The End of Law

Abstract

Yet, appearances can be deceiving. When viewed through the lens of Christian theology, Shylock, the so-called devil, takes all of the steps to Christian faith, including conversion. Moreover, his request for a pound of flesh to ensure his future security is little different from the Christian's expectation that Christ would be sacrificed for his eternal salvation. Antonio, the play's putative Christ, however, utterly fails to fulfill his promise of redemption. Thus, Antonio's statement is deeply ironic. For he and his band of putative Christians may be considerably less virtuous, and Shylock much more pure than they appear. Others have argued that the hallmark of The Merchant of Venice is "ambiguity."2 I would not stop there however, for the ambiguity is firmly embedded within a framework that is highly reminiscent of St. Paul's depiction of Christian faith. Once one views the play through a Pauline lens, the ambiguity takes on a didactic purpose. This is not a play inviting its audience to wallow in ambiguity but rather a play that uses ambiguity to test the audience's perception. The ambiguity is married to a certain judgmental perspective: those who judge by appearance are fools. (II,ix, 26-30) In short, there seems to be an implicit message at the heart of the play's "provocative confusions."3 That message can be found in the New Testament: "Judge not lest ye be judged."4