The aim of this essay is to discuss whether the death of Julius Caesar by acquaintances Marcus Brutus and Cassius Longius was due to political or personal motives. The focus will lay in understanding Rome’s political situation at the time, evaluating Caesar’s policies and the possible explanations resulting in Caesar’s assassination. The essay will begin by explaining the political situation in Rome at the time in order to understand the tensions between Caesar and the Senate. The concluding part of the investigation…
Akin to the Salem Witch Trials that took place in 1692 and 1693, the assassination of the great Julius Caesar in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar appeared to be unreasonable or unjust to many of those that honor him. However, unlike the notorious Salem Witch Trials, it is clear that as light manifests itself upon the mysterious reasons in regards to why Julius Caesar was brutally murdered, it is made obvious that Julius Caesar may not have been quite the adored and honorable man that the Romans so hoped for. There was a side to the Julius Caesar that remained hidden by his graciousness and utterly generous facade. This side of the great and almighty Caesar would prove to convince and compel the very Senators that served below him, that Caesar must meet his rather “timely” demise.…
The Roman's godlike worship of Caesar threatens the prominence of the Senate. To retain his dominance Mark Antony chooses to become a close ally to him. Cassius, Brutus, and the other conspirators however, plot Caesar’s demise. In the end, Mark Antony finds high esteem and the conspirators receive banishment and death. The play is an example, or maybe even a warning, that our actions and reactions have real effects. Brutus, Cassius, Casca, Cinna, Trebonius, and Cimber respond swiftly and without thought to Caesar’s rise and pay a heavy price for it in the end. Mark Antony sees the worth in being Caesar’s friend, and their friendship benefits him when Caesar is dead. In the play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare the principal characters' initial reactions to Caesar’s rise affect their conclusive outcomes.…
The leader of Rome is dead, and two men have completely different opinions as to what has happened to him. Brutus, his right hand man, says that he had to be killed due to his excessive ambition. While Antony states that he was brutally murdered by the people who called themselves his friends. But only one of the two stood out, they were so believable and convincing that it was hard to believe anyone other than him. And this speech was given by Antony. He gave an incredibly convincing speech, making the people of Rome completely look past the words of Brutus by sparking different emotions in them. But at the same time he was very careful and precise with his words which helped to protect him from the conspirators who murdered Caesar.…
Julius Caesar’s death included twenty-three brutal senators, an apparent close friend that turned out to be an enemy, a community that loved their leader, and a whole lot of power. Julius Caesar was the most powerful figure in the history of the Roman Republic, and at the time was gaining unlimited power. Caesar gained so much power, that he was being considered as the “King of Rome”. Power became the key to life in Rome, and the Senate was frightened by Caesar’s tremendous amounts of power. Due to this fear, they began to plot a plan to bring down Caesar.…
How can one man’s closest friend also be that man’s murderer? This is precisely what happens in Julius Caesar. Brutus kills his closest friend, Julius Caesar, and then he gives his justification for doing so in his speech at Julius Caesar’s own funeral. Although his speech was flawed, the crowd of people he spoke to were easily swayed, and they accepted Brutus’ justification. Unfortunately for Brutus, he allowed Mark Antony, another one of Caesar’s close friends to speak after him. His speech completely reversed the crowd’s opinion. Comparing Brutus and Antony’s funeral speeches is an important topic because it is a turning point in the conspirator’s attempts to sway the Roman people. The comparison shows how a few crucial errors on the conspirator’s part, along with a great speech by Antony, completely altered the outcome of the entire play. In comparing Brutus and Antony’s speeches, it becomes evident that Antony’s speech was much more effective than Brutus’ speech in four key areas: ethos, pathos, logos, and chronos.…
Our beloved Caesar was shredded from this world by the daggers of hatred and it was Marcus Brutus, who claimed to love the man that led to this tragic murder. Brutus and the conspirators begged that Caesar was killed for the greater good of Rome, and for the benefit of the people, but Caesar was beloved by all. “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more” (3.2.23) ; being viewed as a noble man among the Roman people proved to be more important to Brutus than to be a good man to someone who he had called his friend.. They were all simply jealous men who could not stand to continue to be overshadowed by the light of greater men’s triumphs. He would never continue the cruelty shown by Rome’s first ruler whom we so feared and hated; there was no reason for Caesar to die. Caesar had owned all of his accolades and was punished for doing so. He was a strong man, becoming the head of his house at age 16, being ousted from the country by Sulla, being captured by pirates and later crucifying them after his release. “I could be well moved, if I were as you; “If I could pray to move, prayers would move me but I am constant as the Northern Star, Of whose true-fixed and resting quality / There is no fellow in the firmament.” (3,1, 63). Caesar expresses how he would be a stable leader for the Romans. He has gone through the trials of war and exile and emerged a stronger man. Caesar has suffered through his life, and to be betrayed by those he trusted is worse than the pain he suffered in death. Although Brutus stands at trial this day it should be noted that he did not act alone. Numerous members of the senate were involved in this heinous act and should be met with the same fate that should happen Brutus; namely the manipulative Gaius Cassius Longinus. These men were meant to serve the republic and the glory of Rome, yet shamed it by staining the floor of the senate with the blood of Rome’s favored son. Caesar gave numerous political reforms and was beloved by his…
