reason for her emotional condition. She is bound to obey the rules set down in the will of her departed father. She is trapped by these rules, just as Antonio is trapped by life. Portia desires a change that will set her free, and Antonio also may likewise require a change to set him free from his melancholydisposition.
Nerissa, as it turns out, is a wise servant and friend who philosophically advises Portia to view matters from the proper perspective. Nerissa reminds Portia that her “good fortunes” – referring both to wealth and to all of the other advantages she has been given in life – far outweigh her “miseries” or problems. With ametaphorNerissa asserts that a person who eats too much can become just as sick as a person who does not eat enough (lines 5-6). She is suggesting, in this manner, that people who have an excess of wealth and other advantages may worry so much about their situations, their responsibilities, and their property that they become seriously ill. Nerissa emphasizes this idea with another figurativeexpression:
Superfluity comes sooner by white hairs, but competency lives longer.(7-8)
The wordsuperfluityrefers to the privileged class, to the wealthy people who have more than they need. The wordcompetency, on the other hand, refers to those people who have enough but not too much. Nerissa is observing that often people of the privileged class age faster. Theirresponsibilities