Source
The Merchant of Venice
A comedy by William Shakespeare, written in the late 1590s and first printed in 1600. In the trial scene (Act 4, Scene 1) Portia, disguised as a lawyer, pleads for mercy in a speech that became one of the best-known passages in English.
References
Quotes (1)
“The quality of mercy is not strain’d, 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.”
— William Shakespeare (spoken by Portia), The Merchant of Venice, Act 4, Scene 1 (Portia's speech); line breaks removed