I, as a juror in Brutus’s trial, am responsible for examining Brutus’s intentions in killing Caesar and determining whether he should be punished for being part of the plot to assassinate the leader of Rome. The resolution of this case will either justify Brutus and the other conspirators’ act of murder or avenge Caesar’s death. Due to his overly ambitious nature and false claim that he did what was best for Rome, I believe that Brutus killed Caesar to gain power and therefore should be punished for his involvement in the murder.…
The four conspirators who were in charge of the assassination of Julius Caesar had many reasons for their attack and desire to kill the emperor of the Roman Republic. The four men that came up with the plan to assassinate Julius Caesar were not enemies of him, and had different beliefs on why they should kill him. The first two conspirators, Gaius Trebonius and Junius Brutus Albinus, both having a friendly relationship with Julius Caesar, had both served and fought with Caesar, but both men believed they had not been given the credit the deserved for the work they had done for him (Wasson). The other two conspirators, Gaius Cassius Linginus and Marcus Junius Brutus did not have the same relationship with Caesar as the first two did. Both of these men had fought and served for Pompey (Wasson). According to Michael Parenti, an American political scientist and historian, there were several reasons behind the desire to assassinate Julius Caesar.…
In Shakespeare’s interpretation of Julius Caesar’s assassination titled, Julius Caesar, a man named Cassius is attempting to get the help and alliance of a fellow Roman named Brutus in the conspiracy of assassinating the Roman leader. He accomplishes this in constructed and detailed monologues to persuade Brutus to join the conspiracy. In each of Cassius’ monologues, Cassius strategically uses appeals and rhetorical devices to ultimately give a successful and persuasive speech to his audience, Brutus.…
The exposition of Julius Caesar, Shakespeare immediately presents the ideals that underpin the differing views of Caesar’s rising power through his two protagonists, Brutus and Cassius. Both characters posses different interpretations on Caesar’s reign on Rome, one being loyal to Rome and a love and respect for Caesar “I love him well” but the other being a spiteful and vitriolic towards a “feeble old tyrant.” This highlights the notion of Cassius’s selfish prejudice towards his own contentment, which is only shown behind closed doors. Brutus on the other hand is victim to Cassius’ vitriol and becomes the pawn as he is manipulated “poor Brutus, with himself at war,” Brutus is troubled emotionally, torn by his patriotism and his respect for Caesar, above all he has an undying love for Rome, “Brutus had rather be a villager than to repute himself a son of Rome.” It is this love for Rome that causes such internal turmoil for Brutus, through Shakespeare’s use of juxtaposition of characters, he is able to highlight to the audience, the lengths that man will go to in order to…
Throughout The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Brutus was one of the most important and influential characters in the play. He involved himself in many of the scandals entailing the conspirators, in hopes of fulfilling his duty as an honorable man. However, his impressionable personality would lead him to a fatal outcome, suicide. There were many different causes and factors that led to his death, along with the death of the other central characters. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar resulted in multiple tragedies, due to the actions and decisions made by Brutus and the other conspirators. Realistically, Brutus’ own decisions led to his death.…
Written by Shakespeare more than one thousand five hundred years after Julius Caesar’s death, Julius Caesar, Shakespeare’s well-known tragedy, is unique in that it contains two tragic characters, the senator Brutus and emperor Caesar. A play in five acts, Julius Caesar attempts to portray the assassination of Caesar, at that time victorious over Pompey’s sons, and the civil war that follows, culminating in the establishment of the Second Triumvirate. Although Caesar meets his end comparatively early in the third act, both Brutus and Caesar are adequately portrayed as men of high repute who, through flawed actions and decisions, meet an untimely end. In short, both are tragic heroes.…
What lead to the assassination and the downfall of Caesar is his arrogance and his quest for power. He is a man of pride and dignity so no one can change his mind.Caesar’s best friend Brutus values his own honor and his love for his country, Rome. When Brutus gets involved in the plot of assassinating Caesar it surprises him. Brutus is in between Cassius and Caesar and he being asked to kill Caesar. Cassius has brought upon the downfall of Brutus and Caesar's downfall.…
“Revenge! About! Sneak! Burn! Fire!…