his vows and his love for her: if you had known the virtue of the ring or half its value that the ring gave you, or your honor of holding the ring, then you would not have parted from the ring. (MV 5.1.199-202) Antonio attempts to justify himself, using Antonio's trial as an excuse. Even Antonio is reduced to asking for forgiveness from the indignant lady: «I dare to bind myself again, / My soul in pledge, so that your lord / Never again willfully fail in faith» (MV 5.1.251-253). He is willing to offer himself as a pledge to Portia, perhaps out of guilt, for his part in the situation. He seems to be beyond fighting to maintain Bassanio's loyalty: "Antonio steps forward and finally relinquishes his rights to Bassanio" (Boose 249). Portia makes it very clear that she is in control: “Then you will be her enforcer. Give him this, / And tell him to keep it better than the other” (MV 5.1.254-255). He is letting Antonio know that he understands who influenced Bassanio to give up the ring earlier. Bassanio is given another chance to stay in the ring. Portia adds another comment, almost as an aside to Antonio, telling him that his investments have actually been successful. How she came to know this is a mystery that must ultimately be attributed to her new position as the dominant figure in the work. Antonio can only say: “I am dumb!” (MV 5.1.279). Portia has finished her search. Portia changed dramatically from the beginning to the end of the play: “there was a jarring incongruity between the first role of the mermaid and the role she plays as the liberator of her husband's friend” (Parrott 143). He assumes Antonio's role as the central character through the three shifts of power demonstrated in the coffin scene, the trial, and the board game and ultimately assumes complete control. It is worth noting that Antonio's last words are addressed to Portia when he says with helpless admiration, "Sweet lady, you have given me life and living!" (MV 5.1.286). In Bassanio's comedy for the affections, Portia is the clear winner of the game. Works Cited Boose, Lynda E. "The Comedy Contract and Portia's Golden Ring." Studies. 1962.