Fate vs Free Will in Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare

First, Brutus shows that he has noble stature because everything that he did was for the benefit of someone else, He couldve ignored eveyone that wanted him to kill Caesar knowing that he could be punished, but he did it for the benefit of eveyone else. In Act 2, Scene 1. Brutus didnt tell Portia his plans of the murder, he feels she has enough stress and dosnt need to worry with it. “Hark, hark! One knocks. Portia, go in awhile. And by and by thy bosom shall partake The secrets of my heart. All my engagements I will construe to thee, All the charactery of my sad brows. Leave me with haste.”

In tragedy plays, there is always a tragic hero who has a tragic flaw in his personality may it be excessive pride, poor judgement, or both which eventually leads to the hero’s downfall where the hero can perform no action to prevent it. In Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, Marcus Brutus is the tragic hero of the play due to his tragic flaw which is his naïve and over-trusting personality, which he eventually realizes too late and performs an action to prevent his loss of dignity.

In William Shakespeare’s play, Julius Caesar, two interesting forces, fate and free will, are shown competing for prominence over the other. Fate was exemplified in the many prophecies and omens the characters viewed throughout the play. Free will was the characters abilities to overcome and defeat their fate. Many characters have struggles with the power of their free will overcoming their fate, namely Caesar, Cassius, and Brutus. Although in the end all three of those characters succumb to their fate, Shakespeare shows that there is a delicate equilibrium between the two forces.

Portia's love for Brutus and her insecurities leads her to suicide. Portia has always depended on Brutus and tries to prove her strength to him by making "a strong proof of my constancy," (Shakespeare 2.1.322).. Her "real shame at the weakness of a woman's heart" (Blits). In Portia's time, women were not given much power in the home or society, so she worries about Brutus’ safety. Brutus leaves her alone as he

In the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar the main character, Brutus, experiences many things that lead him to become a tragic hero. From the interactions between Cassius and Brutus, the two characters contract each other, Brutus’s character develops into a tragic hero, and the plot advances and a theme is also created.

William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Julius Caesar is a story of envy, downfall, dishonesty, and true loyalty. The story begins with a celebration of Julius Caesar’s return home from a victorious battle. The people of Rome are excited for Caesar’s return, as they value and respect him as a potential leader, but there are also a handful of people that express their unhappiness with all of the attention surrounding Caesar. Caius Cassius is among those handful of individuals unhappy with Caesar’s popularity. Cassius is envious of Caesar and does not understand why he has gained so much power over the people of Rome, which brings him to the conclusion that he needs to bring about the fall of Caesar. Cassius expresses the issue to his brother-in-law

Although the play “Romeo and Juliet” is lauded as one which excellently portrays unconquerable love, the most prominent theme of the play is not that of unconquerable love but rather of the death and tragedy that stems out from Romeo and Juliet disobeying fate for their own desires. This theme of relationship between fate and free will is present throughout the play and even emphasized through the use of literary elements. One such example of this theme being emphasized through the use of literary elements is the prologue. The prologue of the play employs the literary elements of alliteration, rhyme and foreshadowing to convey the theme of the relationship between fate and freewill, claiming that attempting to defy fate will leads to misfortune.

This also utilizes Cassius’ sullen behavior to accentuate Brutus’ unbiased and unprejudiced opinions. It supports the idea that Brutus is a fantastic decision maker because it reveals his apathetic nature. In addition to this, an example of the differences in the emotions of Brutus and Cassius is displayed when Brutus attempts to bury the death of Portia in his mind, “Speak no more of her.—Give me a bowl of wine.—/ In this I bury all unkindness, Cassius” (4.3.163-164). This asserts Brutus’ progressive nature because he wishes to move forward from Portia’s death. This sharply contrasts the pessimistic nature of Cassius. It juxtaposes the two to increase Brutus’ credibility as a leader. Likewise, Cassius is displayed as a foil to Brutus when he declares to Brutus what would happen if he was in charge: “Flatterers! Now, Brutus, you have only yourself to thank. / Antony wouldn’t be here to offend us today if you’d listened to me earlier” (5.1.47-49). This represents the violence and hatred inside Cassius’ heart. It contrasts this vengeful personality to Brutus’ forgiving and considerate nature. This portrays Brutus as an even more noble and honorable man because it points out his benevolence and affection for the people of Rome. Cassius and Brutus are on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to their motivations and personalities, but they still manage to bring out the best in each other in various

