The Merchant of Venice: Act One

In Act 1, we are introduced to the major characters in the play. Which one do you find most interesting and why?

     In Act One, the character "Shylock" stood out to me. Shylock is a Jewish money lender who seems to be depicted as the antagonist in the book and is treated harshly. Antonio was requesting a loan from Shylock for Bassanio and Shylock did loan him the money despite Antonio's hatred towards him. The terms of the loan were interesting to me. Shylock says he'll make the loan without interest if Antonio is to remove a pound of his own flesh in the case the loan isn't repaid. Shylock is noted as "kind" by Antonio because of the deal he has offered. It seems that there is more to this deal and relationship between Shylock and Antonio which I am interested to learn about in the upcoming acts we read. I think Antonio thinks of Shylock as a stereotypical Jew who cares largely about money over anything else, but I think Shylock may have other intentions in mind.