GCSE Shakespeare | Character Revision, Merchant of Venice

English Literature Quiz - The Merchant of Venice - Character (Questions)

This GCSE English Literature quiz focuses on key characters in The Merchant of Venice, helping you link their decisions, relationships and language choices to central themes.

Explore the Topic →

(quiz starts below)

Fascinating Fact:

Shylock’s speech beginning “Hath not a Jew eyes?” asks the audience to recognise his shared humanity, even while he insists on his “pound of flesh”.

In GCSE English Literature, studying characters in The Merchant of Venice means exploring how figures such as Shylock, Portia, Antonio and Bassanio reveal themes of mercy, justice, prejudice and loyalty. You need to connect what they say and do on stage to the values and tensions in Venetian society.

Key Terms

Protagonist: The main character or one of the main characters who drives the plot, such as Antonio or Bassanio.
Antagonist: A character or force that opposes the protagonist’s aims, for example Shylock or the biased court.
Character arc: The way a character develops over the play, showing changes in attitude, relationships or moral choices.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

How is Portia presented in The Merchant of Venice for GCSE?

Portia is presented as intelligent, witty and resourceful, but limited by the expectations placed on women. In the courtroom scene she uses legal knowledge and disguise to control events, testing ideas of mercy, justice and authority.

What is Antonio like as a character in The Merchant of Venice?

Antonio is a wealthy Christian merchant who is loyal to his friends but hostile towards Shylock. His sadness, risks for Bassanio and treatment of Shylock raise questions about friendship, prejudice and the cost of honour.

How do I write about characters in The Merchant of Venice in my GCSE exam?

Choose a clear character, pick short quotations that show their key qualities, and explain how language, stage action and relationships reveal themes. Link your points to the play’s setting, audience expectations and Shakespeare’s message about justice and mercy.

Try These Related Quizzes

Which one of the following most accurately describes Bassanio?

[ ]	Loyal
[ ]	Self-sacrificial
[ ]	Independently wealthy
[ ]	Careful

Antonio is a respected, successful merchant. Which of the following behaviours is at odds with his gentle — and genteel — demeanour?

[ ]	His insistence upon loaning money without charging interest
[ ]	His treatment of Shylock in public
[ ]	His fondness for his young friend
[ ]	His refusal to be cheered at the beginning of the play

"If I catch him once upon the hip / I will feed fat the ancient grudge I bear him." How does Shylock's aside in Act One, Scene Three, characterise him?

[ ]	As thoughtful
[ ]	As generous
[ ]	As greedy
[ ]	As vengeful

"Is it not hard, Nerissa, that I cannot choose one nor refuse none?" What does Portia's complaint about her father's provision for his estate demonstrate about her character?

[ ]	She wishes for control over her own actions but remains obedient
[ ]	She is grateful that her father planned a clever lottery to decide her future
[ ]	She wishes for control over her own actions and decides not to follow her father's orders
[ ]	She wishes never to marry

Why does Jessica feel ashamed during her elopement with Lorenzo?

[ ]	She is abandoning her faith
[ ]	She is dressed as a boy
[ ]	She is abandoning her father
[ ]	She has taken some of her father's riches

What does Portia's trick with the ring achieve?

[ ]	She makes Bassanio confront his conflicted loyalties
[ ]	She gains greater respect from Bassanio
[ ]	She gains the gratitude of Antonio
[ ]	All of the above

"All debts are cleared between you and I if I might but see you at my death. Notwithstanding, use your pleasure. If your love do not persuade you to come, let not my letter." What does Antonio's letter tell us about his relationship to Bassanio?

[ ]	He believes that Bassanio will come to see him merely from a sense of duty
[ ]	He believes he has been abandoned and expects never to see Bassanio again
[ ]	He believes that Bassanio is emotionally indebted to him
[ ]	He believes that Bassanio owes him no loyalty

How does Lorenzo typically address Jessica?

[ ]	With irony
[ ]	With terms of endearment
[ ]	With sarcasm
[ ]	He does not speak to her

Which of the following is true of Nerissa?

[ ]	She explains to Portia how she might save Antonio
[ ]	She is typically silent
[ ]	She is able to lecture Portia gently
[ ]	She is fearful of Portia

10.

How does Shylock describe his offer to lend money without charging interest?

[ ]	As sensible
[ ]	As extravagant
[ ]	As genteel
[ ]	As kind

English Literature Quiz - The Merchant of Venice - Character (Answers)

Which one of the following most accurately describes Bassanio?

[x]	Loyal
[ ]	Self-sacrificial
[ ]	Independently wealthy
[ ]	Careful

Bassanio is loyal to Antonio. This loyalty causes some difficulty when it conflicts with his loyalty to Portia. The older loyalty to his friend trumps that to his new wife

Antonio is a respected, successful merchant. Which of the following behaviours is at odds with his gentle — and genteel — demeanour?

[ ]	His insistence upon loaning money without charging interest
[x]	His treatment of Shylock in public
[ ]	His fondness for his young friend
[ ]	His refusal to be cheered at the beginning of the play

Shylock reminds Antonio of the many occasions when the merchant spat on him. That such an apparently gentle man would engage in physical marks of disrespect creates the sense that Anti-Semitism is thoroughly entrenched in sixteenth-century Venice. Antonio promises to continue to spit at Shylock in public despite the loan

"If I catch him once upon the hip / I will feed fat the ancient grudge I bear him." How does Shylock's aside in Act One, Scene Three, characterise him?

[ ]	As thoughtful
[ ]	As generous
[ ]	As greedy
[x]	As vengeful

Shylock's aside makes his hatred of Antonio and the reason for this hatred clear. The audience becomes aware that he begins his transactions with a desire for revenge against Antonio for his practice of freely lending money

"Is it not hard, Nerissa, that I cannot choose one nor refuse none?" What does Portia's complaint about her father's provision for his estate demonstrate about her character?

[x]	She wishes for control over her own actions but remains obedient
[ ]	She is grateful that her father planned a clever lottery to decide her future
[ ]	She wishes for control over her own actions and decides not to follow her father's orders
[ ]	She wishes never to marry

Portia evaluates each of her suitors and attempts to influence their decisions when faced with the three chests, but is ultimately obedient to her father's instructions

Why does Jessica feel ashamed during her elopement with Lorenzo?

[ ]	She is abandoning her faith
[x]	She is dressed as a boy
[ ]	She is abandoning her father
[ ]	She has taken some of her father's riches

Jessica does not want to be seen in her disguise as a boy

What does Portia's trick with the ring achieve?

[ ]	She makes Bassanio confront his conflicted loyalties
[ ]	She gains greater respect from Bassanio
[ ]	She gains the gratitude of Antonio
[x]	All of the above

Portia unveils herself as Antonio's saviour, a clever strategist and someone who knows much more than her husband suspects

[ ]	He believes that Bassanio will come to see him merely from a sense of duty
[ ]	He believes he has been abandoned and expects never to see Bassanio again
[x]	He believes that Bassanio is emotionally indebted to him
[ ]	He believes that Bassanio owes him no loyalty

Antonio's understanding of Bassanio's great debt is highlighted by his use of the word "if". If Bassanio comes to say goodbye to him, then will his debt to his dear friend be forgiven

How does Lorenzo typically address Jessica?

[ ]	With irony
[x]	With terms of endearment
[ ]	With sarcasm
[ ]	He does not speak to her

Lorenzo enjoys talking about love, praising Jessica and playing romantic word games with her. He frequently uses terms of endearment when addressing her. He also dismisses her melancholic mood when it jars with the sweet music he has been praising