Brutus’ downfall begins when the group of conspirators finally kills Julius Caesar at the Roman Senate. Chaos ensues, and the group knows that something disastrous shall occur soon. “Fates, we will know your pleasures:/ That we shall die, we know; ‘tis but the time,/ And drawing days out, that men stand upon” (939). His fall continues after he learns of the death of his beloved and loyal wife Portia. “O Cassius, I am sick of many griefs…/No man bears sorrow better. Portia is dead” (972). These events have caused the noble character of Brutus to become internally distraught and turbulent, but his outside guise shows little hint of this. Finally, he dies in the final battle between the liberation forces and the Roman army. “I prithee, Strato, stay thou by thy lord:/ Thou art a fellow of a good respect;/ Thy life hath some smatch of honour in it:/ Hold then my sword, and turn away thy face,/ While I do run upon it. Wilt thou, Strato?/… Farewell,

In the play Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare there are two forces at work fate and freewill and throughout the play they are both fighting for control over man. Fate was shown in the many prophecies and omens that the characters viewed throughout the entire play. Free will as defined in the play is the ability to overcome fate. Although in the end all three of the characters succumbed to their fate, Shakespeare shows again that there is a delicate balance between fate and human free will.

The story of Romeo and Juliet is a tragic tale of love and hate. The story ends in conflict and controversy because of their families and other outside forces in which fate was a factor. The "Star Crossed Lovers" death was caused by free will and blinding love, this was a significant turning point in the book because Romeo was banished. As the story goes on characters such as Tybalt and Mercutio set off a spin of events eventually ending in the death of the beloved Romeo and Juliet.

Fate and free will are two topics that are often questionable because they go hand in hand. Fate is a belief that a certain event is said to happen, then that person's choice and free will lead them to what has been predicted as inevitable. Knowing whether something is fate’s fault or the fault of the person who’s going to enact the said action, is one question that has never been fully answered. In Sophocles' Oedipus Rex and Shakespeare's Macbeth, fate is determined by their own choices and free will, the character Macbeth knows of what lies ahead of him, making him alter the present to create his idealistic future, however instead he lives a life of ruins. As for Oedipus his entire actions are based on one prophecy he desperately

Thus, she indicates that she can endure whatever Brutus has on his mind, and makes it known that she is definitely not the fragile feminine flower that Brutus and the rest of humanity distinguishes her as. Through this succinct line, Shakespeare allows the reader to recognize that Portia is not an ordinary woman, rather she is an intense and strong willed woman with deep devotion for her husband. One of Brutus’ most notable characteristics is his stoicism, which is clearly seen through instances regarding Portia, as illustrated through Act II, scene i, when he refuses to confide in Portia about the plans to kill Caesar, and when Brutus utters, “Why farewell Portia,” (Brutus, IV, iii, 189) in regards to her death. Brutus’ stoicism impinges on their relationship, because he confines his secrets from her, and towards her death, he allows the audience to gain insight of his true character: the neglect of private feelings and loyalties in favor of what Brutus believes to be the public good. Brutus thus undermines Portia as the symbol of his private life and manifests on the fact that he puts his public life before his private one. Portia’s death also serves as an example of stoicism because he does not reveal any of the emotion that was brought to him in the light of her suicide. Thus, uncovering that stoicism and honor are put before all else.

Furthermore, the relationship with Portia has changed throughout the tragedy as Brutus kept secrets and political opinions hidden from her. In one scene Portia literally stabs herself to gather information about Brutus’ mindset and feelings (II.i.324-325). The action Portia takes exemplifies how important politics have on her health and Brutus’ health. Throughout the tragedy Portia is very worried for Brutus as he carefully plans out the assassination of Julius Caesar and Portia eventually dies from the loneliness and despair as Brutus is out at Civil War. The death of Portia was the point Brutus’ relationship with her was destroyed since his

One of the major concerns presented by Shakespeare in Julius Caesar is the struggle between fate and free will. This struggle is evident throughout the play through Shakespeares continual presentation of the supernatural. The supernatural is present in many different forms in the text, for example through omens, nightmares and sacrifices. Shakespeare believed that life was a combination of fate and freewill, he presents this idea to the audience through different events that occur throughout the play, events such as the Feast at the Lupercal, the Soothsayers prophecy, the animal sacrifice, Calpurnias dream and the presence of animals and Caesars ghost. These events build dramatic tension throughout the play, illustrating the struggle of