Why is Shylock angry with Antonio?

The person who is to be blamed for taking revenge in The Merchant of Venice is Shylock, a Jewish money-lender. In this play, he has been portrayed as an antagonist who always seeks an opportunity to teach Antonio a lesson. It is not like that as he is a villain character that is why he wants to punish or defeat the hero. There are some specific reasons for which he has a grudge for Antonio. It should be mentioned here that Antonio himself played a vital role to make Shylock angry that worked as the base of his revenge. 

 

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The personal conflict between Antonio and Shylock is not unknown to anyone. They get the attention of the readers because of their clash. As they belong to two different religions, it sometimes indicates the quarrel of the two religious beliefs. When Bassanio invites him to dine with them, he says in response,

“I will buy with you, sell with you, talk with you, walk with you, and so following; but I will not eat with you, drink with you, nor pray with you.” 

The above-mentioned quotation gives a vivid description of the conflict between Jews and Christian which is clearly visible throughout the play. It is thought to be one of the reasons to plot revenge. The first reason to hate Antonio is that he is a Christian. He says, “I hate him for he is a Christian.” Antonio also hates him for the same reason. But perhaps the most important reason for which he hates Antonio is that he lends money to needy people without charging any interest from them. This activity brings down the rate of interest in Shylock and his group’s financial dealings in the city of Venice. For this reason, Shylock always looks for a chance to catch him at difficulty so that he can be able to satisfy fully his long-standing grudge which he has against him.