LAW, JUSTICE & MERCY

　　(Notes on THE MERCHANT OF VENICE By William Shakespeare)
　　Ieong Sao Leng, Sylvia　2 0th April, 1989
　　Law, justice and mercy are strictly distinct concepts guiding and permeating the deepest of all human relationships in civilized societies.Few modern communities, built on millenniums of human civilization and progress, can boast of having a perfect legal system. In THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, however, Shakespeare paints a most rosy picture in which the intricacies of law, justice and mercy are brought into admirable symmetry, with all the oppositions and conflicts presented and solved, and in which 'all's well that ends well' with everybody, including the hideously greedy and murderously vengeful loser,Shylock, for he says, 'I am content'.
　　But, is he? Or,is everybody?
　　1. 'The Merry Flesh Bond'
　　Our doubts grow as we follow the central plot of the play, the 'Merry Flesh Bond': our generous, benevolent hero, Antonio, is bound by law to surrender a pound of his flesh if he fails to repay on a fixed day the three thousand ducats borrowed from the 'loan shark', Shylock,to finance his 'spendthrift' friend, Bassanio's courtship of a wealthy and fair lady, Portia.
　　The two sworn enemies, Antonio, the Merchant of Venice, and Shylock, the Jewish money-lender, make no effort to hide the contempt and hatred they harbour for each other. One is too conceited,too sure of his good fortunes and the other is bent on his deadly revenge. Shylock, fully aware of the exact procedures of the law, acts 'strictly' within the frame of law. The dealing is perfectly legal, no matter how 'strange' the bond is. Antonio went to the Jew to borrow three thousand ducats to lavishly equip the 'fortune hunter', Bassanio,to compete with other renowned suitors, and the shrewd Jew,calculating and manipulating the situation carefully:
　　Three thousand ducats for three months,
　　And Antonio bound ........ he is sufficient,
　　Yet his means are in supposition. He has.........
　　And other ventures he hath squandered abroad........
　　The man is notwithstanding sufficient.　　　　　　　　(I. iii)takes the chance in a most decent manner. The Jew makes no secret of his meditated burning revenge, which often brings out the worst in man.Thus the reckless Antonio is hooked! Both Antonio and Shylock are adept in justifng themselves and condemning the other, ironically, on equally sound moral and theological grounds.
　　The conflicts between them are, in fact, irreconcilable: their views and values clash in every respect, and their conflicts are more economic than religious or racial. Watching Antonio coming along, Shylock mutters:
　　How like a fawning publican he looks.
　　I hate him for he is a Christian.
　　But more, for that in low simplicity
　　He lends out money gratis, and brings down
　　The rate of usance here with us in Venice.
　　If I can catch him once upon the hip,
　　I will feed fat the ancient grudge I bear him.
　　He hates our sacred nation, and he rails
　　Even there where merchants most do congregate
　　On me, my bargains, and my well-won thrift,
　　Which he calls interest. Cursed be my tribe,
　　If I forgive him.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 (I. iii)
　　Shakespeare's treatment of usury, trade, debt and interest is rather ambiguous. Antonio and Shylock live in different worlds of values poles apart. The three main ways to wealth in those days - the land,foreign trade and financial exchange - are perfectly legal and absolutely necessary for the economic transition from feudalism to capitalism, with Antonio being the　extravagant,　ambitious,adventurous shipping magnate and exporter-importer, and Shylock being the shrewd, cold, enterprising banker. Antonio lives by trade and exacts no interest, while Shylock thrives by no other means. Here Shakespeare stands between Thomas Wilson's 'Discourse Upon Usury' and Francis Bacon's 'Of Usury'; to the former, usurers are 'greedy cormorant wolves'; for the latter, 'to speak of abolishing usury is idle....it is better .to mitigate usury by declaration than to suffer it to rage by connivance'. It seems Shakespeare employs neither the indignation of Wilson nor the more convenient expediency of Bacon.
　　There is no doubt that the Christians in the play represented by Antonio treats the Jew badly. How the Jew pours out his hatred when he says:
　　.... many a time and oft
　　In the Rialto you have rated me
　　About my moneys and usances.
