Abstract
In 'The Merchant of Venice', the characters are linked together on account of their love, their friendship and also because of money. The plots thus, have many dimensions and the play itself has many important themes, among which is the bonds. Indeed, this notion is very ambivalent and it is linked with many aspects of the story. A bond can be defined as something that forms a connection between people such as a feeling of friendship. The friendship between Antonio and Bassanio is indeed one of the main bonds of the play. These two characters are very different as Antonio is a melancholic man who contributes to the tragic mood of the play. Besides, at the very beginning of the play he is looking for the reason of his sadness and he cannot find it. The spectator, can thus imagine that he is in love with Antonio, which gives a good explanation of his behaviour.
