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The Merchant of Venice is a comedy by William Shakespeare, and one of his most controversial plays for its seemingly anti-Semitic content. Summary of the Book When a young Venetian seeks to woo a beautiful heiress, he finds himself struggling to put together the funds to present himself as a suitor. Young Bassanio finds himself in the debt of his friend, the wealthy Antonio once again. However, this time, Antonio asks Bassanio to find a lender. Bassanio approaches the Jewish moneylender Shylock, and hence begin his problems. Antonio is highly anti-Semitic, and this angers Shylock profusely. Antonio is also ruining Shylock’s business by not asking for interest, forcing Shylock to lower his interest rates as well. This play is famous for Shylock’s character, who, despite not being the protagonist, steals the show. About William Shakespeare William Shakespeare was an English poet, playwright and writer. Best remembered for his plays, he is called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". Shakespeare's plays have been adapted into several movies, and they are enacted in theatres around the world even to this day, centuries after his death. His works came to the spotlight in the Nineteenth century and he was idolized by the Romantics. A prolific writer and poet, he is also known for his poems, mainly the Sonnets.