　　Still have I borne it with a patient shrug,
　　For sufferance is the badge of all our tribe.
　　You call me misbeliever, cut-throat dog,
　　And spit upon my Jewish gaberdine,
　　And all for use of that which is mine own.'　　　　　　 (I. iii)
　　And there is justification in his dignified outcry for justice when this eloquent, resourceful representative of the oppressed minority questions:
　　.... and what's the reason? I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses,affections, passions? Fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same summer and winter, as a Christian is? If you prick us do we not bleed? If you tickle us do we not laugh ? If you poison us do we not die? And if you wrong us shall we not revenge?　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(III.i)
　　We can all see this justification, in spite of the fact that we are led to dislike him from the very beginning for his lack of any better nature.To Antonio, Shylock is immoral and cruel in exacting high interests while Shylock justifies himself on the assumption that interest on money-lending is legitimate. Not only is usury legal and wide-spread,it is essential to the expanding economy! If in Antonio's view, usury is reprehensive, Shylock observes with contempt Antonio's irresponsible ventures squandered abroad' in foreign trade; for Antonio's sober activities are linked to those of that other 'prodigal gambler, Bassanio,whose extravagant spending on wooing is laid out as a venture to 'win a golden fleece', Portia's wealth and 'fair person' of wonderous virtues.
　　The crisis is inevitable. Antonio becomes the 'prodigal bankrupt':the three thousand ducats has not been repaid when due, and Shylock,in the name of the law, claims his pound of flesh. Here in the streets of Venice, we witness an intolerably humiliating scene - the once haughty and affluent and prosperous Antonio, now emaciated, dirty and unkempt as he shambles beside his goaler with manacled hands extended in a futile attempt to reason with Shylock, whose stony eyes are glinting with reptilian satisfaction. The Jew' will have no speaking:he ' will have' his bond. Gloating in public, remembering his own humiliation at the hands of this same man, be snarls, and sneers and jeers:
　　Coaler, look to him: tell not me of mercy.
　　This is the fool that lent out money gratis........　　　　(III. iii)
　　How can anyone with a sense of justice put up with this atrocity? How can this bloody bond be accepted?
　　2. 'The Casket Choice'
　　Tightly interwoven with this 'flesh bond' plot is the 'Casket Choice' plot. Even in this fairytale side of THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, the concepts of law, justice and mercy clash: a dead father's will, the law,puts his daughter, Portia, in a precarious situation. She can only marry the man lucky and astute enough to choose the right casket out ofthree, and her freedom of choice is thus mercilessly deprived of. She knows very well that there is no grip stronger than her father's will.However, she resents the fact that the freedom of choice, in the allimportant matter of a husband, has been denied her by this unbending law:
　　O me, the word choose, I may neither choose who I would, nor refuse who I dislike; so is the will of a living daughter curbed by the will of a dead father. Is it not hard Nerissa, that I cannot choose one nor refuse one?.... Besides, the lottery of my destiny Bars me the right of voluntary choosing.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(I. ii)
　　Nerissa tries to comfort and brighten up Portia by justifying the will with a merciful interpretation:
　　Your father was ever virtuous, and holy men at their death have good inspirations, therefore, the lottery that he hath devised in these chests of gold, silver, and lead,whereof who chooses his meaning chooses you, will no doubt never be chosen by any rightly, but one you shall rightly love.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(I. ii)
　　Sweet and eloquent as she is, she still fails to convince us of any justice of the will.
　　Portia, rich, beautiful and virtuous, is many a man's dream. 'All the world desires her, from the four corners of the earth they come.'This will of her dead father brings a world of suitors - dandies and fortune hunters - to her door, some being very unpleasant. This is a trying experience and is certainly unfair to Portia, who deserves far more than this.
　　Portia's suitors undergo trial by casket. The Princes of Morocco and Arragon, in turn, go for gold and silver, dazzled by the glitter and by the inscriptions on the box: 'Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire' and 'Who chooseth me shall get as much as he deserves'. Of course, they each choose according to their natures. Their failure leaves the way open for Bassanio's success. It's the chance that makes the day!　But this is not all. Under the will, there are three 'by-laws' attached:
　　Prince of Arragon:
　　I am enjoined by oath to observe three things.
