Julius Caesar Analysis

Selflessness, a noble trait to have, but when one puts everything before themselves, it will only lead to tragedy. The character Brutus in ¨The tragedy of Julius Caesar” makes the choice to murder his personal friend Caesar, the soon to be ruler of Rome, for the future of his country. This leads to Caesar's second in command, Antony, to pursue Brutus and the others involved in the murder until their death. In William Shakespeare's play ¨The tragedy of Julius Caesar” Brutus through his selflessness in acting for the better of Rome instead of himself, and putting aside personal matters for his country becomes the tragic character.

Loyalty is something most every person finds honorable in another person. However, what if that loyalty becomes divided, and ends up becoming betrayal? William Shakespeare eloquently depicts this quandary in Julius Caesar. Brutus was considered one of the most honorable men in Rome, both by the people and himself. But what if his idea of honor is actually a true sign of betrayal? That much is up to the reader to decide. Shakespeare expresses loyalty multiple times throughout Julius Caesar between Caesar and Brutus, Brutus to the people of Rome, and still the people of Rome to Caesar, which all directly cause the final outcome of the play.

Shakespeare shows how power and the prospect of power changes people through the character of Brutus. Brutus’ attitude changes as he acquires power and detects the possibility of being powerful. Originally, everything Brutus does is for the good of the people and Rome itself. He recognizes that he has “no personal cause to spurn at [Caesar]” (I.I.11); however, he considers doing it “for the general” (I.I.12). Power has not yet changed Brutus’ attitude; he still focuses on the good of Rome as a whole and not just gaining power for himself. As the play continues, Brutus’ ongoing internal struggle of whether or not he should kill Caesar ends when he decides to kill him. He wants to kill him in a very specific way so that the people hate Caesar rather

Once Cassius gets what he wants, Brutus to be on his side, they and some others begin to plan how they will get to Caesar and kill him. Then when Brutus agrees to join the conspiracy to annihilate Caesar, it is the beginning of him becoming the villain. He is still the hero though; he only joined the conspiracy for the good of Rome. "This was the noblest Roman of them all. All the conspirators save only he / Did that they did in envy of great Caesar. He only in a general honest thought / And common good to all, made one of them".. This quote is said by Antony at the end of the play. In that scene, he and Caesar's adopted son, Octavius have seen Brutus's dead body. They have seen the good in Brutus and have noticed that he has acted out of his love for Rome." ...not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more" . That was part of the speech Brutus gave to the citizens after he and the other conspirators killed Caesar. This was the last act Brutus did before he started becoming more of a villain. This quote and the quote Antony says at the end of the play are the same. They both are saying how Brutus didn't really want to kill Caesar. He just felt like he had no choice, he saw that what Caesar was doing was changing Rome.

    Shakespeare’s tragedy, Julius Caesar, displays Brutus as a tragic hero, blinded loyalty and devotion. Brutus's heroic belief of honor and virtue was so powerful that it drove him to perform villainous actions and lead to his destruction.

In William Shakespeare’s tragic play Julius Caesar, the protagonist, Brutus, conspires against and successfully kills Caesar; to only find the city he loves in chaos and mutiny from his actions. Brutus in the eyes of many people was a noble and honorable man who loved and adored the city of Rome, and no person thought more of this than Caesar. To Caesar, Brutus was the son he never had, and his love of Brutus was known, therefore the thought of Brutus betraying him was absurd. However, imagine if not only Brutus did not love Caesar, but he hated him. If that was the situation in the Julius Caesar, the play would then change drastically, with almost every quote from Brutus changing. If this is the case, Brutus’ hatred of Caesar and love of

Cassius' loyalty line goes the other way. In the beginning he is out to set himself up in a position of power, and through Caesar's death he continues to act out of self-interest. By the end of the play, however, he has developed a sense of loyalty to Brutus and to Titinius. Brutus's pattern lies somewhere in between Antony's and Cassius's. In the beginning of the play most students feel that Brutus' loyalty is ambiguous. Although he seems loyal to Caesar, he is swayed by flattery to himself. By 2.1, when he makes the decision to participate in the murder, Brutus seems to be acting out of self-interest, though he disguises it in a rationalization of the good of the country. I find that students often engage in a really interesting discussion of the subtle shifts in Brutus' use of language; he shifts, for instance, to the use of the royal "we." By the end of the play Brutus, like Cassius, develops a sense of loyalty to his new comrades, and his last words, like Cassius's, are a self-condemning recognition of

Brutus is loyal in an uncanny sort of manner. As he is informed of Caesar being crowned he says “What means this shouting? I do fear the people choose Caesar for their king” (Shakespeare 1.2.85-89). Brutus is unsettled by the fact that the people want Caesar as their king after he has already declined the crown multiple times.

Brutus' speech show that his loyalty is given first to Rome then to his close friends. He is justifying the death of Julius Caesar.

