Peculiarities of Human Behaviour and Motivations in The Merchant of Venice and To Kill a Mockingbird Sarah Abboud 12th Grade

An individual’s behavior and motivations is a complex phenomenon prominently shaping the notion of human experiences incorporated in texts through the use of a character’s expression, paradoxes and inconsistencies reflecting an individual’s drive, diversity and reason. Both Shakespeare’s play “The Merchant of Venice” and Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” strongly accentuate factors including the existence of social inequality and appearance versus reality throughout the texts.

Social inequality is an idea emphasizing disparities in power and wealth, often connected with discrimination. This theme is widely explored in “The Merchant of Venice” and portrays character development. As the play was set in an Elizabethan context, there was much prejudice against both members of the Jewish and Catholic religions. Elizabethan paranoia about Jews put Shakespeare's Shylock in context and consequently, the strictures of Renaissance drama demanded that he be a villain. Shakespeare explores the notion of social inequality in his play when Antonio becomes Shylock’s financial competition, undermining him by merely being a Christian. Shylock makes clear the injustices he feels during his speech saying “hath not a Jew eyes?...senses,...