January 21, 1994 Shylock-Victim or Villain         In 1594 the Earl of Essex, an English Nobleman who lived during the Elizabethan period in England, was actively involved in the persecution and trials of Roderigo Lopez. Lopez was a Jew of Portuguese descent, who was wrongly accused of attempting to poison the Queen of England, for reasons never fully explained. Lopez, being the Queen's royal physician, was in no position to defend himself once he was accused. Essex, who provided …showed first 75 words of 2690 total…

…showed last 75 words of 2690 total…suicide. Works Cited Barnet Sylvan. 'Introduction.' The Merchant of Venice Ed. Sylvan Barnet. New         Jersey : Prentice-Hall Inc., 1970. 1-10. Brown, Russell John. 'The Realization of Shylock : A Theatrical Criticism.'                  Major Literary Characters: Shylock Ed. Harold Bloom. New York : St.         Martins Press, 1961. 187-209. Granville-Barker, Harley. 'The Merchant of Venice. ' Shakespeare Ed.         Leonard F. Dean. Princeton : Princeton University Press, 1947. 37-71. Palmer, John. 'Shylock. ' Major Literary Characters: Shylock Ed. Harold                  Bloom. London : Macmillan, 1946. 53-61, 66-91.