The interaction between father and son takes place in Act II, Scene ii, with a teasing display of affection where Lancelot fools his father into thinking he is dead, and then asks for his help in leaving Shylock's employment. His father, an old blind servant, supports his son and urges Bassanio to hire his son. The unconditional love between father and son is quite clear in this funny yet touching scene. This is in direct contrast to the relationship between Jessica and Shylock. Jessica despises living in her father's house and hopes to elope with her love, Lorenzo. She finds her father stingy and live in her home is "hell." She despairs when Lancelot leaves, and determines to leave as well. Both she and Lancelot chafe at Shylock's ways, but her relationship with her father is strained at best. The healthy relationship between Lancelot and his father only serves to point out the difficulties between Shylock and his daughter, and serve to show the importance Shakespeare placed on family relationships in his work. Eventually, Jessica denounces her father and her family religion, and hopes to become a Christian, which is the ultimate rejection of her Jewish father and his way of life. Both plays certainly address family issues differently, and yet the core is the same, as it is in so many Shakespeare plays - comedy, tragedy, or romance. Family issues are at the core of many of the characters' most important, life-changing decisions. The relationship...

Shakespeare uses this emotional and often volatile relationship as a tool in his work, and even when it is not the dominant theme, as in these two works, it certainly plays an important role beside the other characters in the plays. These two works illustrate the subtle and not so subtle way family relationships alter how the characters look at the world. Jessica sees the world as an escape from her father's iron hand, while Henry uses his position and power inherited from his father to change the face of England, at least for a time. Family relationships are at the root of their actions and the root of their rewards, as well.
In conclusion, both of these plays illustrate the intricacies of parent/child relationships. Some are exceedingly healthy and adult, while some are exceedingly childish and harmful. It is quite clear from these two works that parents can influence and drive their children's lives - often long after their deaths. Many of Shakespeare's works include this theme of familial bonding and bondage, and these two works illustrate this theme in very diverse ways, but with commonalities, too. The parent/child relationship has dominated families for centuries, and Shakespeare's works help show the complexities of this nearly unavoidable family relationship.