　　First, never to unfold to anyone
　　Which casket 'was I chose; next if I fail
　　Of the right casket, never in my life
　　To woo a maid in way of marriage; lastly,
　　If I do fail in fortune of my choice,
　　Immediately to leave you and be gone.　　　　　　　 (II. ix)
　　The second rule, frightening enough to be a deterrent to many men,certainly saves Portia a lot of trouble, but it can hardly be justified on any grounds. And there is no mercy for the losers. Consequently a gross injustice is done to the suitors. And a third injustice is done to Portia when she marries Bassanio immediately so that he will be lawfully entitled to her money. A conventional marriage with money!But Portia is worth far more than her wealth!
　　3. The Courtroom Battle
　　The 'flesh bond' plot and the 'casket' plot meet in the courtroom and bring the play to its very climax. The 'trial' becomes a battle of wits, which focuses more aspects of law, justice and mercy than perhaps any dramatist or poet succeeds in uniting in one work.
　　Antonio is arrested. Shylock contemptuously rejects Antonio's personal plea:
　　I'll have my bond! Speak not against my bond,
　　I have sworn an oath that I will have my bond.
　　You call'dst me dog before thou hadst a cause,
　　But since I am a dog, beware my fangs.　　　　　　　(III. iii)
　　And this is repeated and sharpened at the trial:
　　I have possessed your Grace of what I purpose;
　　And by our holy Sabbath have I sworn
　　To have the due and forfeit of my bond ....　　　　　　(IV. i)
　　Our Judge, the Duke, makes a long appeal on Antonio's behalf.Turning a deaf ear to the Duke's plea for mercy, Shylock leaves the Court in no doubt that he is in earnest, and in deadly earnest, in pursuing his deadly cause. The point is that he is legally entitled to his 'pound of carrion flesh'. If he prefers his forfeiture to three thousand ducats, that is his own business. He intends to exercise his legal rights,and to exercise them to the very letter of the law. Deny him, and the 'charter and their city's freedom will be imperilled by the precedent.All he is prepared to say -and, in view of what is to follow later, he makes a mistake in saying it - is that he admits 'a lodged hate and a certain loathing' for Antonio.
　　With Shylock blatantly demanding nothing but Antonio's 'pound of flesh' in the name of law and justice, with Antonio being a helpless wreck simply waiting for death, and with Bassanio being at a completeloss as to what to do in such a case of emergency except repeating his boring offer of a bag of Portia's money, we sincerely wish that some divine force would appear to save humanity from the unfeeling,unbending law upheld by the merciless Jew. The 'flesh bond' is a murderous trick and is, of course, unjust. Yet it is law. We know that Shylock is on the side of law throughout and we can't deny that he is a very 'law-abiding' person. He is the stronger character towering far above Antonio! Yet, yet! Something, something deep down in us, as well as in Shakespeare, will never, never allow Shylock to win! Our conviction is that by whatever means and with whatever shifts and quibles, the essential charity of Antonio's assistance to Bassanio cannot be allowed a tragic outcome! Again our sense of justice tells us that the generous, benevalent Antonio must not come to any dreadful end! Antonio must not be the moumful loser! There must be someone to help him win this life-and-death battle!
　　Then, at a most opportune moment, our most admirable heroine, our Goddess of Justice and Mercy appears! At once she takes full, vigorous command of the situation. With her wits, virtues and all her potentials given full play, she turns out the strongest character of the play. Disguised as a young lawyer, Portia pleas for mercy. If few people can attempt the impossible task of defining, crystallising or interpreting law an justice, here, Portia, our personification of justice and mercy, gives a most apt interpretation of mercy. Mercy, the divine justice, is the only way to save Antonio, and, perhaps, Shylock. The feud and enmity (and the flesh bond case itself) focus centuries of political, racial, religious and economic conflicts, and human weaknesses and prejudices. Perhaps Shakespeare realizes that law alone cannot solve them. And here, speaking with absolute sincerity, great gravity and earnestness, Portia, our admirable Goddess of Mercy, delivers her famous 'quality of mercy' speech:
　　The quality of mercy is not strained,
　　It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
　　Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed -
　　It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes,
　　'Tis mightiest in the mightiest, it becomes
　　The throned monarch better than his crown.
