Was Julius Caesar Honorable
Brutus was an honorable man, as many have said. High in power, he always spoke the truth to the people of Rome, saying he would kill himself for the good of it. He was Caesar's right-hand man and did what he thought was right. In this play he was tricked by He was tricked by Cassius and believed the only way to stop his rule was to kill him. In the play, Brutus was an honorable man, but trusted almost everyone. Still, Brutus killed himself believing his choice was right one. In Julius Caesar, written by William Shakespeare, Brutus was seen as the tragic hero of the play.
Many people saw Brutus as a great man, who did what was right for all. His first love was to Rome. During his speech at Caesar's funeral, he said “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more” (3.2.21-22). This shows how he was willing to do everything he could for Rome, even if it means taking his own life which he also states in his speech. He explains why Caesar was assassinated; because he was too ambitious. Brutus tells the horrified onlookers that "Ambition's debt is paid", indicating …show more content…
that it is Caesar's ambition that has led to his death (Ridley-Elmes, “Ambition”). Although, in the end Brutus’s political power did not allow him to persuade the people of Rome.
Caesar also trusted Brutus and was his best friend. He also had a high position in government beside Caesar. That is why Caesar felt very conflicted when Brutus stabbed him. A famous quote during that scene is “Et tu Brute?”(3.1.77), latin for “And you Brutus?”, showing how shocked Caesar was to find out that he was a conspirator. The term ‘back-stabbing’ came from this scene in the play. Brutus had become a conspirator because Cassius tricked him by saying “A man of such feeble temper should so get the start of the majestic world, and then bear the palm alone” (1.2.129-131).
The most important role in the play for Brutus was his contribution to the conspirators. As the smartest out of the bunch of men, he argued the tactics they should take and if they should only kill Caesar or more people higher in government, like Mark Antony for example. When arguing with the men about this he says “Our course will seem too bloody....for Antony is but a limb of Caesar. Let us be sacrificers but not butchers, Caius” (2.1.162-166). Brutus was a tragic hero because he was easily persuaded and even though he had his doubts, he still went along with the plan for the assassination of Caesar. In act 2 he said “Since Cassius first did whet me against Caesar, I have not slept.” Although he was a tragic hero, he still believed that Caesar had to die for the better of Rome at the end of the play.
Brutus felt the most guilty after fleeing the city, especially when he argues with Cassius about him betraying with the murder of Caesar. He also feels the most guilt and takes the most responsibility when he find out his wife, Portia, is dead by eating fire. “It is clear that Brutus feels that he bears some responsibility for the death of his wife… In killing Caesar he..caused this absence of her.” (Ridley-Elmes, “Guilt”).
A great way of explaining why Brutus is a tragic hero is by this quote, “Caesar ...
is in a sense the dominating figure in the story, but Brutus is the hero” (Paolucci, “The tragic hero”). Shakespeare meant for Brutus to be the hero of the story. He is a tragic hero by Aristotle's definition. He was good because of his care for the city of Rome. His tragic flaw which led to the death of his best friend; he was too trusting toward people. His tragic realization was at the end of the play, which was when he had to flee the city and go into war leading to the death of him and the conspirators. The audience also felt the emotions such as pity and fear for Brutus, which is another one of Aristotle's rules. Pity because Brutus only followed along with the plan of killing Caesar because Cassius tricked him. Fear because what if a close friend turned on one of the people in the audience, such as Brutus
did.
Brutus’s flaw that led to chaos in the play was that he trusted people too much. For example, when Cassius easily ticked him by sending the multiple letters from the “people” that he wrote. He also trusted Antony enough to let him speak at Caesar’s funeral, even though Cassius advised against it. After learning that he was losing the war against Antony, he panicked and committed suicide at the battle field.
