Portia: The Best Female Shakespearean Part?
             Portia is one of Shakespeare's best parts for an actress as, apart from being one of the central characters within the main plot of the play; she displays great wit and intelligence. These are assets which none of Shakespeare's other female roles ever had as women who lived around the same time as Shakespeare, were not considered to have such honourable traits.
             Portia has many lengthy speeches, and in almost all of theses she displays her great intelligence and wit, either by insulting her hapless suitors or saving her new husband's friend with her extensive knowledge of the Law and the way in which a court-room works.
             There are few scenes in which Portia is not involved. These are mainly the opening scene, and the scenes involving the signing of the bond. This seems to show that she has no need to borrow money, therefore it strengthens the fact, which we have already been told, that she is wealthy. We are told this in the opening scene, " In Belmont is a lady richly left". This is also reflected in the scene in which Bassanio tells her of the loan and the bond involved. She says "What, no more?" when she is told of the sum that is to be paid back and tells him to " Pay him six thousand, and deface the bond; double six thousand and then treble that". This not only shows her to be well off, but generous and kind as well.
             Portia gets to prove her wit and knowledge of the Law in the courtroom scene as she dresses as a male lawyer so she may be permitted to enter the court and is instituted as the presiding lawyer in the case. She is allowed to do this as she has letters from another judge which say that she is his trainee and is well learned. She would not be allowed to do this without a decent amount of knowledge of the Law. She proceeds by seeming to side with Shylock and accepting his claims for his rightful forfeit as is ...