The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-03-04

ghakespeare's Merchant i, q YEN, ysni!ee." and
should The play be G las ats with
ia slender thread OF connection between
Ethem. shakespeare tooN these from 1tal-
Ian tales, current and popular In hi - GAY Jay.
(. The play may be classed as melodraina.
@ Where was Belmont: tho nome OIL
Portia. supposed to have been situated
q Answer-Belmont is described ! u.s. q, pc nc-
ton to Venice. which was built upon isi.
ands. It must have been situated near
the shores Of the Adriatic Sea, as : Bias,
SANTA went there on a ship when he went
to WOO Portia. We know from the latter
that 1t was only twenty miles from Venice,
| for she says to Nerissa, az she was start.
come, iii tell thee ali my whole device
when am In my coach which stays for
us at the park gate. and therefore haste
, away, Tor we must measure twenty miles
3. What was the Venetian Rialto? Was
the "gaberdine" a distinctive part OF a
Jews apparel as in the case Of shylock?
great bridge over the grand canal. con-
| Meeting the eastern and western quarters
OF Venice 1t has always been n lively
business mart. having two rows of shops
! built within 1t. as II on a street. Not only
was 1t noted business thoroughfare In
Shylock.s day but 1t is still SO, q custom
| house standing on one side of II and n
railway station on the other. The native
near the Rialto, which they call Shy
| locks house..
The gaberdinc was a loose cassock or
coat. which 1t was compulsory for Jews
i to wear during the middle ages.
| !. What Monday in especial Is re-
ferred to my Launcelot In Scene V. of
Act H., when he says: TT was not for
nothing that my nose fell a-bleedlng on
| Black Monday last. at six o'clock In tho
| morning.?
/. Answer-The BLACK Monday" of
| history was an Easter Monday. In the
he ' was invading France. when the cold
! was so intense that some of his soldiers
| died from the effects OF IT before Paris.
| 6. What contrasts are there In the M.
tionalitles and characters OF JessIca and
| Portia?
s. Answer-rhe contrast between their.
characters is as great as the difference
says, does not fall below the Roman Por-
| tia. in nobility and strength OF character.
She is a woman of high soul, strong
| intellect AS to Jessica, the mere fact OF
her bartering for a monkey. the turquoise
ring given. by her mother to her father
ing lack Of delieacy and high tone. Then.
| her robbing her father OF his money on
her flight. shows that she inherited some
love of gold. though she spent 1t with a
reckless prodigality, very foreign to her
fathers nature.
6. How was Bassno's departure for
Belmont celebrated by his friend Ora
tiano?
4 G. Answer-The night that Bassanio set
out for Belmont, Gratiano assisted Lo-
reno in his elopement with Jessca. This
detained him so late. that he wills barely
in time to Join Bassanio and accompany
him on his trip.
4 a What impression does the reader re-
ceive from Shylock's outburst in Scene
VIII. OF Act II, as reported by Snlino?
4 q Answer-Shylock's outburst gives a
powerful picture of two strong passions
)oontendlng by turns in the same breast.
Although sordid he has strong natural
affections and parental feelings, and his
grief for the flight and loss OF hts daugh-
ter. Is augmented by the fact that she
had fed with and married a Gentle. II
man abhorrent in his eyes. His love
of money, however. is his ruling passion.
and between the two contending feelings,
as Salanio expresses It:
II never heard a passion so confused,
So strange. outrageous and SO variable
s. Why does Shakespeare refer in this
4 play to the turquoise .being given as II
pledge of love?
/ s. Answer-The t,lrauoise has always
been an object of superstitious regard in
Oriental countries and was frequently
worn as an amulet, generally with some