This
was a way to thrive, and he was blest:
-Shylock
The Merchant Of Venice Act I, scene iii, line 88
Well this is early on in the play and we have Shylock
talking about being blessed. Grateful? Almost. Now, it’s not exactly a
continuation of yesterday’s discussion, but it’s sort of related. And yes, this
is Shylock talking about being blessed. Yes, Shylock. The guy who has been
painted by history as the miserly villain. Perhaps he’s neither.
Which brings
me to the theme of our new book, which has yet to be titled. The working title
is Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice Retold. That will probably be
part of the title, or actually the subtitle. But in any event, a main theme of
our retelling will be that things aren’t always what they seem. Like Shylock.
At first blush, and certainly based on how he’s been treated by history, he’s
the villain of this story. He’s irredeemable. But he’s really not. He’s got a good
and human side, and today’s line is just one small sign of that.
And now, just
because you’ve taken the time to read this blog, I’m going to give you a real
treat. No picture today, but instead I’m giving you a peek at the intro to our
new book: the aforementioned Merchant retelling. You saw it here first.
And, again, this is in lieu of a picture.
Introduction
to The Merchant Of Venice Retelling
Many summers ago, back when I was still young,
On a warm August
day, just to have me some fun,
I was out and
about on my Schwinn ten-speed bike,
Not a care in the
world, just as free as you like.
I had stopped for
some traffic, and catching my breath.
I was wiping my
brow, got a handful of sweat.
I was straddling
my bike with my feet on the ground,
At Jackson and
Park in the north end of town,
Where Park Ave is
busy, and folks don’t slow down.
A car soon pulled
up and, well, just like me,
They were waiting
for traffic and looking to see.
And I turned and
I looked, and I couldn’t help say
(To myself, not
out loud) ‘don’t see that every day!’
A Volkswagen
beetle, a bright yellow car,
Those beetles
were small, well I guess they still are.
But this one was
holding a guy who was big,
Hunched over the
steering wheel, squashed like a fig.
And he had a big
nose, and a big black mustache
He seemed all
cramped up with his chin on the dash.
And the dog
riding shotgun, well he was large too.
Out the window he
hung, with a tongue dripping goo.
Then the guy
turned and looked, saw me starin’ at him.
Said, ‘You look
like you’re looking for trouble there, Jim.’
‘Well Jim’s not
my name,’ I replied, ‘And what’s more,
Looks are
sometimes deceiving, I know that for sure.’
He wasn’t
expecting that answer, I guess
And it shut him
down quick, not a word, no big mess,
Then he gunned it
and left, nothing more, nothing less.
Now why have I
told you this really old story,
‘Bout days of my
youth, yes the days of my glory.
The thing is, a
theme of this story herein,
The one that
we’re almost about to begin,
It’s quite
tricky, and easily missed and, well, so
I wanted to tell
you and thought you should know.
Here it is, pay
attention, I’ll say it real slow:
Appearance and truth,
I guess that’s what I mean,
And that things
aren’t always the way that they seem.
Who’s the good
guy, who’s bad, whose intentions are high
Villain or
victim, which one is that guy?
And is anyone
happy or sad, if so, why?
Who loves who,
who don’t care, who cares maybe too much?
Who is deserving
of love and the such
And who is the
friend that you’d want in the clutch?
These are some of
the questions I hope you’ll consider
And maybe the
answer will simply be neither,
Or both. I don’t
know; That’s for you to find out,
But I think you
can do it, in fact I’ve no doubt.
Just proceed with
some care, don’t speed hastily through it
the story needs
thought as you slowly review it.
Look at each situation, and see every side.
Try not to
assume, keep your eyes open wide.
Be careful,
consider; once, twice, three times even.
I’ll say it once
more, one more time, then I’m leaving:
Remember that
looks can sometimes be deceiving.
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