Shylock is the Villian in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice In Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice the antagonist of the play is Shylock. Shylock is a wealthy Jewish moneylender. Shylock is probably the most memorable character in the play because of Shakespeare's excellent characterization of him. Shylock is the antagonist in the play because he stands in the way of love, but this does not necessarily make him the villain of the play. Shylock can be seen as both the villain of the play and as a man who is very human. The villain that we see in Shylock is the greedy m