The Merchant of Venice

Portia’s Speech about Mercy

The quality of mercy is not strained;	You cannot force someone to be merciful 	
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven	It drops like the gentle rain from heaven 	
Upon the place beneath; it is twice blest;	On the place below; it is blessed twice 	
It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes;	It blesses him that gives and him that takes 	
'Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes	It is the greatest of all qualities; it suits 	
The throned monarch better than his crown.	The king better than his crown. 	
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power, 	His staff of office symbolizes his earthly power, 	
The attribute to awe and majesty,	And the respect that is due to a king, 	
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;	And this is where we fear kings; 	
But mercy is above this sceptred sway;	But mercy is above this power; 	
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings;	It sits in the hearts of kings; 	
It is an attribute to God himself;	It is something God has; 	
And earthly power doth then show likest God's	And we become like God 	
When mercy seasons justice. Therefore, Jew,	When mercy softens justice. Therefore, Jew, 	
Though justice be thy plea, consider this:	Though you want justice, think about this: 	
That in the course of justice none of us	If we just had to depend upon justice 	
Should see salvation; we do pray for mercy,	None of us would be saved from damnation; we pray for mercy, 	
And that same prayer doth teach us all to render	And that prayer teaches us all to be 	
The deeds of mercy. I have spoke thus much	Merciful. I have spoken so much 	
To mitigate the justice of thy plea,	To soften that part of your suit which asks for pure justice, 	
Which, if thou follow, this strict court of Venice	If you follow this strict court of Venice 	
Must needs give sentence 'gainst the merchant there.	We have to give a sentence that condemns the merchant over there. 	

Instructions

Match the original lines with the modern version. 

What does this speech tell us about mercy?

What do we learn about the character of Portia?

What do we learn about justice?

The quality of mercy is not strained; 	
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven 	
Upon the place beneath; it is twice blest; 	
It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes; 	
'Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes 	
The throned monarch better than his crown. 	
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power, 	
The attribute to awe and majesty, 	
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings; 	
But mercy is above this sceptred sway; 	
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings; 	
It is an attribute to God himself; 	
And earthly power doth then show likest God's 	
When mercy seasons justice. Therefore, Jew, 	
Though justice be thy plea, consider this: 	
That in the course of justice none of us 	
Should see salvation; we do pray for mercy, 	
And that same prayer doth teach us all to render 	
The deeds of mercy. I have spoke thus much 	
To mitigate the justice of thy plea, 	
Which, if thou follow, this strict court of Venice 	
Must needs give sentence 'gainst the merchant there. 	
You cannot force someone to be merciful 	
It drops like the gentle rain from heaven 	
On the place below; it is blessed twice 	
It blesses him that gives and him that takes 	
It is the greatest of all qualities; it suits 	
The king better than his crown. 	
His staff of office symbolizes his earthly power, 	
And the respect that is due to a king, 	
And this is where we fear kings; 	
But mercy is above this power; 	
It sits in the hearts of kings; 	
It is something God has; 	
And we become like God 	
When mercy softens justice. Therefore, Jew, 	
Though you want justice, think about this: 	
If we just had to depend upon justice 	
None of us would be saved from damnation; we pray for mercy, 	
And that prayer teaches us all to be 	
Merciful. I have spoken so much 	
To soften that part of your suit which asks for pure justice, 	
If you follow this strict court of Venice 	
We have to give a sentence that condemns the merchant over there. 	

Instructions

Match the original lines with the modern version. 

What does this speech tell us about mercy?

What do we learn about the character of Portia?

What do we learn about justice?

© Ministry of Education, Wellington, New Zealand (First published 1998)