Brutus may have been an honorable man, giving options to the people of Rome. After Antony’s speech at Caesar’s funeral, a lot of people may have seen him differently than before. Sadly he made a mistake, trusted the wrong man, and causes chaos for all of Rome. He was a smart, hard-headed man who was passionate about his beliefs. So passionate in fact, that he killed his best friend and causes a tremendous amount of backlash because of it. I do not think Brutus regretted his choice, but he was the reason of the downfall of Rome.
Many people saw Brutus as a great man, who did what was right for all. His first love was to Rome. During his speech at Caesar's funeral, he said “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more” (3.2.21-22). This shows how he was willing to do everything he could for Rome, even if it means taking his own life which he also states in his speech. He explains why Caesar was assassinated; because he was too ambitious. Brutus tells the horrified onlookers that "Ambition's debt is paid", indicating …show more content…
that it is Caesar's ambition that has led to his death (Ridley-Elmes, “Ambition”). Although, in the end Brutus’s political power did not allow him to persuade the people of Rome.
Caesar also trusted Brutus and was his best friend. He also had a high position in government beside Caesar. That is why Caesar felt very conflicted when Brutus stabbed him. A famous quote during that scene is “Et tu Brute?”(3.1.77), latin for “And you Brutus?”, showing how shocked Caesar was to find out that he was a conspirator. The term ‘back-stabbing’ came from this scene in the play. Brutus had become a conspirator because Cassius tricked him by saying “A man of such feeble temper should so get the start of the majestic world, and then bear the palm alone” (1.2.129-131).
The most important role in the play for Brutus was his contribution to the conspirators. As the smartest out of the bunch of men, he argued the tactics they should take and if they should only kill Caesar or more people higher in government, like Mark Antony for example. When arguing with the men about this he says “Our course will seem too bloody....for Antony is but a limb of Caesar. Let us be sacrificers but not butchers, Caius” (2.1.162-166). Brutus was a tragic hero because he was easily persuaded and even though he had his doubts, he still went along with the plan for the assassination of Caesar. In act 2 he said “Since Cassius first did whet me against Caesar, I have not slept.” Although he was a tragic hero, he still believed that Caesar had to die for the better of Rome at the end of the play.
Brutus felt the most guilty after fleeing the city, especially when he argues with Cassius about him betraying with the murder of Caesar. He also feels the most guilt and takes the most responsibility when he find out his wife, Portia, is dead by eating fire. “It is clear that Brutus feels that he bears some responsibility for the death of his wife… In killing Caesar he..caused this absence of her.” (Ridley-Elmes, “Guilt”).
A great way of explaining why Brutus is a tragic hero is by this quote, “Caesar ...
is in a sense the dominating figure in the story, but Brutus is the hero” (Paolucci, “The tragic hero”). Shakespeare meant for Brutus to be the hero of the story. He is a tragic hero by Aristotle's definition. He was good because of his care for the city of Rome. His tragic flaw which led to the death of his best friend; he was too trusting toward people. His tragic realization was at the end of the play, which was when he had to flee the city and go into war leading to the death of him and the conspirators. The audience also felt the emotions such as pity and fear for Brutus, which is another one of Aristotle's rules. Pity because Brutus only followed along with the plan of killing Caesar because Cassius tricked him. Fear because what if a close friend turned on one of the people in the audience, such as Brutus
did.
Brutus’s flaw that led to chaos in the play was that he trusted people too much. For example, when Cassius easily ticked him by sending the multiple letters from the “people” that he wrote. He also trusted Antony enough to let him speak at Caesar’s funeral, even though Cassius advised against it. After learning that he was losing the war against Antony, he panicked and committed suicide at the battle field.
Brutus may have been an honorable man, giving options to the people of Rome. After Antony’s speech at Caesar’s funeral, a lot of people may have seen him differently than before. Sadly he made a mistake, trusted the wrong man, and causes chaos for all of Rome. He was a smart, hard-headed man who was passionate about his beliefs. So passionate in fact, that he killed his best friend and causes a tremendous amount of backlash because of it. I do not think Brutus regretted his choice, but he was the reason of the downfall of Rome.