In Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice the antagonist of the
play is Shylock. Shylock is a wealthy Jewish moneylender.
Shylock is probably the most memorable character in the play
because of Shakespeare's excellent characterization of him.
Shylock is the antagonist in the play because he stands in
the way of love, but this does not necessarily make him the
villain of the play. Shylock can be seen as both the
villain of the play and as a man who is very human.
The villain that we see in Shylock is the greedy
moneylender. Shylock charges high interest rates and when
he is not repaid he insis…
