The Merchant of Venice (35 page)

⁹⁶
fairness
beauty/brightness

⁹⁷
dowry … sepulchre
i.e. a wig made of a dead woman’s hair

⁹⁹
guilèd
deceptive

¹⁰¹
Indian
i.e. dark-skinned (the Elizabethans preferred fair complexions)

¹⁰³
gaudy
excessively showy/bright

¹⁰⁴
Midas
Phrygian king whose wish for everything he touched to turn to gold was granted only too literally

¹⁰⁵
thee
i.e. the silver casket
drudge
lackey, because used in business transactions

¹¹⁰
fleet
change/pass swiftly

¹¹¹
As
such as
rash-embraced
recklessly adopted

¹¹⁴
measure
moderation
rain
pour (but could be “rein”)
scant
limit

¹¹⁶
surfeit
overindulge and become ill

¹¹⁸
counterfeit
image
demigod
i.e. the painter, or creator of this perfect image

¹¹⁹
eyes
i.e. the eyes of the portrait

¹²⁰
Or whether
or
balls of mine
i.e. my eyeballs

¹²¹
severed
parted

¹²²
bar
barrier (i.e.
breath
)

¹²³
sunder
separate

¹²⁶
Faster
more tightly

¹²⁸
it
i.e. the first painted eye

¹²⁹
unfurnished
unfinished, unpartnered

¹³⁰
substance
subject (i.e. Portia)
shadow
image, reflection

¹³³
continent
summation/container

¹³⁵
Chance as fair
guess as fortunately

¹⁴³
by note
i.e. as directed by the scroll
note
invoice/account

¹⁴⁴
prize
contest

¹⁴⁸
his
for him

¹⁵¹
confirmed, signed, ratified
language of commerce

¹⁵⁸
account
estimate/financial reckoning

¹⁵⁹
livings
possessions, livelihood

¹⁶⁰
account
calculation
sum
essence/financial amount

¹⁶¹
term in gross
express overall, wholesale

¹⁶²
unpractisèd
inexperienced/innocent

¹⁷⁰
converted
changed (also a legal term for wrongfully appropriating someone else’s property for one’s own use)
But
just

¹⁷⁶
presage
indicate

¹⁷⁷
vantage
opportunity/superior position
exclaim on
accuse/denounce

¹⁷⁹
blood
blood/passion

¹⁸⁰
confusion
agitation
powers
faculties

¹⁸⁴
something
i.e. small utterance
blent
blended

¹⁸⁵
wild
wilderness (i.e. confused sound, hubbub)
save
except

¹⁸⁶
expressed
articulated, comprehensible

¹⁸⁸
be bold
presume, feel certainty

¹⁹⁰
That
who

¹⁹⁴
wish none
require no more/want to detract from any of my joy

¹⁹⁶
faith
(love) promise

¹⁹⁷
Even
exactly

¹⁹⁸
so
provided

²⁰¹
maid
waiting-woman

²⁰²
intermission
delay/respite (in loving)

²⁰⁴
stood
depended

²⁰⁵
falls
turns out

²⁰⁷
roof
i.e. of the mouth

²⁰⁸
last
endure (puns on
at last
)

²¹³
so
provided

²¹⁵
faith
in truth/fidelity

²¹⁷
play … boy
bet who has the first son

²¹⁸
stake down
put the money down in advance

²¹⁹
sport
game/sex
stake down
i.e. with a non-erect penis

²²⁰
infidel
i.e. Jessica

²²³
youth
newness
new interest
recently acquired authority

²²⁵
very
true

²³⁵
Commends him
sends his regards

²³⁶
ope
open

²⁴⁰
estate
circumstances

²⁴¹
cheer
welcome
yond
yonder, that

²⁴³
royal
kingly, magnificent

²⁴⁷
shrewd
ominous/grievous

²⁵⁰
constitution
mood

²⁵¹
constant
consistent, stable

²⁵²
leave
your permission
half yourself
i.e. as his wife; the witnessed betrothal was nearly as binding as marriage

