<Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> Norwegian actor Kjell Stormoen as Antonio at Den Nationale Scene in Bergen, Norway (1969). </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Created by </Th> <Td> William Shakespeare </Td> </Tr> <P> Antonio is the title character in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice . An influential, powerful and wealthy nobleman of Venice, he is a middle - aged man and a merchant by trade who has his financial interests tied up in overseas shipments when the play begins . He is kind, generous, honest and confident, and is loved and revered by all the Christians who know him . His willingness to die for Bassanio is a manifestation of his character . Antonio manifests his piety by cursing and spitting at Shylock (anti-semitism was common in Europe in Shakespeares days). </P> <P> Act 1 When we first see him commiserating with his friends Salanio and Salarino he is pondering the unknown source of his depressive state: </P>

Antonio's role in the merchant of venice