FOUNDING EDITOR: T. J. B. SPENCER
GENERAL EDITOR: STANLEY WELLS
SUPERVISORY EDITORS: PAUL EDMONDSON, STANLEY WELLS
T. J. B. SPENCER, sometime Director of the Shakespeare Institute of the University of Birmingham, was the founding editor of the New Penguin Shakespeare, for which he edited both Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet.
STANLEY WELLS is Honorary President of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Emeritus Professor of Shakespeare Studies at the University of Birmingham, and General Editor of the Oxford Shakespeare. His many books include Shakespeare: For All Time, Shakespeare & Co., Shakespeare, Sex, and Love and Great Shakespeare Actors.
W. MOELWYN MERCHANT, author of Shakespeare and the Artist, was Professor of English at the University of Cardiff. He edited Marlowe’s Edward II for the New Mermaids series.
PETER HOLLAND is McMeel Family Professor in Shakespeare Studies in the Department of Film, Television and Theatre and Associate Dean for the Arts at the University of Notre Dame. He is editor of Shakespeare Survey, and co-general editor of the Oxford Shakespeare Topics series. His many Shakespeare publications include English Shakespeares: Shakespeare on the English Stage in the 1990s.
The first known mention of Shakespeare’s play is an entry on 22 July 1598 in the Stationers’ Register of books authorized for publication. A printer called James Roberts entered ‘a book of the Merchant of Venice, or Otherwise Called the Jew of Venice’. Two years later (1600) appeared ‘The most excellent Historie of the Merchant of Venice. With the extreame crueltie of Shylocke the Iewe towards the sayd Merchant, in cutting a iust pound of his flesh: and the obtayning of Portia by the choyse of three chests. As it hath beene diuers times acted by the Lord Chamberlaine his Seruants. Written by William Shakespeare.’ The title given on the first page of the text and in the running heads at the top of each pair of pages is ‘The comicall History of the Merchant of Venice’. We have no reason to suppose that these descriptions of the play are Shakespeare’s; they sound more like the printer’s inventions.
This first edition of the play (which we refer to as Q1) was printed probably from a manuscript that was close to Shakespeare’s. It may have been his own rough manuscript which was kept as a working copy in the playhouse. Two of the stage directions are in an imperative form (‘open the letter’, III.2.236; and ‘play Musique’, V.1.68) and perhaps indicate the closeness of the text to the playhouse prompt book.
Q1 is our only authority for the text of the play. It was reprinted in 1619 by William Jaggard but the date of the original edition (1600) and the name of the original printer (James Roberts) were falsely kept on the title page (this edition is referred to as Q2). It makes a few obvious corrections of errors in Q1, as well as introducing new errors of its own. The play was reprinted in the Folio edition of Shakespeare’s plays in 1623 (referred to as F). The printer of the Folio used Q1 as his copy; some corrections were made and some new errors introduced. There is no reason to suppose that the changes in Q2 and in F had the author’s approval; they were probably more or less intelligent guesses made in the printing house.
The following lists are selective. They include the more important and interesting variants. Minor changes which are not disputed, small variations in word order, obvious misprints and grammatical corrections not affecting the sense are not generally included here. A few modernizations of spelling which substantially alter the form of the word are also included.
The following readings in the present text of The Merchant of Venice are emendations of the words found in Q1 (which are placed afterwards in the original spelling, with where appropriate the forms found in other early texts). A few of the alterations were made in the printing of Q2 (1619), or in the Folios F (1623), F2 (1632), F3 (1663–4), F4 (1685). Most of the other emendations were made by the eighteenth-century editors.
13 curtsy] cursie Q1, Q2; curtsie F
19 Peering] F; Piring Q1; Piering Q2
27 Andrew docked] Andrew docks Q1, F; Andrew dockes Q2
84 alabaster] Alablaster
43 County Palatine] Q2; Countie Palentine Q1, F
51–2 Le Bon] Le Boune
56 Count Palatine] Q2; Count Palentine Q1, F
57 throstle] Trassell Q1, Q2, F
47 well-won] Q2; well-wone Q1; well-worne F
75 compromised] compremyzd Q1, Q2; compremyz’d F
131 breed of] F; breede for Q1, Q2
barren] Q2; barraine Q1, F
31 thee, lady] the Lady
35 page] rage Q1, Q2, F
3 (and elsewhere) Gobbo] Q2; Iobbe Q1, F
11 did] F2; doe Q1, Q2, F
69 tombs] timber
39 Slubber] Q2, F; slumber
27 fledged] Q2; flidge Q1; fledg’d F
45 courtesy] cursie Q1; curtsie Q2, F
97 Heard] heere
67 eyes] F; eye
81 vice] F2; voyce Q1; voice Q2, F
93 make] maketh Q1, Q2; makes F
101 Therefore thou] Therefore then thou
204 roof] Q2; rough Q1, F
49 Padua] Mantua
50 cousin’s hand] F; cosin hands Q1; Cosins hands Q2
53 traject] Tranect Q1, Q2, F
20 e’en] Q2, F; in Q1
72–3 merit it, | In] meane it, it | in Q1; meane it, then | In Q2; meane it, it | In F
79 for a wife] for wife
30 his state] Q2, F; this states Q1
51 Master] Maisters Q1, Q2; Masters F
74 bleat] F; bleake Q1, Q2
75 mountain] mountaine of
100 ’tis] Q2, F; as Q1
150 CLERK] not in Q1, Q2, F and so presumably attributed to the Duke
49 Sweet soul] as the last words of Launcelot’s previous speech in Q1, Q2, F
51 Stephano] Q2; Stephen Q1, F
233 my] Q2, F; mine Q1
The following are some of the more interesting and important variant readings and proposed emendations not accepted in the present text of The Merchant of Venice. Many of these rejected readings will be found in older editions (especially of the nineteenth century).
