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Sabah Sial
5/22/16
Period 7
Ms. Moosman
The Prince of Morocco in Shakespeare
Childrens books are something that are incomparable to anything else in the world. They
always have the perfect characters and simple plots. However, as the children grow into adults,
the literature changes. Instead of there being perfect characters, there are characters with major
flaws. They have so many flaws that there is a special word given to the flaws, called hamartia.
The simple plots change to complex stories, with the reader questioning the decisions of the
characters and the reasons behind them. The happy endings change to neutral endings, where the
character loses some and gains some. A perfect example of this is William Shakespeares The
Merchant of Venice. Specifically, the character of the Prince of Morocco highlights all the allows
the play to distinguish itself from a childrens book and a renowned work of literature, which
will forever be relevant in society. The Prince of Morocco shows the discrimination that goes on
in society, the flaws in characters, and the reasons that motivate mankind.
Discrimination is something that has always been a problem in society. There has been
discrimination of religion, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. Even today, in a time that is
considered the pinnacle of civilization, there is discrimination stemming from multiple reasons.
Today, discrimination is viewed mostly as a thing of the past, as something that we can learn
from, and use to better ourselves and society. However, people that lived in Shakespeares time
also thought that they were the pinnacle of civilization, and that they had the least amount of
discrimination around them. Even with the discrimination they had, they used reason to justify

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their discrimination. The Merchant of Venice shows the discrimination that is generated by race.
When the Prince of Morocco first arrives to see Portia, he first has to justify his dark
complexion. This in itself shows that everyone was aware of the discrimination that was going
on, but didnt do anything to stop it. If they werent aware of it, then the Prince of Morocco
would have had no reason to address the issue.
Mislike [sic] me not for my complexion,
The shadowed livery of the burnished sun,
Bring me the fairest creature northward born,
And let us make incision for your love
To prove whose blood is reddest, his or mine.
(2.1.1-7)
The Prince of Morocco knows that his dark skin is something that might cause Portia to dislike
him. Thus, he begins with saying that, even though is skin is dark, his blood is the same shade of
red as someone who is very light in complexion. The fact that this is the first thing that the Prince
of Morocco says to someone who is potentially going to be his wife shows that society cares a lot
about the color of someones skin. Furthermore, the Prince says that he would make an incision
in his skin to prove to Portia that his blood is the same red as anyone who is lighter than him,
which means that he thinks that Portia might have doubts about his blood. Blood is something
that makes humans all the same. No matter what race someone is, their blood will always be red
when their skin is cut. The fact that Portia may have doubts about the color of the Princes blood
demonstrates the extent of the discrimination that he is facing. If blood makes a human human,
and the Prince may not have the same type of blood as Portia, then Portia may even believe that
the Prince is not as human as her. If Portia, someone who is considered a very knowledgeable

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and elite person, doesnt think that the Prince is as human as her, then it can safely be assumed
that the rest of society, who is not elite, also thinks the Prince is not human. Even after Portia has
met the Prince of Morocco, and he has obviously shown behavior that is human, she still holds
her ideas of discrimination. This becomes evident when the Prince of Morocco has chosen the
incorrect casket. Before this, the audience has been mostly in the dark on what Portias views of
the Princes race truly are. There have just been inferences made from what the dialogue that the
Prince and Portia have exchanged. After the Prince of Morocco chooses the wrong casket, Portia
shows relief at his choosing the wrong casket: A gentle riddance. Draw the curtains, go, / Let all
of his complexion choose me so (2.7.78-79). Portia is happy that the Prince didnt choose the
right casket. The reasoning for this is clearly revealed as being the Princes dark complexion.
Portia says that she hopes that everyone who has a dark complexion like the Princes should
choose the incorrect casket. Out of all the people that are of the same race as the Prince, there are
bound to be many that are some of the best people, with great morals, values and personalities.
However, Portia disregards that fact, and essentially says that even if they are great people, it
doesnt matter, because they still have a dark skin color. The discrimination is still held by the
character after meeting with someone who is a victim of that discrimination. The Prince of
Morocco shows that there are lots of instances of discrimination.
The stereotypes and discrimination that are rooted within people are one of their major
flaws. Everyone has flaws. There are so many characters with flaws in literature, specifically
classical literature, that there is a special word reserved for the fatal flaw, known as hamartia.
Often times the characters have to work through their flaws in order to achieve their final goal.
Therefore, flaws of characters play a great role in plays such as The Merchant of Venice, no pun
intended. Shakespeare successfully captures the flaws of the major character Portia through her