　　His sceptre shows the force of temoral power,
　　The attribute to awe and majesty,
　　Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings,
　　But mercy is above his sceptred sway,
　　It is an attribute to God himself;
　　And earthly power doth then show likest God's
　　When mercy seasons justice. 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.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(IV. i)
　　Again, as we well expect, the Jew is not at all moved. He says:
　　My deeds upon my head, I crave the law,
　　The penalty and forfeit of my bond.
　　Portia, very much on the ball, reassures the court that in strict justice,Shylock's plea must stand, seeing that
　　There is no power in Venice
　　Can alter a decree established.
　　Realizing that there is absolutely no mercy in the Jew and it is wishful thinking to transform him, Portia wages a tit-for-tat, well, more than a tit-for-tat! And now, with Portia drawing herself erect and solemnly declaring:
　　You must prepare your bosom for his knife.to Antonio, we approach dramatic climax and the denouement of the play.
　　'O noble judge! O excellent young man!'cries Shylock triumphantly unsheathing his knife. He brandishes it brutally. 'His breast,' he clenches his teeth, advancing on Antonio, 'nearest his heart, those are the very words.'
　　Portia holds up her hand commandingly. Scales must be produced to ' weigh the flesh'. Shylock has them ready. But there must also be a surgeon in attendance, 'to stop his wounds, lest he do bleed to death.''No surgeon is nominated in the bond: therefore, charity or not, he will produce no surgeon. Portia then pronounces:
　　A pound of that same merchant's flesh is thine:
　　The Court awards it, and the law doth give it.
　　The flesh has to be cut from off Antonio's breast: this operation,also 'the law allows' and 'the Court awards'. Shylock advances on his victim, knife ready poised to strike.
　　Suddenly, right hand upraised dramatically, Portia shatters, 'at one fell swoop', both his revolting triumph and the long drawn-out suspense:
　　Tarry a little, there is something else.
　　This bond doth give thee here no jot of blood,.....
　　Alas! Shylock, blood-thirstiest of the blood-thirsty, should have forgotten the essential detail - blood! He sees his case collapse and there are more ominous words to come:
　　Take thou thy pound of flesh,
　　But, in the cutting of it, if thou dost shed
　　One drop of Christian blood, thy lands and goods
　　Are by the laws of Venice, confiscate
　　Unto the state of Venice.
　　Shylock thinks fast:
　　Is that the law?
　　he asks, transferring his thirst instantaneously from blood to money.Very well, then: he will accept 'the bond thrice'.
　　Portia coldly disillusions him. He is to have 'all justice'. Shylock clutches at the last financial straw. Again, very well, then: he will accept 'the bare principal'.
　　Such a solution, Portia informs him, would be neither justice nor the law:
　　The Jew shall have all justice.And swiftly short-circuiting 'the law's delay', she forthrightly charges him with conspiracy, in that he, as an alien, has
　　..... by direct and indirect attempts,
　　sought the life of a Venetian citizen.
　　Bitterly and uselessly, Shylock now regrets his previous confession of 'a lodged hate' and 'a certain loathing' for Antonio since it now must follow 'as the night, the day' that he has, in fact, 'indirectly and directly too' contrived against 'the very life of the defendant.'
　　Thus are the tables turned, and with a vengeance, as the Court proceeds again to sentence, this time, upon Shylock.
　　Here comes the most 'just' verdict - the best proof of justice' seasoned with mercy' - Shylock has to become a Christian, has to forfeit one half of his property to the state, and settle the other half on Antonio to be held in trust for Lorenzo and Jessica at his death.
　　Portia　: Art thou contented Jew?
　　Shylock : I am content.
