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How many Shakespeare plays mention Jews and can someone list them?
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
The Merchant of Venice has a major plotline surrounding Shylock, who is Jewish, and so there are unsurprisingly many references to Jews in that play, both complimentary and uncomplimentary.
A number of plays use the term "Jewry" to describe the country which formed the ancient kingdoms of Judea and Israel, and in particular in conjunction with a reference to Herod the Great. These are: Richard II, Merry Wives of Windsor, Antony and Cleopatra and Henry V.
A number of the references are, unfortunately, rather racist. Some consist of someone emphasizing a declaration with the words "or I am a Jew". This happens in Henry IV Part I (the speaker is Falstaff), The Two Gentlemen of Verona (the speaker is Launce), and Much Ado About Nothing (the speaker is Benedick). In some of these cases there is a typification of Jews as being cold and hard-hearted.
Some references come out of nowhere. One of the witches' ingredients in Macbeth is "liver of blaspheming Jew" (not necessarily a racist remark), and Flute (as Thisbe) uses the word in a context where it makes no sense in Midsummer Night's Dream. ("most brisky juvenal and eke most lovely Jew") Moth uses the word too just prior to his dissertation on the difference between "remuneration" and "guerdon" in Love's Labour's Lost, but the meaning is unclear.
That's eleven plays altogether.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
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Why were Jews treated with such disdain in Shakespeare's time?
Jews were treated with disdain in Shakespeare's time because Anti-Semitism was quite prevalent. The idea that all people are equal and that each person should be allowed to choose his faith was an idea that did not exist while Shakespeare was alive.
How where the foreigners treated during Shakespeare's time?
How where foreigners such as the Spanish, Portuguese, the French, the Jews, and the Africans treated in England during Shakespeare's time?
What was the attitude of the English toward Jews during Shakespeare's time?
They thought that the Jews were their their aflictions and all sorts of stuff. Very similar to Hitler's views
Did william shakespeare hate or like the jews?
Jews were expelled from London around 1290 by Edward I. Oliver Cromwell approved their return in 1655. William Shakespeare probably never saw, or met a jew, but there were many superstitions, so he probably was scared of them.
What play by Shakespeare discusses the prejudice against Jews?
The Merchant of Venice is one, but their are references in other works.
How many Jews are there in Shakespeare's plays and what are their names?
The only one of Shakespeare's plays that Jews appear in is The Merchant of Venice. The main, or at least the most interesting character in this play is the Jewish banker Shylock. There is also his daughter Jessica, who converts to Christianity part way through the play (but seems unhappy about it by the end) and one of his business associates, Tubal. That makes three.
Why does Shakespeare mention Jews at all?
The Shylock subplot of Merchant of Venice turns on a contract for the lending and repayment of money. The Jews were a group of people notoriously involved in this business (banking). It thus made sense to have the moneylender be a Jew. In addition, Jews were treated contemptuously by European society, which fact is referred to in the play and provides Shylock with a motivation and allows his humiliation and destruction at the end. Merchant of Venice is the only one of Shakespeare's plays to have Jewish characters in it, and they are there for a reason. Contrast this with Christopher Marlowe's play The Jew of Malta, in which the Jewish villain is just villainous without any subtext or explaination.
Why were Jews treated with such disdain in Shakespeare's time?
Jews were treated with disdain in Shakespeare's time because Anti-Semitism was quite prevalent. The idea that all people are equal and that each person should be allowed to choose his faith was an idea that did not exist while Shakespeare was alive.
What has the author James S Shapiro written?
James S. Shapiro has written: 'Shakespeare and the Jews' -- subject(s): Jews, History, Judaism in literature, 16th century, Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616, 18th century, 17th century, Characters, Jews in literature, Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616. Merchant of Venice, Shylock (Fictitious character)
What were Jews called in Shakespeare's time?
They were all called Steve even the ladies
How where the foreigners treated during Shakespeare's time?
How where foreigners such as the Spanish, Portuguese, the French, the Jews, and the Africans treated in England during Shakespeare's time?
Why didn't the Jews have no concept of the trinity?
there is no mention of such a concept in the Hebrew Bible, and Jews feel that the idea violates the notion of one God.
How many times is Jews mention in the Bible?
The word "Jews" is in the King James Version of the Bible 257 times. It is in 244 verses.
What was the attitude of the English toward Jews during Shakespeare's time?
They thought that the Jews were their their aflictions and all sorts of stuff. Very similar to Hitler's views
Did william shakespeare hate or like the jews?
Jews were expelled from London around 1290 by Edward I. Oliver Cromwell approved their return in 1655. William Shakespeare probably never saw, or met a jew, but there were many superstitions, so he probably was scared of them.
How many Jews in Europe at the moment?
About 10% of Jews live in Europe (It was a simple internet search may I mention, it's not that hard to just search for it) (:
How were Jewish people treated in the days of shakespeare?
Jews had relatively low status everywhere in the world until after the French Revolution of 1769, and later, the great migration of Jews to America 1880-1920. In 16th Century England, at the time of Shakespeare's birth, Jews had just been allowed into the country by Oliver Cromwell, after a mass expulsion of Jews in 1290. They did not have citizenship status yet, nor did they many rights.
