There are billions of people on Earth, and not one is the exact same as another. Everyone has different perspectives, different mindsets, and different answers than others to the same question. Some people also value certain things more than others do. Some people only value tangible items while others find them rather useless. The word, "rich" can be defined in may ways which usually included people having a lot of money or being rich in something like happiness. In the book The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare portrays the ideas that having an abundance of money doesnʻt make someone rich in happiness and love.
Sometimes people pay attention more to the things that arenʻt as important as what is right in front of their face. In the book, The Merchant of Venice, Shylock says, " There, there, there, there! A diamond gone, that costs me two thousand ducats in Frankfurt. The curse upon our nation was never felt till now! I never felt it til now! Two thousand ducats and other precious jewels. I wish my daughter were dead at my feet and the ducats in her coffin!" During this scene, Shylock could care less about where his daughter could have traveled to. All he cares about is the money that she took. I feel like in this part, he is considered poor, even though he still has money left with him. Shylock is poor because he just lost his daughter, one of his servants, and some of the things he valued most in life, which was his money. Shylock also hasnʻt been doing anything fun in this story, ever, which basically means that he isnʻt rich in happiness either. Revenge also has to be one of the biggest factors in determining whether a person is rich in life or not. In the book, Shylock also says, "The pound of flesh which I demand from him was expensive to buy. Itʻs mine and I will have it! If you deny me, I scorn your laws! The decrees of Venice have no force! I insist on justice!" At this point, Shylock is demanding that he will have a pound of Antonioʻs flesh. He wants the flesh instead of being payed back with money, because of a grudge that he has been holding on Antonio for a long time. I think that having a grudge is a waste of time, because it doesnʻt do anything good for yourself. All Shylock was doing was putting all of his energy into wanting to hurt Antonio and that also can be used as an example as to why Shylock is considered poor despite the amount of money or jewels that he has. He is poor in happiness and love because for years he has only channeled an abundance of negative energy towards Antonio. That is time that he will never get back, and a lot of energy he has wasted. Anyone would be able to know if they were rich in happiness, love and positive energy. This can be determined if they are content with where they are now. In the book during the trial between Shylock and Antonio, Antonio says, "Anything equally as hard you might attempt to do, as try to soften that hardest thing of all -- his Jewish heart. Therefore, I beg you make no more objections, try no other ways, but as soon as conveniently possible , let me know the courtʻs verdict, and let the Jew have his will." This is when Shylock is demanding a pound of Antonioʻs flesh and everyone canʻt believe that someone could really be so cruel. I think that Antonio would be an exceptional example as someone who is rich in not tangible items, but rich in a way where he is content with his life. I think that even if he is kind of depressed and he didnʻt have enough money to pay Shylock back, he came to terms with his fate and finally was ready to let things be. I feel like in order to be in this state of mind, you would really have to be able to live and say that you are okay with the life you are living now. Just because someone is of high class or has countless tangible items, doesnʻt at all mean they are rich, and Iʻm sure that some of the poorest people are the ones with the utmost amount of money. It sounds unbelievable, but itʻs because those kinds of people are alive but arenʻt living. Not everyone will get the chance to be rich in a good way, but everyone always has the potential in doing so.
3 Comments
Mary Rose
4/30/2018 11:43:06 am
Your essay is very strong, but it could have a greater impact if it was in 3rd person. "I feel, I think, etc" is good, but your essay would do better without it. For example, you put "I think that Antonio would be an exceptional example as someone who is rich in not tangible items, but rich in a way where he is content with his life." However, it would sound much better without the 'I think' part. Other than that, you proved your thesis very well and had a lot of evidence too.
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AJ Killion
4/30/2018 11:52:03 am
Your essay was very strong in terms of evidence and reasoning to support it. Your analysis was great because you used your own side of the story and described what you saw which made it very impactful. But one thing is that you use "I think" or "I feel". And although the way you used them I felt were good, your essay can be stronger with a different way to word those things.
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Noalei Malacas
4/30/2018 12:06:11 pm
Your introduction was really well written, which made your begging really strong and interesting. DON'T forget when you are putting evidence by taking direct quotes from the book to put the author's last name and the page number you found it on. You also need to write atleast 5 paragraphs. Overall, good job proving your thesis and using evidence.
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