This scene opens with Launcelot Gobbo, Shylock's servant, deciding whether he should run away from his master. The comedy builds when Launcelot's father, Old Gobbo, comes onstage. Gobbo is almost blind and doesn't recognise his son, allowing Launcelot to pull a prank on him. He hides his true identity and playfully confuses the old man by telling him that his son has died, before revealing who he really is and kneeling to receive his father's blessing.

Bassanio enters and the two plead with him to accept Launcelot as his new servant. Bassanio takes several moments to understand their proposition, but he accepts the offer, telling his other servants to get him a uniform. Launcelot and Gobbo exit to tell Shylock of the news.

Gratiano enters and asks Bassanio if he can accompany him on his trip to Belmont. Bassanio agrees on the condition that Gratiano will control his usual wild behaviour.

Analysis:

The interaction between Launcelot and his father is typical in Shakespeare plays; servants and members of the working class are frequently used to provide slapstick interludes in both his comedies and tragedies. The type of humour seen here is comedy at its simplest, where laughs are derived not from quick wit but from confusion and foolery.

There is even more visual comedy when the pair meet Bassanio. It is suggested by the lines that Launcelot bends down behind his father, popping up to interrupt him at every other line and finishing his sentences for him. Particularly characteristic of this clowning is the confusion of word meanings. For example, Launcelot uses "infection" for affection, "frutify" for certify, "defect" for effect.

Although Shylock does not appear in this scene, our view of him is further shaped by the opinions of those closest to him. It is clear from Launcelot's speeches that he is not treated well by Shylock.

Important Quotes:

"To be ruled by my conscience I should stay with the Jew my master, who, God bless the mark, is a kind of devil. And to run away from the Jew I should be ruled by the fiend, who, saving your reverence, is the devil himself. " - Launcelot

"Pray thee, take pain
To allay with some cold drops of modesty
Thy skipping spirit, lest through thy wild behavior
I be misconst’red in the place I go to,
And lose my hopes." - Bassanio

The Merchant of Venice: Plot Summary - Act 2