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- DictionaryOne's pound of flesh
- ▪ something one is strictly or legally entitled to, but which it is ruthless or inhuman to demand
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POUND OF FLESH definition: 1. something that you have the right to receive but is unreasonable to demand from someone 2…. Learn more.
5 days ago · something that strict justice demands is due, but can only be paid with great loss or suffering to the payer. See full dictionary entry for flesh. Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019 by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
Origins and Historical Context of the Idiom “pound of flesh” The phrase “pound of flesh” is commonly used in English to describe a situation where someone demands something that is owed to them, regardless of the consequences or harm it may cause. The origins of this idiom can be traced back to William Shakespeare’s play “The ...
This of course derives from Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, 1596. The insistence by Shylock of the payment of Antonio's flesh is the central plot device of the play: The pound of flesh which I demand of him Is deerely bought, 'tis mine, and I will haue it.
There’s a larger quote that contains the phrase “a pound of flesh,” and it comes from none other than William Shakespeare himself in his famous play “The Merchant of Venice.” The quote is as follows:
Creditors who insist on having their “pound of flesh” are those who cruelly demand the repayment of a debt, no matter how much suffering it will cost the debtor: “The bank will have its pound of flesh; it is going to foreclose on our mortgage and force us to sell our home.”
A multibillion-dollar corporation wants its pound of flesh from the elderly widow of a former customer, and it appears determined to get its $2,352.72 at all costs, including the hiring of a law firm described by Collections & Credit Risk magazine as “the largest creditors’ rights firm in the country.”. – LA Times.
