If the play itself is X then X is portraying the creator’s intensions and goals for the play. The intensions Shakespeare had for “the Merchant of Venice” seemingly is that of a simple drama portraying the lives of a group of people in Venice and how they interact. Shylock is the stereotypical Jew portrayed as the somewhat wealthy yet misunderstood by his Christian friends. Bassiano is one of the main characters, taking out a loan from his best friend Antonio to woo Portia into marring him. This ring of characters familiarizes us with the tale and presents the situation in detail to our own understanding. The conflicts no doubt have some purpose to enlighten the reader or audience to whatever Shakespeare intends. What exactly Shakespeare intends to portray in this play is unknown to me, having only read the first act but I can guess it is either a comedy or a serious portrayal of morals.