The Merchant of Venice written by William Shakespeare is considered to be a problem play, since it does not deal with history nor comedy or death; instead, there are moral dilemmas left unresolved. Nonetheless, if a thorough analysis is carried out, it can be claimed that there are several characters that suffer from different situations that, despite not ending in death, resemble those endured by victims in tragedies. To be more specific, Shylock, Antonio, Portia and Jessica can be seen to undergo some sort of grievance or pain – not only physical, but also psychological and moral – which determines their roles in the play and their positions in the world within it. Shakespeare’s careful choice of victims challenges the established rules of Elizabethan society by giving voice to two women, a Jew and a veiled homosexual – that is to say, to the other – making them prominent characters, regardless of their being controversial at the time. These individuals acknowledge their otherness in terms of their being subject to unrequited love, anti-Semitism and patriarchal beliefs; notwithstanding that, Shakespeare provides these characters with agency enough so as to challenge the dominant discourse and the state of affairs. However, due to the constraints in Elizabethan society, Shakespeare managed to do so in a non-overt way, which requires close reading. Thus, the aim of this analysis will be twofold: on the one hand, it will try to provide an analysis of the above mentioned characters as victims in the play and, on the other hand, it will attempt to exemplify the ways in which these characters embody their otherness and consequently question the Elizabethan status quo through language and agency. This will be done with the aid of viewpoints of authors such as Theresa Kemp, Valerie Traub and Harold Bloom, among others.