How much is the proverbial "pound of flesh" worth?

1 pound.

I know you put this in social, so maybe you are expecting something witty instead of something serious.

I think that the family you brought the lawsuit is way out of line, and they are going to lose, big.

The castaway did what he had to do to stay alive. If he hadn’t survived, the family would have no one to sue in the first place. Further, the family has no eyewitnesses, only the testimony of the eater himself, and I doubt you can lose the case by testifying against yourself.

But the lawyers will no doubt find this a case that they can sink their teeth into. And I can’t wait to see how to refer to this case in the law digests.

I agree, @elbanditoroso, that the lawsuit is frivolous. There never will be any supporting evidence.

That’s why I put the question in social.

Well, it was originally worth 3,000 gold ducats (about $350,000 today if melted down and sold on the open market, though that might be a bit misleading due to various economic changes since the 16th century).

Well, I just found an average estimate for 10 lbs (the guideline for maximum amount for one procedure of laser liposuction equals about $9200, so that’s almost a hundred bucks a pound if you’re trying to get rid of it. More if you’ve got less flesh to start with.

It’s completely relative. If you have a pound to spare then it isn’t worth as much to you as is would be if you didn’t.

@AdventureElephants I imagine that no matter how many pounds you have to spare, you’re going to wish you could keep it when the lender comes to remove it from you. This is assuming they do it the old school way, of course.