Despite the play being named after him, Julius Caesar is not the protagonist or the main concentration of the story, instead focusing on the assassination of Caesar. In doing, so Shakespeare does not allow the audience to verify claims made about Caesar. Instead his arrogance, fragility, and ambition are neither explicitly confirmed or denied. However, actions speak louder than words, and Caesar’s actions only demonstrate how noble he is.
From a young age, children learn that their irresistible cuteness can be beneficial in getting their ways in a variety of situations. Once they learn where their parents’ weakness is, they soon find out ways to manipulate their parents to their advantage by smiling or batting their eyes. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, Cassius and Antony manipulate both friends and enemies by influencing them in a clever and deceitful way for personal gain while Brutus and Caesar become victims of the manipulation. Certain characters who are perceptive and aggressive are able to manipulate without hesitation, while other characters possess arrogance and nobility which makes them easy targets for manipulation.
Most of this play centers around the conspirators in the plot to assassinate Julius Caesar, and the main conspirator was Cassius. During the first half of the play Cassius’ main goal was to convince Brutus to betray his best friend Caesar and join the conspiracy. Cassius’ best skill in speaking skill was manipulation; in order to get Brutus on his side Cassius lies and manipulates Brutus by telling stories about Caesars weaknesses and praising Brutus on his honor. Cassius boosts Brutus’ on many occasions, starting his story about Caesar stating, “I know that virtue to be in you, Brutus,/ As well as I do know your outward favor./ Well, honor is the subject of my story” (1.2.92-94). In saying things like this Cassius
In the novel, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by Shakespeare, after Brutus brutally executes Caesar in Act 3 Scene 2, Antony is allowed to give a speech to the people of Rome whom have seen witnessed this fatal tragedy in Scene 3. Antony uses anaphora, connotative diction and details throughout his speech to persuade the Romans to change their perspective of Caesar and Brutus. The way Antony speaks about both Caesar & Brutus are a dispute of what he is actually trying to announce to the Romans. At the end of his speech, Antony hopes to reach the Romans emotionally (pathos) by enraging them against Brutus’s false statements against Caesar.
In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, after Caesar’s death, the Romans are conflicted about what should be done. After Brutus’ speech the Romans are ready to crown Brutus king and be on the conspirators’ side. Though Brutus then leaves the crowd while Antony delivers his speech, the crowd realizes what should be done of Caesar’s murder and Antony prevents the conspirators from getting away with the murder of Caesar. Antony uses rhetorical appeals and techniques in his speech to turn the people of Rome against those conspiring against Caesar. As a result, the people see Antony as a persuasive and strong leader of Rome.
MLK, Jr. once said, “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends” (Goodreads). In the play Julius Caesar written by William Shakespeare, actions and words are used and spoken against a friend and a rival contributing to the assassination of their fellow friend Caesar. Two people that were very close to Caesar speak out against each other during their funeral speeches. Brutus, who is a “friend” and also a conspirator against Caesar, and Antony who is a very loyal friend to Caesar, use several rhetorical and literary devices as they create tone of proud assertive and defiant manipulation to get the Roman citizens on their side.
Some playwrights choose to write plays about historical events, among them there is The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, a play that describes the downfall of the rule of Julius Caesar, but is also a play that is not as truthful as it first impressionably is, a complete truthful account of Julius Caesar’s assassination and the events leading up to it. In order to greater attract the audience, Shakespeare, along with other playwrights, relied on adding historical inaccuracies to add the necessary suspense. Thus, Shakespeare strayed away from historical events occurring during Caesar’s lifetime, implementing inaccuracy into the story. Shakespeare based one of his most well-known plays, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, on historical events that includes
Is a good deed still a good deed when looked at from an ice cold eye? Was it ever really a good deed at all? It’s all about perspective. In the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, ethos, pathos, and logos is used to show both sides of a deed that was good in one eye and cold in the other. He uses ethos to show the credibility of the speeches, logos to show facts given, and pathos to show the emotion shown throughout the eulogies. In this scene Caesar has been murdered by the conspirators including Brutus. Brutus is one of Caesar's good friends who is driven by honor; who thought Caesar’s ambition was going to be the end of Rome. Antony is a very loyal friend of Caesar’s who does not agree with the conspirators. Brutus and Antony are both smart well thought out characters. They desire to persuade the commoners to their side of the situation. Brutus and Antony use ethos, logos, and pathos in their speeches to convince the commoners of their side of the story. One person just so happens to be more convincing than the other.
