"Thy friendship makes [my topic] fresh": Initial Social Successes

Anthony Heald, himself a Jewish convert,
playing Shylock the Jew.
Posted on Shakespeare Is.

(Title taken from 1 Henry VI, 3.3.87)

"Shylock the Jew (from Shakespeare's 'The Merchant of Venice') is, like Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom, often viewed as a two-dimensional racist stereotype. Shylock himself, however, is a much more complex character, allowing for some freedom of interpretation: is he truly a 'dog jew,' or is he 'like [us] in the rest?' (2.8.14, 3.1.67) Understanding how Shylock has been interpreted throughout history and across different cultures gives us a window into ideas about race and racism have changed through the centuries."

I posted the above as my "tweethis" in a couple different places. I, of course, posted this on Facebook, as well as the forums for a club I belong to (expanding my circle of friends). I only posted it a few hours ago, so I haven't gotten a tremendous amount of feedback yet. What I have gotten, though, has been very valuable.


Of course, several people advised that I be more specific. I knew this was an issue, and I plan on making my topic more specific as I start my research this week. 

I was also advised that I narrow my topic, as: 

Again, I plan on narrowing my topic as I commence research.

One person advised I remove the "Uncle Tom" reference, as he's not a major component of paper. However, I think I'm going to keep it; I think it helps frame the argument for non-Shakespearean audiences.

What really helped, though, was one particular post, where one of my friends mentioned a specific production of The Merchant of Venice, performed at the Ashland (Oregon) Shakespeare festival, in which Shylock is played by Anthony Heald, a Jewish convert. Specifically:

This got me very interested in this particular production, as this is about how I interpreted the play. However, "Bringing the audience to tears?" That's even more extreme than I imagined that speech. When I sit down to do research this week, I'm going to see if I can dig up more on this production, and I'm also going to email Mr. Heald to see if I can get his perspective on this problem. I'm also interested in how, specifically, he portrayed Shylock, as this summary makes it sound like he de-emphasized a lot of the more negative elements of the character.


I plan on posting more as I get more feedback. Watch this space for details! :)