Jessica (The Merchant of Venice) to let Antonio and Bassanio know he will attend their dinner. Having no other option, Gobbo whispers to Jessica to "look out at window for all this. / There will come a Christian by / Will be worth a Jewess' eye." before leaving. Shylock catches the interaction and asks Jessica what Gobbo said, but Jessica deceives him and claims he was simply saying goodbye. Shylock then complains of Gobbo's sloth and vociferous appetite, claiming he is well rid of him and glad he now serves Bassiano, whom he dislikes. He leaves for the dinner, and Jessica soliloquises: In the following
James S. Shapiro His most recent book, "The Year of Lear: Shakespeare in 1606," was awarded the James Tait Black Prize for Biography as well as the Sheridan Morley Prize for Theatre Biography. He is currently at work on a book about Shakespeare in a divided America. He is married, has a son, and lives in New York City. Shapiro presented a three-part series on BBC Four called "The King & the Playwright: A Jacobean History" about Shakespeare, King James VI and I and the Jacobean era. James S. Shapiro James S. Shapiro (born September 11, 1955) is Professor of English and Comparative