There are many different themes that can be identified in a novel;, however, one is usually more prominent than the others. The themes found within novels are not only confined to the original work but can be found throughout other literary works and societal values. When a theme has been identified within a novel, other connections can be made. Within Julius Caesar, the prominent theme is manipulation; a theme with connections around the world.
Julius Caesar is a play that is primarily about persuasion. For example, Cassius manages to persuades Brutus the death of Caesar is necessary for the good of Rome. The ending of the play is basically determined by the speeches that were made to the plebeians by Brutus and Mark Antony. Throughout the play of Julius Caesar, examples of effective rhetoric are shown and the support it truly deserves by having Brutus's speech and it arguing about Mark Antony's. Shakespeare shows that Antony's speech is far more persuasive and reaching to the plebeians than Brutus’ is.
The responses that the audience apprehends, alters through the exploration of intertextual perspectives. These perspectives are shaped around the composer’s attitudes in respect to context. Likewise, the political treatise The Prince(1513) written by Nicolló Machiavelli, during the sixteenth century Italian renaissance and the tragic play Julius Caesar(1599) composed during the late 16th century Elizabethan era by William Shakespeare, highlight similar contextual values of Statecraft and the Corruption linked through the role of morality to appreciate the acquisition and abuse of authority. However, both texts evoke juxtaposing responses for the audience due to their difference in context.
In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare includes prophets, omens, and natural phenomenon that point to the tragic end of the three main characters: Julius Caesar, Marcus Brutus and Gaius Cassius. Writing a play based on such a well known historical event, Shakespeare’s audience would have known the outline of the events before entering the theater. Therefore, the inclusion of the omens would have served as a reminder for his audience. Though the omens suggest a sense of predetermination that would have satisfied the historical outlook of the audience, it is abundantly clear that it is the choices that those characters make that dooms them. Ultimately, Shakespeare suggests that it is the flaws of the main characters that leads
In William Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, Marc Antony appears to be a strong advocate for Julius Caesar’s triumphs and increasing power. However, like Caesar, Antony is extremely manipulative and powerful. After Caesar’s death, Antony manipulated the conspirators into believing he was on their side before requesting to speak at Caesar’s funeral. While Brutus and the conspirators remained fooled by Antony’s innocence, Antony took the initiative to inform the Roman citizens of the conspirator’s horrendous actions towards their beloved leader, Julius Caesar. Caesar’s funeral was a time of reflection for the citizens of Rome, as Marc Antony caused them to question their allegiance to Brutus. Marc Antony’s power has always been a part of him. However, after Caesar’s death, his power only intensified as his passion for vengeance grew.
Caesar is generally known as an arrogant and cocky character by many of his peers in the play, aside from a few including Antony. He emits an aura of over-confidence and stubbornness, two qualities that can be seen especially in the line, “I am constant as the northern star.” Through the simile we learn that Caesar contrasts his firm mindset and decisions to one of the universal sign used by sailors because of its stable position: the Pole star. The comparison shows insight into Caesar’s thoughts about himself, which to put it simply is one of very high regard and status.
Today we often do many things we would not normally do to look good in front of others. Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, is a story about how Julius Caesar, soon to be the ruler of Rome, was killed by Brutus. After the death of Caesar, war arose between Antony, and the people who are angry for Caesar’s death, and Brutus, and the other conspirators. A common theme throughout the story is that the desire to maintain a good public figure can lead to poor decisions, as seen by Julius Caesar, Cassius, and Brutus.