The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice is a 16th-century play written by William Shakespeare, in which a merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock.

Summary
Antonio borrows money from Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, to lend money to his friend Bassanio. Bassanio uses the money to successfully woo Portia, a wealthy and intelligent woman with a large inheritance. Unfortunately, a tragic accident leaves Antonio unable to repay his debt to Shylock, and he must be punished as agreed by giving a pound of his flesh to the moneylender. Portia travels in disguise to the court and saves Antonio by pointing out that Shylock may only take flesh, and not any blood. Shylock is foiled, Portia reveals her identity, and Antonio's wealth is restored.

In Series
After Will allows Kit to claim the author credit for The Jew of Malta, in thanks for Kit saving Will from ridicule at the hands of Robert Greene, Will's wife Anne encourages her husband to write a better Jew play, which eventually becomes The Merchant of Venice.

Following a spate of anti-immigrant rioting, Kate suggests that Shylock, the moneylender and oppressed outsider, should be written as a Jew, rather than a Dutchman as Will originally intended. However, Will's decision to incorporate sympathic elements into Shylock's personality results in an argument with the Red Lion Theatre actors, which leads to them insisting that Jews are guilty of serious crimes against Christians, stating that the audience will assume Shylock, and not Antonio, is the title character, and agreeing with the claim by new actor Wolf Hall that will's plays were, in fact, written by other people.