is understandable he faces constant racism as a Jew But his desire to kill Antonio is wrong So Shylock should get some punishment However the punishment he gets feels too harsh Racism and Harsh Punishment As a Jew Shylock faces constant racism in a Christian society The Christians in the play behave cruelly Throughout the play Shylock is mentioned as Jew many times At the trial scene the court forces him to be Christian This is unfair because religion is personal It is cruel to force someone to change their religion Moreover racism is clear when Portia disguised as a young lawyer named Balthazar calls both Antonio and Shylock She says Which is the merchant here And which the Jew Moreover taking his money and property hurts him deeply Because money is tied to his identity and safety in a society that hates Jews Finally Shylock s daughter Jessica also hates him She runs away and marries a Christian named Lorenzo Though Shylock is a villain the play makes us feel sorry for him In fine Shakespeare shows that Shylock is both a victim and a villain Yes he does bad things and he should be punished by the court But he faces harsh punishment I think Shylock is punished more for being Jewish than for his actions