Hi Everyone!! This article will share The Merchant Of Venice Questions & Answers.
The play is written by William Shakespeare in which Antonio – a merchant in Venice takes a loan from a Jewish moneylender Shylock to help his friend to court Portia. But, he can’t repay the loan and Shylock without mercy demands a pound of his flesh. Portia, who is now the wife of Antonio’s friend, dresses like a lawyer and saves Antonio. Below are given its questions and answers. I have also shared the questions and answers of The Emergence of Zoo, Feathered Friend and Heaven Lake so, you can check these posts as well.
The Merchant Of Venice Questions & Answers
Question 1: Why did Bassanio approach Antonio?
Answer: Bassanio approached Antonio to borrow money or loan to marry Portia, the rich heiress of Belmont with whom he had fallen in love.
Question 2: How Much Money did Shylock give to Bassanio?
Answer: Shylock gave 3000 ducats to Bassanio for three months with no interest.
Question 3: Who was Shylock and how did he become rich?
Answer: He was a money lender and became rich by lending money to the merchants at a very high rate of interest.
Question 4: What was the condition kept by Shylock in case Bassanio couldn’t repay the loan?
Answer: The condition was that if the loan remained unpaid on the due date, he would take a pound of flesh from Antonio’s Body.
Question 5: Why did Shylock hate Antonio?
Answer: Shylock holds a grudge against Antonio for his lending practices. He used to lend money to the needy without charging any interest.
The Merchant Of Venice Questions & Answers
Question 6: Why could Antonio not help Bassanio financially? How did they resolve the issue?
Answer: Antonio could not help Bassanio financially as all his money was tied up in his merchant ships which were still at sea. Antonio did not want to disappoint Bassanio so he asked him to go to another moneylender, Shylock. Antonio suggested that Bassanio use his good name as security for the loan. Shylock agreed to give the loan to Bassanio. However, if the loan remained unpaid on the due date, Shylock would take a pound of flesh from Antonio’s body. Bassanio had warned Antonio about this, but Antonio still agreed to it and thus resolved the issue.
Question 7: Why did Antonio agree to take a loan besides Bassanio’s warnings?
Answer: Besides Bassanio’s warnings, Antonio agreed to take a loan because all his ships were due back in Venice a full month before the final date of repaying the loan.
Question 8: What was Portia’s situation and why did she find it upsetting?
Answer: Portia was distressed over the terms of her father’s will. As per the terms, she could only marry a man who correctly chose one of the three caskets that contained her portrait. But, unfortunately, none of Portia’s current suitors were to her liking. This upset her.
Question 9: How did Bassanio and Portia acknowledge their love?
Answer: When Bassanio and Gratiano arrived at Portia’s estate, Bassanio picked the correct casket. Portia and Bassanio were pleased with the outcome and acknowledged their love for each other.
Question 10: Why did Bassanio want to marry Portia?
Answer: Bassanio had fallen in love with Portia who was the rich heiress of Belmont. He had owed a great deal of money from Antonio. He wanted to repay the loan but had not been able to do so. He wanted to marry Portia for his love and also he thought that will help him repay his debt.
Question 11: What did Portia give to Bassanio and what condition did she keep?
Answer: Portia gave Bassanio a ring as a token of their love with the promise that under no circumstances would he part with it.
The Merchant Of Venice Questions & Answers
Question 12: Why did Antonio sent a letter to Bassanio?
Answer: Antonio sent a letter to Bassanio to bid him farewell as his ships had been reported lost at sea. He felt that it would be impossible to live after Shylock will collect one pound of flesh from his body.
Question 13: Why did Portia come to Venice disguised as a lawyer?
Answer: Portia came to Venice disguised as a lawyer to help Antonio.
Question 14: Why did Shylock get infurious?
Answer: Shylock got infurious when he came to know that his daughter Jessica and Lorenzo, who is a close friend of Antonio and Bassanio, liked each other and had run away taking with them some of his money.
Question 15: Why did Shylock feel happy?
Answer: Shylock felt happy to know about the lost ships of Antonio for he could now claim his debt.
Question 16: Why did Shylock insist on having the pound of flesh and refused to take money offered by Bassanio?
Answer: Shylock insisted on having the pound of flesh as he wanted to take revenge from Antonio whom he hated. He refused to take money offered by Bassanio because he wanted to see Antonio dead.
Question 17: What punishment did the duke give to Shylock? Why?
Answer: According to the law, the duke stated that Shylock had plotted to kill a citizen of Venice, which called for punishment. The duke had the power to sentence Shylock to death, however he spared Shylock’s life and asked him to turn over half of his property to the state and another half to Antonio as punishment.
Question 18: How did Portia prevent Shylock from harming Antonio?
Answer: Portia disguised herself as duke and defended Antonio’s case. She told Shylock that he must be careful while he cuts off the pound of flesh as he must not drop a single drop of Antonio’s blood, as the contract did not entitle him to any blood. She told him that if he failed to do so all his land and goods would be confiscated. Shylock was in a fix and decided to settle for money instead of the pound of flesh. This is how Portia prevented Shylock from harming Antonio.
So, these were The Merchant Of Venice Questions & Answers.