13.The End of the Play（261）

Lesson 13  The End of the Play

The ending of a play might not always be what the audience expects, but that's what makes it interesting and fun.

"The Merchant of Venice" by William Shakespeare is a great example.

Shylock, a greedy moneylender, loaned 3,000 ducats to Antonio, who took the loan for a friend.

Antonio had put all his money into ships filled with goods still at sea.

Their deal was if Antonio couldn't repay the loan on time, Shylock could cut a pound of flesh from Antonio's chest.

Sadly, Antonio's ships were lost at sea in a storm, so he couldn't pay back the loan when it was due.

Shylock went to court to ask if he could cut a pound of flesh from Antonio as their contract stated.

Shylock had disliked Antonio for a long time because Antonio lent money to people without interest, which hurt Shylock's business.

Shylock thought by taking a pound of flesh from Antonio, he could get rid of his competition.

The judge was shocked by this request but couldn't go against the contract, which was seen as sacred.

The judge tried hard to convince Shylock to forget about his claim but ended up having to agree with him when he refused.

Just as Shylock was about to cut the flesh, the judge told him he must take exactly one pound, no more, no less, and without making Antonio bleed, as the contract didn't say anything about blood.

Obviously, Shylock couldn't do this, so the judge ordered all his property to be taken away.