The Merchant of Venice is one of Shakespeare's most accessible yet complex plays. Students will learn to 'translate' Shakespeare through a close reading of the text, and in so doing, get to grips with the sophisticated plots, characters and themes of the play. The themes of love, gender roles, and racial and religious stereotyping will be analysed not only in original context of the Elizabethan Age but also with a contemporary lens. Given the currency of the ideas in the play, active student participation is expected.
Students must have a copy of the book for the course. Any scholarly edition from Oxford, Arden and Penguin will suffice.
Students are advised to read the text before the course begins.
