Jessica

This is a marble bust sculpture depicting a young lady Jessica. In Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice, Jessica is the daughter of Shylock, a Jew who lends money to a Christian merchant, Antonio. The plot thickens when Antonio fails to repay Shylock, and the moneylender is ruined. This drama may have appealed to Moses Ezekiel because of its sympathetic portrayal of Jews. As an American Jew living in Italy, Ezekiel may have identified with Shylock, who was forbidden citizenship in Venice because of his faith. Ezekiel's Jessica turns her head as if to say, "I am never merry when I hear sweet music," a line from the play that the sculptor inscribed on the base of the bust.

本作品为一尊大理石胸像，塑造的是年轻女性杰西卡（Jessica）。在威廉·莎士比亚的戏剧《威尼斯商人》（The Merchant of Venice）中，杰西卡是犹太放债人夏洛克（Shylock）的女儿，夏洛克的放贷对象为基督教商人安东尼奥（Antonio）。当安东尼奥未能偿还夏洛克的借款时，剧情急转直下，这位放债人亦因此陷入绝境。该剧因对犹太人的共情式刻画，或许打动了雕塑家摩西·以泽基尔（Moses Ezekiel）。作为旅居意大利的美国犹太人，以泽基尔或可共情夏洛克——夏洛克因其宗教信仰，被剥夺了威尼斯的公民权。以泽基尔创作的这座杰西卡胸像中，少女侧首而立，仿佛正吟诵剧中台词："每当听见悦耳的音乐，我便从未有过欢愉"，该台词亦被雕塑家镌刻于这座胸像的基座之上。