　　Thus, with the 'contented' loser disappearing into the shadow, it is 'all's well that's end well for those humanitarian romantic lovers: Portia &Bassanio, Nerissa & Gratiano, Jessica & Lorenzo, and of course, the Merchant of Venice, Antonio.
　　We do feel happy and relieved. Yet, in our ecstasies, we seem to feel a tingle of injustice done to an unforgettable soul: 'I'm not well.'It is not sympathy, for he doesn't deserve any: had he been allowed to have his way by exploiting the law, there would have been bloodshed!The fact is, however, Shylock never repents, nor is he reformed by mercy. With Shylock, mercy seasoning justice simply doesn't work!And it is just the 'iron fist of the law' that makes him a tragic loser, and the loser loses all! It is true that Shylock is blatantly evil. But shouldn't those 'Christians' be held responsible for all the insults, humiliations,oppression and suffering which have contributed to making him what he is? It is true that Christian mercy spares Shylock his life. But what a life!　He is forced to be converted to become a Christian! He is forced to sign a will to leave 'the other half' to his disowned daughter,who has eloped with a 'Christian prodigal' - the adventurous Lorenzo.This is extremely humiliating, utterly unfair, and unjust.
　　The whole legal structure of the play is,' comments the Penguin editer, W. Moelwyn Merchant, 'of course, fallacious. No system of law permits a man to place his own person in jeopardy, for a bond like Antonio's is against public policy and contrary to good morals.Moreover, Portia discovers a statue of no obscure import which would,from the proposal of such a bond, have rendered its terms invalid. Nor are these the only objections to the course of justice as it is demonstrated in the trial scene. The dramatic structure of the fourth act assumes a relationship between Shylock and Antonio which, described in legal terms, is grotesque in its complexity: the scene opens with Shylock as plaintiff pursuing an action for breach of contract; it ends with Antonio as plaintiff in a case in which Shylock defends himself against a charge of criminal conspiracy against a Venetian citizen. The impossible change of plea, the exchange of plaintiff and defendant,the intervention of Portia, these all confound strict principles. .... If therefore we find Shakespeare demonstrably familiar with the terminology, the quirks and procedures of the law, ..... setting aside the rational and familiar processes of a court, he manifestly does so with dramatic purpose. ..... on at least three occasions in the trial,elementary and generally accepted principles of law are set aside...... These ambiguities and creative errors are the marks of a most delicate craftsmanship and imply a mature and judicious relationship between the dramatist and his audience. ....' These comments clarify the relationship between the drama and the reality.
　　4. Law and Justice
　　In the Merchant of Venice, as in many cases, justice is identified with the law.
　　Shylock, when he discovers that his .daughter has eloped with a Christian and has stolen his money and jewels, utters wildly in the street:
　　Justice, The Law! My ducats and my daughter!
　　Justice! Find the girl!　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(II. viii)
　　After his arrest, Antonio ponders:
　　The Duke cannot deny the course of law,
　　...... if it be denied,
　　Will much impeach the justice of the state.　　　　　　(III. iii)
　　And in the court scene,
　　Shylock: Is that the law?
　　Portia　: Thyself shalt see the act.
　　For as thou urgest justice, be assured
　　Thou shalt have justice - soft, no haste -
　　The Jew shall have all justice -
　　He shall have nothing but the penalty.
　　He hath refused it in the open court.
　　He shall have merely justice and his bond.　　　　(IV. i)
　　However, as I see it, the notion of justice is more universal. It corresponds to something deep down inside man. In fact, man's quest for justice runs right through his history. Wars have been fought over different interpretations of justice in a given situation. On the one hand, the notion of justice is very vague and complicated; on the other hand, it is simple and known to all. Volumes of books have been written on the concept of justice, but there seems to be no satisfactory conclusion as to what it consists in. In spite of this, there is some inner compulsion in us to seek after perfect justice. One of the main instruments that has evolved in man's efforts to maintain justice is a system of laws. The rule of law is fundamental to civilized life. The ideal of rule by laws runs directly counter to the attitude summed up in the phrase, 'Might is Right'. In appealing to the law we are appealing tosomething outside ourselves - to the combined wisdom and experience of the community. One of the chief pre-requisites for litigants to feel that they have been justly dealt with is impartiality, which is obviously lacking in the court scene of the Merchant of Venice, though the Duke,Portia and other characters are well aware of the intricacies of law and justice.
