The Merchant of Venice

In 1596, in the liberal Venice, Bassanio asks for a large amount to his friend, the merchant Antonio, to travel to Belmont and propose the gorgeous Portia. Antonio has invested all his money in his ships and borrows from the Jewish usurer Shylock, against whose people there is a great intolerance in Venice. Shylock proposes an unusual bond: if Antonio does not pay the money without any interest three months later, he might receive one pound of his flesh instead, at his choice.