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attitude towards the Prince of Morocco. That is why the Prince of Morocco was included in the
play. Portias flaw is revealed when the Prince chooses the incorrect casket: A gentle riddance.
Draw the curtains, go, / Let all of his complexion choose me so (2.7.78-79). The
aforementioned analysis on this quote proved that Portia shows discrimination towards the
Prince, and anyone of the same complexion as him. The importance of this discrimination can be
seen in the fact that Portia is someone who is of the higher classes. Those from the higher classes
are generally considered to be more learned in the matters of the world. Thus, as someone of
higher status, Portia can be considered one of the best people that the city has to offer at the time.
However, at the point where even one of the best people holds discriminatory ideologies, then
the people of lower classes will hold those ideologies even more, as they are stemmed from a
lack of knowledge about the world. Portia is also considered one of the best characters in the
play in regards to morals. After all, Portia is the one that gives the famous mercy speech, which
spoke of how mercy is one of the greatest things, and that it is a characteristic of kings and God.
Shakespeare makes the character of Portia one of the best on purpose. The fact that Portia has a
flaw is one of the things that makes the characters seem real. The Prince of Morocco was the
means to achieve that.
While reading the play, the reader wonders what casket they should have chosen
themselves. Often times, the person would have chosen the gold casket, as the Prince of Morocco
does. His reasoning behind it makes complete sense at the time:
Lets see once more this saying graved in gold:
Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire.
Why, thats the lady; all the world desires her.
From the four corners of the earth they come

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As oer the brook, to see fair Portia
Or shall I think in silver shes immured,
Being ten times undervalued to rich gold?
O, sinful thought! Never so rich a gem
Was set in worse than gold
(2.7.36-55)
The Prince of Morocco reasons that Portia is so beautiful, she should be in the most beautiful
casket. The engraving of the casket says that whoever chooses it will get what men desire. The
Prince then states that Portia is desired by men, as they come from all over the world just to see
her. Furthermore, the Prince compares Portia to a gem, by saying that gems that are as rich as
Portia are never placed in less than gold. As the two other caskets are made of silver and lead, the
value of the gold is far greater than that of the other caskets. Thus, the Prince believes that Portia
would only be in the best casket. However, the best casket in the eyes of the Prince is the one
that has the greatest value, rather than the one that contains Portias picture. This is why the
Prince chooses the incorrect casket. After the Prince opens the casket, he sees that there is a
scroll inside. The things that the scroll says can be related to why people make the choices that
they do.
All that glisters is not gold;
Often have you heard that told
Gilded tombs do worms infold [sic].
Had you been as wise as bold
(2.7.65-72)

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People are always told that its not whats on the outside that counts, its whats on the inside.
However, people rarely make decisions completely free of any influence from the look of
something. Even though people are told numerous times that the inside is whats important, they
continue to allow the outside to determine their actions, which can lead to good and bad
consequences. In the end, though, everyone ends up six feet deep under the ground. While those
that have more money are in the ground in a more expensive casket than those who are without
money, their caskets are still penetrated by worms. No casket can prevent the decaying of the
human body. It is a natural process that occurs after death. No matter how rich someone is, they
will still end up the same as someone who is poor. The Prince of Morocco is told that if he had
been wiser, he may have chosen the right casket. This means that wisdom would go against
choosing the gold casket. Choosing the gold casket is considered a bold move, as it also seems
like the most obvious choice. If it is the most obvious choice, then one would guess that it isnt
the correct casket, as it is the one that is most often chosen. The choice that the Prince makes is
what most people would make; thus, he represents the choices and reasoning of most people.
Shakespeare included the Prince of Morocco to capture the choices and reasoning of mankind,
and showed what can happen through those choices.
The Prince of Morocco served many purposes in The Merchant of Venice. He was used to
show the discrimination that was going on in society at the time the play was written. This can be
seen in the fact that Shakespeare even had the character address the fact that his blood may have
been different. He was a mechanism to show the flaws in major characters. The character that is
considered very intelligent, Portia, is shown to have flaws through her behavior to the Prince.
The Prince was also used to analyze the choices and reasoning of people, by looking at what
most people would have chosen, and the reasoning the drives mankind to make the decisions that

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they do. The Merchant of Venice didnt have happy endings and perfect characters, all of which
were shown through the use of the Prince of Morocco. The Prince of Morocco was one of the
characters that made The Merchant of Venice one of the greatest plays of all time.