Brutus’ soliloquy in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar reveals Brutus’ inner turmoil before he decides on participating in the conspiracy. Brutus is torn between his love for Rome and his friendship with Caesar. However, Brutus fears that Caesar’s tyranny after enthroning will cause harm to Rome and return Rome to dictatorship. In the end, Brutus chooses his obligation to Rome over Caesar. Brutus' soliloquy reflects on his internal conflict between his love for Caesar and his fear of Caesar's power and ambition in which Brutus eventually resolves to kill Caesar.

During the play Brutus has two sides to choose from while dealing with his internal conflict. On one side Brutus could go with the conspirators. He could take their side and do what he believes would be best for Rome. “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more. ( Shakespeare 3.2.23-24 ). On the other side Brutus does not want to kill Caesar. He does not want to kill Caesar because he has done nothing to him. “I would not, Cassius; yet I love him well.” ( Shakespeare 1.2.82 ). Brutus is very distraught by the fact that he has come to the conclusion that joining the conspirators and killing Caesar may be what is right for Rome. In his garden the night before the ides of March he is speaking of this. He feels that the citizens of Rome have come to want him as their ruler too quickly. Also he thinks that once Caesar is crowned he will start to act differently. “It must be by his death: and for my part, I know no personal cause to spurn at him, But for the general. He would be crown’d: How that might change his nature, there’s the question.” ( Shakespeare 2.1.10-13 ).

Brutus, a conflicted senator obsessed with his civic duty, convinces the people of Rome that his motives in killing Caesar were just and noble by rhetoric. Brutus is the only conspirator to have impersonal motives in killing Caesar. In fact, his motives are trying to find the best solution for Rome, and in the end, he must make the hard choice of killing his best friend for his homeland. As early as Brutus’ conversation with Cassius in Act I, Brutus exhibits this deep love and respect for Rome and how this love is conflicting with his love for his friend, Caesar: “[P]oor Brutus, with himself at war, / Forgets the shows of love to other men” (I.ii.51-52). Brutus brings up this internal conflict again when he tells the crowds that although he did love Caesar, he loved Rome and its people more. After Brutus’ murder of Caesar, he realizes that the issue of the public opinion of Rome is of the utmost importance. Because of this love for Rome, Brutus uses rhetoric to persuade these plebeians to approve of him and his cause. When Cassius warns Brutus about “how much the people will be moved / By that which [Marc Antony] will utter[!]” (III.i.252-253), Brutus tells Cassius that letting Marc Antony speak “shall advantage us more than do us wrong” (III.i.261). In these cases, Brutus demonstrates his awareness of

Finally we have to say that; Brutus of William Shakespeare will continue troubling the audience of Julius Caesar’s play. While some people consider Brutus as a traitor, others recognize him as a principle man who stands for what he believes. However, examining Brutus in the three contexts of his political motivation, personal and inner-contention beside his apocalyptic fate can help to build better understanding for the character. Shakespeare brilliantly, succeed to present this complex character in the stage and gives the audience the opportunity to live the experience of the politician who made a difficult decision and then struggle an inner conflict to justify his decision and at the end pay the high price for his action. In the end I would

Being Patriotic is a great thing until it goes bad. Over the course of the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Brutus was a very impactful character. He was one of the main leaders of the conspiracy that killed Caesar. Brutus had a wife named Portia, who later in the play died. After the conspiracy killed Caesar, there were two speeches spoken one from Brutus and the other from Antony who was Caesar's right hand man. Soon after the death of Caesar, Brutus and Antony fought in a battle against each other. The battle lead to countless people left dead and Brutus kills himself. During the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar written by William Shakespeare Brutus patriotism caused him to make decisions based on the good of Rome, not thinking of others’ thoughts, or opinions including his own.

Brutus possesses many ideals and mannerisms that make him the tragic hero in William Shakespeare’s tragedy. To begin with, Brutus has a deep sense of love for his city, and concerns himself with its well-being. His concern for Rome is actually what causes him to backstab Caesar. He worries that he is too arrogant to be an adequate leader, “I do fear the people/ Choose Caesar for their king.” (Shakespeare I.ii. 85-86). Secondly, Brutus has an undying moral compass that navigates him on his integrity driven choices. Brutus thinks long and hard before he joins the conspirators, and wonders whether or not it is the right choice and questions his choices, “Into what dangers would you lead me…/ That you would have me seek into myself/ For which is not in me?” (Shakespeare I.ii. 69-71). His strong beliefs are what ultimately convince him to join the conspirators, for the good of Rome. Also, Brutus believes in equality and respect. He gives a speech to the public because he feels they deserve to know the reason why Caesar dies, ‘And, waving our red weapons o’er our heads,/ Let’s all cry “Peace, freedom, and liberty!”’. (Shakespeare III.i. 121-122). This heroic quality is one of the things that drives him to be a good leader, and a good person as well. As much as these traits lead us to believe