The majority of Shakespeare’s plays have been set in Italy, despite his English roots. The irony of this situation is intentional. Shakespeare’s plays can be described as a strategic commentary on both English and Italian culture. He often set his plays in Italy as a way to inexplicitly reference issues and topics that were prevalent in his home country of England. Many critics still consider the importance of Shakespeare’s use of Italian culture, since over ten of his plays were set in varying Italian cities. The Merchant of Venice, which was first performed in 1605, is his play in which location plays the most important role. He utilizes the setting of Venice, Italy to comment on various English themes such as wealth, greed, and minorities.

In The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare strategically combined two much older and seemingly juxtaposing stories entitled the “flesh bond” and the “casket-test.” He then inserted characters such as Antonio and Shylock as a means to discuss the complex treatment of minorities. Shylock is characterized as a foolish Jewish man who got tricked into a business deal in which he was mocked, deceived, and betrayed by the Christians of Venice. The play involves a man named Bassiano trying to court an heiress, Portia. Bassiano receives help from his wealthy merchant friend named Antonio. However, Antonio has to make a bond with the Jewish moneylender, Shylock, because all of his wealth was invested in ships that were out at sea.

In the high middle ages, Venice was the wealthiest republic in Italy. Since Venice was such a hot spot for economic prosperity, it was an ideal location for Shakespeare to set a story about a bickering moneylender and merchant. He illustrated the complex system of commerce through the characters’ exchanges about bonds and money. Shylock exclaims that he hates Antonio because he “lends out money gratis and brings down the rate of usance [there] with [the Jews] in Venice.” (I.iii.41-42). In this statement, location is crucial to the meaning of the story because Shylock is describing that the market is competitive, and he doesn’t approve of the way Antonio does business because it brings down the interest rates. By Antonio doing so, it ultimately resulted in Shylock losing money. If this play was set in another location that wasn’t a popular business hub, then Shylock would not have been as enraged about his competition bringing down the rate of interest.

Since opulence and greed were associated with Venetian culture, Shakespeare chose to set The Merchant of Venice in Venice to draw a parallel between protestant culture and Catholic wealth. Shakespeare includes greedy-natured characters such as Shakespeare to subtly reference the similar greediness of the Catholics in England. Criticizing Catholics during Shakespeare’s time would have been highly controversial. However, by setting the play in Italy, Shakespeare was able to indirectly allude to political issues that were happening in England. Antonio says that “for herein Fortune shows herself more kind than is her custom: it is still her use to let the wretched man outlive his wealth.” In this excerpt, Antonio thought he lost all of his ships at sea. He told his friends not to grieve his death because he believed he would be better off dead without his wealth from his business at sea. This is a representation of the intense longing for money and materialism that existed in English society.

According to Richard Paul Roe, “a number of critics have suggested that the models for the author’s settings were actually places in England, to which he merely applied Italian names.” Therefore, location is a very prevalent idea studied by Shakespeare’s critics. By setting The Merchant of Venice in Venice rather than renaming the play and setting it in a different city, Shakespeare could introduce controversial topics such as materialism and religious separation.

The English term “ghetto” first appeared in this play in reference to an isolated location on the outskirts of the city. The Venetian senate declared that all Jews must live in the senate in the assigned area that was guarded by Christians. Shakespeare utilizes the idea of location yet again to illustrate the separation that Shylock felt from the Christians in the play. He was constantly humiliated by Antonio. When discussing the logistics of a business deal with Antonio, Shylock says that Antonio “calls [him] a misbeliever, cutthroat dog, and spit upon my Jewish gabardine.” Not only is there a religious difference between the men, but there is also a physical difference in their living quarters. By setting this play in Venice and discussing the Jewish ghetto, Shakespeare succeeds in portraying the alienation that Shylock felt from being forced to live somewhere else and follow different laws.

Shylock also demonstrates his frustration with being a minority by saying, “Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? – fed with the same food, hurt with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed by the same winter and summer as a Christian is?” In this scene, Shakespeare seems to seek sympathy from the audience for Shylock’s misfortunes. Shakespeare spent the majority of the play depicting Shylock as an outsider and in this scene, he allows Shylock to express his discontentment. He questions why he should be treated any different from a Christian when they share similar physical characteristics such as eyes, hands, and affections. In this quote, Shakespeare is also commenting on the mistreatment that all Jews received from the Christians in Venice since the segregation of Jewish citizens early on. In Shylock’s line, the audience is brought to question whether the Christians are as righteous and courteous as they claimed to be by pointing out their lack of consideration. This scene is powerful because it draws the controversial topic of religion into question; the idea of Christians not showing mercy to others would be largely ridiculed in English society. In English society, the Catholics held superiority and were considered very respectable. By incorporating religious power and treatment in Venice, Shakespeare was able to discuss religious issues in England without explicitly saying so.

Later in the play, Portia appeals to Shylock’s feelings of isolation by saying that he would gain a higher social status if he agreed to call off the bond with Antonio and show mercy. She addresses him in the courtroom and says, “Therefore, Jew, though justice be thy plea, consider this: that in the course of justice none of us should see salvation. We do pray for mercy, and that same prayer doth teach us all to render the deeds of mercy.” This quote is particularly ironic because it shows a Christian asking for a Jew to show mercy when throughout the play they were anything but merciful. Shakespeare depicted several scenes where Christians were talking down to Shylock and spitting on him in disgust. Shakespeare used Venice, a city that was segregated by religion, to show the emotional isolation the Jews felt during early Venetian culture.

Shakespeare’s plays were a strategic way for him to comment on the political world and economic structure around him. The Merchant of Venice is the play where location is the most important to understanding the themes of wealth, greed, and minorities. By utilizing Venice’s economic superiority and insatiable greed, Shakespeare drew a parallel between Italian culture and the Protestant religious issues occurring in England.