Abstract: This study aims to investigate the complicated characters of the most memorable figures in The Merchant of Venice ——Shylock. The thesis first analyses the characters of Shylock, then tries to find out reasons for his complicated characters. Shylock is a character with multiple characters.He is portrayed as a typical, blood-thirsty Jewish villain. At the same time, he is also a tragic figure , a pitiful Jew and a national hero. The sociological factors, environmental pressures and religious background have a strong influence upon Shylock’s complicated characters. The paper concludes that a study of Shylock’s characters is of great importance for critics and readers to carry out further researches into The Merchant of Venice.

Key words: Shylock; The Merchant of Venice；discrimination; character

摘要：本文旨在研究分析《威尼斯商人》中最令人难忘的人物夏洛克的人物形象，文章首先分析了夏洛克的性格，然后寻找夏洛克复杂性格产生的原因。夏洛克是一个具有多面性格的人物。他既是典型的犹太恶棍的象征，同时也是一个悲剧人物，一位民族英雄。文章认为，社会因素，环境压力以及宗教背景对夏洛克的复杂性格有很大的影响。文章最后得出结论，对夏洛克形象的研究对《威尼斯商人》进一步的研究具有重大的意义。

关键词：夏洛克；《威尼斯商人》；歧视；性格