I'm so sorry! I never got into Shakespeare when I should have. I was tired of being labelled a geek back then. It wasn't until my own children had to perform Shakespeare at school that I began to see his genius. He was really ahead of his time, wasn't he?
I'm sure there are plenty of other Freepers who could help you with this analogy. If not, maybe you could contact Ken Jennings. ;-)
Basic synopsis of that part of the plot: Bassanio borrowed some money from Shylock, agreeing to forfeit a pound of flesh should he default. As it happened, he did default, and so Shylock went to court to demand his pound of flesh. Portia, disguised as a man, acted as an attourney for Bassanio, and stated that Shylock should be allowed his pound of flesh but as soon as the court ordered that he take it, she informed the court that Shylock should be prosecuted should he remove any bone or blood, or if his measure proved to be anything more or less than a pound exactly. Shylock offered to forgive the debt, but Portia would have none of it since the court had ordered that Shylock take the pound (exactly) of flesh (and only flesh). Shylock pled for the court to revoke the order, which it did after ordering a large forfeiture on Shylock's part.
See where I'm going with this?