Beginning of Essay
Among the various themes presented in the Merchant of Venice the most important is the nature of true love. The casket plot helps illustrate the theme. Through a variety of suitors the descriptions of the caskets, Shakespeare shows the reader how different peop ....

Middle of Essay
.... it comes time to choose the casket. He does not want to risk anything, and therefore; he does not choose the lead casket whose inscription tells the suitor he must give up everything. The Prince, after looking at the inscription of the gold casket, which read "'who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire'" (2.7, 37), decides that what he desires most is the Portia's hand so the gold must be the correct casket. He insists that the gold casket is the one holding Portia's picture because she is so much worthier than the lead casket. The Prince believes that because many men desire Portia, the gold casket must be the correct one. When the Prince op ....