²⁶²
Rating
reckoning, estimating

²⁶⁴
state
estate, wealth

²⁶⁶
engaged
pledged

²⁶⁷
mere
total

²⁶⁹
as
like

²⁷²
hit
success

²⁷⁴
Barbary
Barbary Coast, North Africa

²⁷⁵
dreadful
fear-inspiring

²⁷⁶
merchant-marring
capable of damaging a merchant ship

²⁷⁸
should appear
i.e. appears

²⁷⁹
present
ready
discharge
pay

²⁸⁰
He
i.e. Shylock

²⁸²
confound
destroy

²⁸⁴
impeach
call into question
freedom
civil liberty

²⁸⁶
magnificoes
foremost noblemen in Venice

²⁸⁷
port
dignity/social standing
persuaded
entreated

²⁸⁸
envious
malicious
plea
legal claim

²⁸⁹
forfeiture
penalty

²⁹¹
Chus
a name found in Genesis 10:6, spelled “Cush”

²⁹⁶
hard with
badly for

²⁹⁹
best-conditioned
best-natured

³⁰⁰
courtesies
good services

³⁰⁶
deface
obliterate

³¹⁸
hence
(go) from here

³¹⁹
cheer
appearance/welcome

³²⁰
dear
expensively (sense then shifts to “deeply”)

³²³
estate
condition/status

³²⁶
Notwithstanding
nevertheless
use your pleasure
enjoy yourself/do what you wish

³²⁸
Dispatch
settle

³³²
’twixt us twain
between us two

¹
look
see

²
gratis
for no interest

¹⁰
naughty
wicked
fond
foolish

¹¹
abroad
out of the jail/outside

¹⁵
dull-eyed
easily deceived/stupid

²⁰
kept
dwelt

²²
bootless
pointless

²⁵
made moan
complained, lamented (about debts to Shylock)

²⁸
grant
allow
hold
stand firm

³⁰
commodity
(commercial) privileges
strangers
outsiders (including Jews)

³³
Since that
since

³⁵
bated me
diminished me/made me lose weight

²
conceit
understanding

³
godlike amity
divine friendship

⁵
to whom
i.e. Antonio

⁶
relief
financial aid

⁷
lover
friend

⁹
customary … you
ordinary generosity would make you

¹²
waste
spend/while away

¹⁴
needs
of necessity
like
similar, comparable

¹⁵
lineaments
characteristics/physical features

¹⁷
bosom lover
intimate friend

²⁰
semblance
image
my soul
i.e. Bassanio

²⁵
husbandry
domestic administration
manage
management

³³
deny
refuse
imposition
command

³⁸
people
i.e. household servants

⁴⁷
honest-true
truthful and reliable

⁵⁰
render
give

⁵²
look what
whatever

⁵³
imagined
all imaginable

⁵⁴
traject
crossing place/ferry
common
public

⁵⁵
trades
i.e. crosses

⁶²
habit
clothing

⁶³
accomplishèd
equipped

⁶⁴
that we lack
i.e. penises (they will be disguised as men)
hold
offer and maintain

⁶⁵
accoutred
dressed

⁶⁷
braver
bolder/more splendid
grace
elegance/attitude

⁶⁸
between … voice
i.e. with an adolescent boy’s reedy breaking voice

⁶⁹
mincing
dainty

⁷⁰
frays
fights

⁷¹
quaint
ingenious

⁷⁴
do withal
help it

⁷⁶
puny
petty/inexperienced

⁷⁸
Above
more than

⁷⁹
raw
unrefined
Jacks
fellows

⁸¹
turn to
become (Portia puns on the sense of “become sexually available to”)

⁸⁴
device
plan

⁸⁷
measure
cover/count out

²
promise
assure
fear you
fear for you

³
plain
honest
agitation
agitated thoughts (possible malapropism for “cogitation”)

⁶
bastard
mixed/illegitimate
neither
nevertheless

⁸
got
begot, conceived

¹³
Scylla … Charybdis
Odysseus had to navigate between these two dangerous points (the monster
Scylla
and whirlpool
Charybdis
)
fall into
with sexual connotations