PORTIA

Brutus' wife in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. Portia's concern for Brutus reveals how his health has been affected by his role in the conspiracy against Caesar. She persuades him to confide in her but is undone by her fear for him and eventually takes her own life. a rich heiress of Belmont in Shakespeare's comedy The Merchant of Venice. Portia is a spirited young woman who must choose a worthy husband from among several men; her relationship to Bassanio is one of the play's important subplots. In the course of the play Portia disguises herself as a man, serves as Antonio's lawyer against the rightful claims of Shylock, and delivers an eloquent speech, "The quality of mercy is not strained" (IV:i), in an attempt to persuade Shylock to spare Antonio's life.