The Merchant of Venice is a popular work that allows for a wide variety of interpretations. The complexity of the characters of Portia and Shylock in particular continue to intrigue actors, critics, and readers alike. As S. C. Sen Gupta has stated, "The Merchant of  Venice introduces us to the middle of Shakespeare's dramatic career" in which "we find not the apprentice of promise but the artist of full genius." (See also Shakespearean Criticism, Vols. 4, 12)