The Merchant of Venice

<div><p><strong>Edited, introduced and annotated by Cedric Watts, M.A., Ph.D., Emeritus Professor of English, University of Sussex.</strong></p></div><div><p>The Wordsworth Classics¿ Shakespeare Series presents a newly-edited sequence of William Shakespeare¿s works. The textual editing takes account of recent scholarship while giving the material a careful reappraisal.</p></div><div><p><em>The Merchant of Venice</em> is one of Shakespeare¿s most popular comedies, but it remains deeply controversial.</div><div>The text may seem anti-Semitic; yet repeatedly, in performance, it has revealed a contrasting nature.</div><div>Shylock, though vanquished in the law-court, often triumphs in the theatre. In his intensity he can dominate</div><div>the play, challenging abrasively its romantic and lyrical affirmations. What results is a bitter-sweet drama.</p></div><div><p>Though <em>The Merchant of Venice</em> offers some of the traditional pleasures of romantic comedy, it also exposes</div><div>t