Between Gazes Camelia Elias

Stereotypes  “A fixed general image, characteristic, etc. that a lot of people believe to represent a particular type of person or thing.” (Collins Cobuild Dictionary)

Stereotyping  When someone claims that members of another culture all share the same, often inferior or offensive characteristics.

Types of stereotypes  racial e.g. Red Indians in cowboy films are seen as bloodthirsty savages  gender e.g. women are bad drivers  age e.g. old people are said to be very forgetful  religion e.g. Catholics families have a lot of children  profession e.g. all lawyers are greedy

Heaven and Hell  Heaven is where the police are British, the cooks are French, the mechanics are German, the lovers are Italian and it is all organised by the Swiss.  Hell is where the police are German, the cooks are English, the mechanics are French, the lovers are Swiss, and it is all organised by the Italians.

The typical Frenchman

Historical basis

The typical Englishman

Basis in fiction

Where do stereotypes come from?  familial environment  the media  friends  education (school, university)  travel  laziness  fear  envy  a sense of superiority  lack of experience of people, etc.

stereotype threat  unpleasant apprehension arising from the awareness of a negative ability stereotype in a situation where the stereotype is relevant, and thus confirmable. (“Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans". Steele & Aronson, 1995)

Orientalism – a discourse of ‘Othering’  The production of the East as the West’s ‘other’  Bhabha – ‘othering as a form of pathological disorder at state level’  Intense desire and fear  Colonised countries become invested with sexuality  The objects of fetishism as colonial countries become invested with sexuality exoticism  The eroticized gaze turns colonial countries into spectacle  Mark Currie: ‘the condition of otherness is not a logical relation as much as a power relation’

discursive frameworks for analysis  HOMOGENEITY  Generalisations and categories  Subhuman elements  Pronouns –’he’, ‘they’  Pronouns and verb forms in the 3rd person mark an Other outside the dialogue  Help construct a sense of spectacle  esp. 19th c. anthropology and travel writing

Other  the opposite of One  a secondary identity  ‘altered’ or contaminated identity  a natural complement to difference three senses:  quasi-oppositionality  implicit inferiority or secondariness  unknowability, or ineffability  these characteristics are accounts of identity as a kind of relation or exchange with the Other

mimicry  imitation as camouflage  repeats rather than represents (Bhabha)  Portia:  imitates men, dresses like a lawyer, talks like one  Shylock  mimicry is forced upon him  Bassanio  as a gay representative, he mimics the straight guy by wooing and marrying a woman

civilization vs. ‘civilization’ Ghandhi’s visit to Britain:  Reporter: “What do you think of modern civilisation Mr Gandhi?”  Gandhi: “I think it would be a good idea”  in other renditions:  ‘what do you think of civilization in England?  ‘I think that it would be something worth trying!’

theatrical conventions in Shakespeare’s time  suspension of reality  no electricity  women forbidden to act on stage  minimal contemporary costume  minimal scenery all these control the dialogue

dialogue and types of speech  soliloquy  aside  The playwright used poetic dialogue:  to paint a picture of the scene  to establish the time and the place of the action  to familiarize the audience both with the characters’ identities and their physical appearances  Soliloquies and asides were also used to compensate for the absence of an elaborate stage

staging  blood and gore  use of supernatural  the audience demands to be scared

stage costumes  communicate the message of the character, show his/her social status, profession  a company's costumes were among its most important item.  individual costumes often cost more than the outright purchase of a play.

historical accuracy  accurate information concerning the clothes worn in the early productions is very lacking.  it is believed that even in a play set in ancient Rome the actors wore contemporary dress.  there was very little attempt to present historical accuracy.

Merchant of Venice - clips  Prince of Morroco Prince of Morroco Prince of Morroco  monologue monologue  Trial Trial  cutting cutting

setting: two worlds VeniceVenice Language of money, commerceLanguage of money, commerce Male friendshipMale friendship Justice / letter of lawJustice / letter of law Belmont Belmont Poetic language Love / marriage bonds Mercy / spirit of law

background: Old vs. New Testament JudaismJudaism Justice / RetributionJustice / Retribution Letter of LawLetter of Law “A Daniel come to judgment”“A Daniel come to judgment” Christianity Christianity Mercy / Forgiveness Mercy / Forgiveness Spirit of Law Spirit of Law “Quality of Mercy is not strained” “Quality of Mercy is not strained”

three plots Casket plotCasket plot (Act I – III) Resolved with marriage of Portia and Bassanio(Act I – III) Resolved with marriage of Portia and Bassanio Pound of Flesh plotPound of Flesh plot (Act I – IV) Resolved with Court scene(Act I – IV) Resolved with Court scene Ring plotRing plot (Act III – V) Resolved with reconciliation scene between Portia and Bassanio, Nerissa and Gratiano(Act III – V) Resolved with reconciliation scene between Portia and Bassanio, Nerissa and Gratiano

Potential conflict for Bassanio’s love AntonioPortia Bassanio Potential conflict Love / Friendship Love / Marriage the Jew

Bassanio’s bonds Father/Son-like and/or friendship relationship with AntonioFather/Son-like and/or friendship relationship with Antonio Father of Portia/Suitor bond through Casket choiceFather of Portia/Suitor bond through Casket choice Husband/Wife bond with PortiaHusband/Wife bond with Portia Love bond/promise through acceptance of ringLove bond/promise through acceptance of ring Gratitude bond with Ballerio (Portia in disguise as Doctor of Law)Gratitude bond with Ballerio (Portia in disguise as Doctor of Law)

Who was the Merchant of Venice? AntonioAntonio Has many ships in various parts of the worldHas many ships in various parts of the world ShylockShylock Lends out money for profitLends out money for profit BassanioBassanio Gentleman, but the one who ends up with the “Golden Fleece”: Portia, her father’s fortuneGentleman, but the one who ends up with the “Golden Fleece”: Portia, her father’s fortune

Shylock’s conversion to Christianity  From Christians’ point of view  Shylock cannot be “saved” without Christ  They are doing him a favor  From Jews’ point of view  Shylock is condemned to be without society  He cannot associate with other Jews  The Christians won’t really accept him  The law is imposing a penalty worse than losing all the money  the law enforcers  more merciless than Shylock

themes  love vs. wealth  choices – greed vs. willingness to give, risk, venturing  mercy vs. revenge  harmony vs. disorder  friendship vs. homosexual love  appearance vs. reality  bonds, covenants vs loss  boredom vs spectacle  justice vs forgiveness  ‘true’ nature of love