PRINCE OF ARRAGON - Line-by-Line Paraphrase

Original: And so have I address’d me. Fortune now
Modern: And so I have prepared myself. Now, Fortune,

Original: To my heart’s hope! Gold; silver; and base lead.
Modern: grant what my heart hopes for! Gold, silver, and common lead.

Original: ‘Who chooseth me must give and hazard all he hath.’
Modern: ‘Whoever chooses me must give up and risk everything he has.’

Original: You shall look fairer, ere I give or hazard.
Modern: You’ll have to look better than that before I give up or risk anything.

Original: What says the golden chest? ha! let me see:
Modern: What does the golden chest say? Ha! Let me see:

Original: ‘Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire.’
Modern: ‘Whoever chooses me will get what many men want.’

Original: What many men desire! that ‘many’ may be meant
Modern: What many men want! That word ‘many’ probably refers to

Original: By the fool multitude, that choose by show,
Modern: the foolish crowd, who choose based on appearances,

Original: Not learning more than the fond eye doth teach;
Modern: not learning anything more than what their shallow eyes show them;

Original: Which pries not to the interior, but, like the martlet,
Modern: they don’t look beneath the surface, but like the martin bird,

Original: Builds in the weather on the outward wall,
Modern: they build their nests exposed to weather on the outside wall,

Original: Even in the force and road of casualty.
Modern: right in the path of danger and misfortune.

Original: I will not choose what many men desire,
Modern: I will not choose what many men want,

Original: Because I will not jump with common spirits
Modern: because I will not join in with ordinary people

Original: And rank me with the barbarous multitudes.
Modern: and place myself among the uncivilized masses.

Original: Why, then to thee, thou silver treasure-house;
Modern: So then, I turn to you, silver treasure chest;

Original: Tell me once more what title thou dost bear:
Modern: tell me one more time what inscription you carry:

Original: ‘Who chooseth me shall get as much as he deserves:’
Modern: ‘Whoever chooses me will get as much as he deserves:’

Original: And well said too; for who shall go about
Modern: And well said, too; for who would try

Original: To cozen fortune and be honourable
Modern: to cheat fortune and be honorable

Original: Without the stamp of merit? Let none presume
Modern: without the mark of true merit? Let no one dare

Original: To wear an undeserved dignity.
Modern: to wear an honor they haven’t earned.

Original: O, that estates, degrees and offices
Modern: Oh, if only wealth, ranks, and positions of power

Original: Were not derived corruptly, and that clear honour
Modern: were not obtained through corruption, and that true honor

Original: Were purchased by the merit of the wearer!
Modern: were earned by the merit of the person who holds it!

Original: How many then should cover that stand bare!
Modern: How many who now go bareheaded would then wear hats!

Original: How many be commanded that command!
Modern: How many who now give orders would then take orders!

Original: How much low peasantry would then be glean’d
Modern: How many lowly peasants would then be separated

Original: From the true seed of honour! and how much honour
Modern: from the true stock of nobility! And how much honor

Original: Pick’d from the chaff and ruin of the times
Modern: would be picked out from the worthless waste of our era

Original: To be new-varnish’d! Well, but to my choice:
Modern: to be restored to its shine! Well, but back to my choice:

Original: ‘Who chooseth me shall get as much as he deserves.’
Modern: ‘Whoever chooses me will get as much as he deserves.’

Original: I will assume desert. Give me a key for this,
Modern: I will claim that I deserve it. Give me a key for this chest,

Original: And instantly unlock my fortunes here.
Modern: and immediately unlock my destiny here.

Original: What’s here? the portrait of a blinking idiot,
Modern: What’s this? The picture of a squinting fool,

Original: Presenting me a schedule! I will read it.
Modern: handing me a written message! I will read it.

Original: How much unlike art thou to Portia!
Modern: How completely different you are from Portia!

Original: How much unlike my hopes and my deservings!
Modern: How completely different from my hopes and what I deserve!

Original: ‘Who chooseth me shall have as much as he deserves.’
Modern: ‘Whoever chooses me will have as much as he deserves.’

Original: Did I deserve no more than a fool’s head?
Modern: Did I deserve nothing more than a fool’s portrait?

Original: Is that my prize? are my deserts no better?
Modern: Is that my reward? Do I deserve nothing better than this?

In Act II, Scene ix of “The Merchant of Venice,” the Prince of Arragon arrives at Belmont to attempt the casket test for Portia’s hand in marriage. After reviewing the conditions—that he must never reveal which casket he chose, never woo another woman in marriage if he fails, and depart immediately upon choosing incorrectly—Arragon agrees to the terms. He dismisses the golden casket, reasoning that he will not be deceived by outward appearances and what the multitude desires, as he considers himself above the common crowd who judge by exterior show.

Arragon selects the silver casket, which bears the inscription “Who chooseth me shall get as much as he deserves.” He believes himself worthy of Portia and deserving of great fortune through his noble birth and merit. However, upon opening the silver casket, he discovers not Portia’s portrait but a fool’s head with a mocking verse that calls him a fool seven times over. Realizing his failure, Arragon departs according to his oath. Shortly after his exit, a messenger arrives announcing the approach of a young Venetian who comes with elaborate gifts and promising signs of love, raising Portia’s hopes that this new suitor might be Bassanio.

The Merchant of Venice centers on Bassanio, a young Venetian gentleman who needs money to court the wealthy heiress Portia in Belmont. His friend Antonio, a merchant, agrees to help but has no ready cash since his ships are at sea. Antonio borrows 3,000 ducats from Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, with the unusual condition that if the loan isn’t repaid within three months, Shylock may take a pound of Antonio’s flesh. Meanwhile, Shylock’s daughter Jessica elopes with the Christian Lorenzo, taking her father’s money and jewels.

In Belmont, Portia’s deceased father has decreed that her suitors must choose correctly among three caskets—gold, silver, and lead—to win her hand. The Prince of Morocco and the Prince of Arragon both choose incorrectly and depart. When Bassanio arrives and selects the lead casket, he wins Portia, while his friend Gratiano wins her maid Nerissa. Their celebrations are interrupted by news that Antonio’s ships have been lost and Shylock demands his pound of flesh.

Portia and Nerissa disguise themselves as a lawyer and clerk and travel to Venice for Antonio’s trial. In court, Portia grants Shylock his legal right to the flesh but warns he may take no blood and must cut exactly one pound—an impossible task. Defeated, Shylock loses his bond and, under Venetian law, must forfeit half his wealth and convert to Christianity. The disguised Portia requests Bassanio’s wedding ring as payment, which he reluctantly gives. Back in Belmont, Portia playfully scolds her husband for giving away his ring before revealing her disguise. The play concludes with news that Antonio’s ships have safely returned, restoring his fortune.