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Merchant of Venice Act 4: Justice and Mercy in the Court Scene (FULL LESSON)

Merchant of Venice Act 4: Justice and Mercy in the Court Scene (FULL LESSON)

Subject: English

Age range: 11-14

Resource type: Lesson (complete)

Last updated

24 November 2023

pptx, 13.31 MB
pptx, 13.31 MB
pdf, 343.64 KB
pdf, 343.64 KB

In this lesson, students are guided through the court room scene in Act 4 Scene 1 of The Merchant of Venice. Students will consider the implications of justice and mercy and then consider how a Shakespearean audience would have viewed Shylock’s fate as compared to a modern one.

Learning Objective: Compare and contrast how a Shakespearean audience and a modern audience would respond to the trial scene in Act 4.

Learning Outcomes:

  • Students will discuss the implications of justice and mercy in practice.
  • Students will answer comprehension questions about Act 4 Scene 1.
  • Students will compare the response of a Shakespearean audience with a modern audience to Shylock’s fate.
  • Students will write a paragraph to address the question of to what extent do they feel pity for Shylock.

Lesson Outline:
Do it now: Students write their ideas on a post-it note examining a quote by the Duke about Shylock.
Starter: Introduction to key vocabulary (justice and mercy) and discussion around them.
Activity 1: Read and discuss a summary/extracts from Act 4 Scene 1. Questions are interspersed.
Activity 2: Class discussion exercise. Students share their opinions on to the extent that feel sorry for Shylock followed by an outline of the contextual differences between a Shakespearean and a modern audience.
Plenary: Students write a paragraph to answer this question: “Shylock is the true victim of The Merchant of Venice”. To what extent do you agree with this statement?”

More Resources for The Merchant of Venice

Click here for a bundle of all the lessons to take you through the play plus a quiz, knowledge organiser and character revision posters.

Freebies:

  1. For character revision posters for your classroom, click here.
  2. For an English/Drama lesson based on Portia’s choice in Act 1 Scene 2, click here.
  3. For a Scheme of Work overview for the unit, click here.

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Get this resource as part of a bundle and save up to 56%

A bundle is a package of resources grouped together to teach a particular topic, or a series of lessons, in one place.

Bundle

Merchant of Venice Lesson Bundle (15 Lessons Covering the Entire Play)

This bundle will take you through the entire play of The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare. This is aimed at high-ability key stage 3, but it could be easily adapted for key stage 4. It contains a range of tasks that have been modelled on GCSE literature tasks.<br /> <br /> The bundle contains: <br /> <br /> * A detailed knowledge organiser containing key quotes, facts about Shakespeare and a character summary<br /> * Detailed character profiles of the five main characters: Antonio, Bassanio, Shylock, Jessica and Portia. <br /> * Character revision poster/study cards.<br /> * 15 engaging and ready to teach lessons<br /> <br /> Lessons:<br /> 1) A 40 question Shakespeare quiz<br /> 2) A lesson introducing the characters and themes of the play<br /> 3) A lesson introducing act 1 scene 1 of the play focusing on the relationship between Antonio and Bassanio.<br /> 4) A lesson exploring act 1 scene 2 (Portia's choice)<br /> 5) A lesson exploring anti-Semitism and Shylock's portrayal in act 1 scene 3. <br /> 6) A lesson exploring Jessica's character in act 2.<br /> 7) A lesson exploring the casket test in act 2 scene 7.<br /> 8) A lesson exploring to what extent Shakespeare was anti-Semitic focusing on act 2 scene 8<br /> 9) A lesson considering how the Prince of Arragon is presented in act 2 scene 9.<br /> 10) A lesson considering Shylock's "Hath not a Jew" speech in act 3 scene 1<br /> 11) A lesson considering how dramatic irony is used in Act 3 Scene 2 in which Bassanio chooses the lead casket.<br /> 12) A lesson to support students in independently interpreting Shakespeare using Act 3 Scenes 3-5<br /> 13) A lesson on the courtroom scene in Act 4 whereby students consider to what extent they feel sympathy for Shylock.<br /> 14) A lesson on the ending of the play where students reflect on the play as a whole.<br /> 15) A 35 question quiz with answers on the entire play. <br /> <br /> <br /> Leave a review and choose any other resource for free from the <a href="https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/LikeAnExpert ">LikeAnExpert</a> shop.

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