What's the meaning of the phrase 'The quality of mercy is not strained'?
From
Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, 1596.
PORTIA:
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:
'Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes
The throned monarch better than
his crown;
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute
to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
Woe is me - caption
What’s the origin of the phrase ‘The quality of mercy is not strained’?
From Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, 1596.
PORTIA:
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:
‘Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown;
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
Historical trend
“quality of mercy is not” in printed material over time
