Session Eight
What's Happening:
The Merchant of Venice
Thursdays, March 29, and April 5, 12, 19
1:30 - 3:30 p.m.
2520 University Capitol Centre
Registration Deadline: March 22
Class Limit: 65
The Merchant of Venice is filled with questions: Is Shylock a villain or a victim, or both? Is Portia rich, racist, and condescending, or trapped by her dead father's will? Is Antonio generous or a deliberate martyr? Should Jessica leave her father's house—or should she steal his ring? No simple answers suffice, and we'll take time to work through these problems, and to consider them in a variety of contexts: the changing historical background against which we understand the play, the importance of contemporary performance, and notions about prejudice and stereotyping.
INSTRUCTOR: Long-time English professor Miriam Gilbert returns to Senior College to teach a play with which she's worked for many years, both in the classroom and in print; her book, Shakespeare at Stratford: The Merchant of Venice examines post-World War II productions of the play by the Royal Shakespeare Company. At the UI, Gilbert teaches courses in dramatic literature that treat the notion of plays as performance texts. Gilbert has a second home in Stratford-upon-Avon, England.