The reading of this edition (which derives from Q1 unless otherwise stated) is given first, followed by the rejected variants. If a source of the variant is not given, the reading is an emendation by an editor (most of them are of the eighteenth century).
10 on] of
6–7 mean happiness] smal happinesse F
30–31 one who you shall] one who shall Q2, F
72 Scottish] Q1, Q2; other F
22–3 water thieves and land thieves] land thieves and water thieves
62 ye would] he would haue Q2; he would F; we would
131 barren] bearing
18 wit] will
35 page] rage Q1, Q2, F; rogue (C. J. Sisson); wag (J. Dover Wilson)
155–6 the twinkling] the twinkling of an eye Q2
5 us] as F4
14 younger] younker
78 wroth] wroath Q1, Q2, F; wrath, ruth, roth (= ruth)
97 Heard] heere Q1; here; where?
106 paleness] plainness
158 sum of something] sum of nothing F
56 woollen] wauling
128 inexecrable] inexorable F3
150 CLERK] not in Q1, Q2, F; NERISSA (C. J. Sisson)
256 Is it so] It is not F
41–2 Master Lorenzo? Master Lorenzo!] M. Lorenzo, & M. Lorenzo Q1; Master Lorenzo and Mistress Lorenzo?
109 Peace! Music ceases How] Peace, how Q1; Peace, ho!
The stage directions of the present edition are based on those of the Quartos of 1600 and 1619, and the first Folio. Some of the original directions have simply been regularized. For instance, at the beginning of II.2 the Quarto’s ‘Enter the Clowne alone’ has been altered to ‘Enter Launcelot Gobbo, alone’. Similarly, instructions for actions obviously demanded by the text have been added: ‘He looks at his palm’ (II.2.146) is an instance. When the Quarto text was reprinted in the Folio the principal changes in the stage directions were of additional directions for flourishes of cornets. These have been incorporated. The following list includes the more interesting changes from the first Quarto. Q indicates both Quartos.
0 Flourish of cornets] not in Q; Flo. Cornets F
46 Flourish of cornets. Exeunt] Exeunt Q; Cornets. Exeunt F
72 (He kneels)] not in Q, F
104 Enter Bassanio, with Leonardo and a follower or two] Enter Bassanio with a follower or two Q, F
108 Exit one of his men] Q2; not in Q1, F
156 Exit Launcelot, with Old Gobbo] Exit Clowne Q, F
9 with a letter] with a Letter F; not in Q
25 Enter Jessica above, in boy’s clothes] Iessica aboue Q, F
50 Exit above] not in Q, F
57 Enter Jessica below] Enter Iessica Q, F
59 Exit with Jessica and Salerio] Exit Q, F
0, 77 Flourish of cornets] not in Q; Flo. Cornets F (after ‘Enter Salarino and Solanio’ (II.8.0), probably accidentally misplaced from II.7.77. It seems likely that Morocco’s entry as well as his exit would have been signalled by a flourish)
3 Flourish of cornets] not in Q; Flor. Cornets F
78 Exit with his train] not in Q, F
0 Solanio] F; Salerio Q1; Salarino Q
0 Salerio, and Gratiano with others] and Gratiano Q, F
118 dressed like a lawyer’s clerk] not in Q, F
120 She presents a letter] not in Q, F
163 dressed like a Doctor of Laws] not in Q, F
423 Bassanio takes off his gloves] not in Q, F
0 Enter Portia and Nerissa, disguised as before] Enter Nerrissa Q; Enter Portia and Nerrissa F
65 Enter musicians] not in Q, F
109 Music ceases] F; not in Q
121 A tucket sounds] F; not in Q