Bassiano, a noble Venetian, hopes to woo the beautiful heiress Portia. However, he requires financial assistance from his friend Antonio. Antonio agrees, but he, in turn, must borrow from the Jewish moneylender Shylock. As recourse for past ills, Shylock stipulates that the forfeit on the loan must be a pound of Antonio’s flesh. In the most renowned onstage law scene of all time, Portia proves herself one of Shakespeare’s most cunning heroines, disguising herself as a lawyer and vanquishing Shylock’s claims; meanwhile, Shylock triumphs on a humanitarian level with his plea for tolerance: ‘Hath not a Jew eyes?’


貴族出身的威尼斯人巴薩尼奧欲追求貌美的富家女波西亞，於是向好友安東尼奧借錢。 安多尼奧答應相助，便向放高利貸的夏洛克借錢。由於過去的嫌隙，夏洛克便規定，要是安東尼奧無法如期還款，那麼他必須割下一磅肉以作處罰。假扮律師的波西亞，使出回馬槍，讓夏洛克的要求無法得逞，實為莎士比亞筆下最為機伶的女英雄之一，這一幕也成為著名的法庭橋段；而夏洛克乞求寬恕時所說的「難道猶太人就沒有眼睛嗎？」，亦也道出了人性的真理。