　　Ideally, justice can be obtained through the application of the law,but in practice it seldom works out that way. It pre-supposes an erudite judge, wise in the ways of human nature, unmoved by personal feelings, with an intimate knowledge of the society in which he lives,fearless and unprejudiced. It pre-supposes consistent laws aimed at the achievement of justice for all. It pre-supposes equal competence in prosecuting and defending lawyers. (Our Portia plays both roles on Antonio's side!) It is obvious that Shakespeare and his characters are far from this state of affairs. In addition, the application of general laws to particular cases is a human proceeding and it necessarily shares in human imperfections. Even granted that the whole machinery for dispensing justice was adequate, justice is still in danger of foundering on the law itself. Many laws are not primarily aimed at achieving justice. (The 'flesh bond' is primarily aimed at attempting Antonio's life!) And some laws are made out of necessity or expediency (The Levitical Law legalising usury, laws limiting the number of children a couple may have, etc.) and may infringe on the rights of many individuals. They are unjust laws with regard to these individuals. The whole legal system, i.e., formal justice as against natural justice, made up of man-made laws, courts, judges, lawyers, etc., is a reflection of the society in which it is found. It is one institution of a particular society and is inextricably intertwined with other institutions, political,economic, religious and military. It is an expression of the general attitude and beliefs of that society. The justice it dispenses depends,in the last analysis, on the prevailing spirit of that society.　It depends on whether that soicety is fundamentally just or unjust.Formal, courtroom justice cannot go too far ahead of social justice.This larger type of justice is not so much concerned with individuals as with groups in society. It is concerned with group attitudes and with the institutions in society which embody these attitudes.Shakespeare's attitudes, convictions and those of his characters are typical of various political, economic, religious and racial groups of the Elizabethan Era in Renaissance England.
　　We have come to a stage in our progress where we rely on afar-from-perfect machinery to improve on nature with regard to justice.We may use laws which cannot cover every situation, which are not directed at serving justice and which are unjust themselves. Yet, it is the only instrument we have so far evolved. Imperfect though it is, there is no substitute for it. Man may achieve startling breakthroughs in other areas of life, but there is no hope of this in the attainment of universal justice. We are committed to a continuing,slow, uphill struggle in this area, with many a regression.
　　It is possible - if such a speculation may be allowed - that, had Shakespeare lived long enough to have seen through the imperfections and evils of the rising capitalist society with its cumbersome, creaky,far-from-perfect legal system, he would have been less optimistic and would have painted a more realistic and less rosy legal picture. And,indeed, absolute, perfect justice　'seasoned with mercy' in Shakespeare's THE　MERCHANT OF VENICE, as in almost- all human societies, remains an ideal.
　　Nevertheless, we appreciate and sincerely share Shakespeare's conviction that no threat to human justice can absolve us from fighting for justice. Once we give up the struggle for justice, once we give up the ideal as being impossible,we shall slip back into the primitive,uncivilized, barbaric chaos! Not alone in this area of human advance,but in all others! Justice is dependent on all other soical institutions but they are on it. Organized social life would be impossible, would be shattered if men abandoned the ideal for justice. Society would be atomised into self-seeking, corrupt, greedy, uncontrollable individuals.The machinery of justice, like all other machinery, can work only if individual men and women are determined to make it work. The quality of justice it dispenses depends on the spirit of justice alive in each human heart.　Unless the majority of people are filled with indignation at the sight of injustices and unless they have the courage and energy to express this indignation, then only the formality of justice remains in the courtroom; the reality has vanished. A just society cannot be maintained if people shuffle off their responsibility onto the professional administration of justice. The courtroom and the law are merely the instruments of justice. It is the individual human mind and human heart that must guide them.
　　In face of this fact and this reality, human justice must do the best it can with its imperfect instruments, and mankind will go on fighting unswervingly to realize Shakespeare's, and everybody's dream of perfect justice.