Salerio and Salanio in the Merchant of Venice

In lieu of Christian thinking it is believed that Antonio is a Christ figure who loves mankind enough to die for him, Portia is like the Virgin Mary and Shylock the devil. Shakespeare juggles these differing chronologies by using Salerio and Salanio to fill in the missing Venetian weeks. However, we cannot be sure that Shylock really reacted in this way, since we hear the story secondhand from Salerio and Salanio whom are poking fun at the Jew. For example, Salerio's theory that love is at its best when the lover chases the object of his affection, and that once he captures his lady and consummates the relationship, the lover tends to tire and lose interest. Not only do they tell us the news but they also go out to uncover the news. In contrast to the major characters, Salerio and Salanio have no emotional life themselves but they instead satisfy this by talking about the emotional lives of others. Salanio declares that Shylock is the worst of men, and Antonio reasons that the Jew hates him for bailing many of Shylock's debtors out of debt. Also, these so-called “Christians” of Venice lack Morality. For Salerio and Salanio, as Venetians and supporters of Antonio, it is assumed they uphold Christian values. For instance, when Shylock accuses them of having helped Jessica escape, the two Venetians proudly take credit for their role in Jessica's elopement. In addition Salerio and Salanio never talk about their own lives. 60-61)# Since Salerio and Salanio function largely as commentators, stage directors have a good deal of leeway in deciding how their role should be interpreted. Today this is similar to our cultures obsession with the rich and famous.

The fact that Salerio and Salanio immerse themselves with other characters and form opinions and theories only further suggests a lack of substance in their own lives and a need to fit in.