Julius Caesar Betrayal Essay

Brutus was in fact a betrayer, and while he did feel sympathy for Caesar after he died, he killed him along with the other conspirators and even started a war of sorts in Rome, causing many to fall in battle- himself included. While Brutus was persuaded by fake letters, no man should be as gullible as him to completely switch sides on only the basis of three anonymous letters that were stuck to his window. Brutus was a villain who felt that he was the hero, more concerned about the safety of the government he loved rather than the friend that he loved.

In his soliloquy, Antony praised Caesar’s great personality but at the same time, he would keep saying positive things about Brutus. An example is when he says, “He was my friend, faithful and just to me; / But Brutus says he was ambitious, / And Brutus is an honorable man.” (3.2.85-87). The way in which he spoke and by telling the citizens the context of Caesar’s will, turned the mob against Brutus and the rest of the conspirators. The anger possessed by the countrymen can be shown when a plebeian says, “Most noble Caesar! We’ll revenge his death!” (2.2.244). This betrayal by Antony caused Brutus to break off their friendship.

He wrote letters under different peoples’ names and threw them into Brutus’s window to try to convince him to work with the conspirators. Once Brutus was convinced, he and a few other conspirators started their plans to kill Caesar in hopes of saving Rome. One of the only reasons these men hate Caesar was because he was offered the crown of Rome three times and denied it every time it was offered to him. Throughout the beginning of the play, one of Brutus’s faults was shown. Brutus was easily manipulated by others which could’ve lead him to do bad things.

Marcus Brutus was a reputable man to the people of Rome and to his friend Caesar. Brutus had good intentions for Rome’s people, which is why he did not think Caesar would be a good leader. Although Caesar was in shock to see Brutus included in the men that stabbed him, Brutus only did it for the good of the people. Brutus reveals his nobility to his people when he says in Act 3, scene 2, “…If then that friend demand why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer: not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more”(126). Brutus’s statement explains that he had all the respect for Caesar as anyone else, but the love for his people and home was much more prized. He killed Caesar out of fear of what may happen to the beloved people of Rome. This proves that Brutus’s intentions were just as honorable as the man he was. In addition to both characters being honorable, their actions got the best of them and may have changed them for the worst.

Indeed, Brutus was a honorable man. His honor was his greatest strength, but it was also his weakness. He murdered and betrayed his closest and only friend, due to the fact that he was so focused on doing the most honorable thing. Brutus focused more on principles, than the one person who truly cared about him. Consequently he also cared more about principle, than his own common sense. Therefore, his main focus was on honor and principle, which caused him to kill Caesar. He murdered Caesar because he thought it would solve the problem, but it only caused pandemonium.Consequently, his actions produced an angry mob, ready to avenge Caesar's death. If Brutus never took matters into his own hands, he would not have created a vicious crowd of citizens filled with hatred. He never solved the problem. When it got out of control, he resorted to killing himself. Cowardly, when things got tough, he ran away from it. He

Brutus is truly “an honorable man.” He was initially resistant to Cassius’ suggestion to betray Caesar. Also, Brutus says, “not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more.”(3.2.22) This proves that he only does what he feels is necessary to protect the Rome. In act 4, Brutus sees the ghost of Caesar, and this tells us that he is regretting his actions. He never felt right about killing Caesar afterwards. In fact, when he realized that he was wrong, he used the knife that he stabbed Caesar to take his own

He does not want Caesar to be crowned king. Power meant more to Brutus than being noble to Caesar. The actions of Brutus do not reflect his intentions of being a nobleman. Contemplating the assassination, Brutus invokes the familiar Elizabethan analogy between the body politic and the body natural. In so doing he invokes the symbolic framework which establishes the relationships among the diverse issues and actions of the play and provides, in this case, an implicit refutation of the position he is about to take. For Brutus' political miscalculations, rather than being the almost inexplicable mistakes of a supremely virtuous character, are the manifestations of a clearly defined moral failing. Brutus, of course, misses the point of his analogy. Sensible of the hideousness of the "Insurrection" within the "little Kingdome" to which he likens himself, he does not go on to deduce, as he might be expected to, that "Rebels [ought] by the Justice of the law to be suppressed, even as the

Brutus is one of the more complex character in Shakespeare’s play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. Shakespeare added a lot of complexity to Brutus through dialogue, monologue, and soliloquy. Shakespeare created opposing desires in Brutus and created both hesitation and doubt. His major back-and-forth conflict is him trying to give himself an honorable reason for killing Caesar. He is manipulated by Cassius and the other conspirators into assassinating Caesar, a life-long friend of Brutus. “The ultimate factor in persuading Brutus to join the conspiracy is his belief, a belief based on the the letters cast in at his window or conspicuously left for him in public places” (Shalvi 71). When Caesar was attacked by the conspirators, it had been Brutus’ blade and betrayal that had finally killed him. During the beginning and the end of the play, Brutus struggled to accept that killing Caesar was not what he wanted to do. In his head, Brutus is content that he killed Caesar for the good of Rome. In a speech to Romans after Caesar’s death he says, “Not that I loved Caesar less, but

The driving forces in the play Julius Caesar are the characters Marcus Brutus, Julius Caesar, and Marc Antony. Julius Caesar is the center of the ordeal of leadership in Rome when the play begins. When Caesar returns to Rome he is looked upon by the fickle plebeians as a glorious and triumphant hero. The authority of his heroism is questioned when the honorable Marcus Brutus speaks to the townspeople during Caesar’s funeral. Brutus proves to be the better leader for Rome rather than Caesar or Antony. Brutus is wiser and more honorable than the other Romans. He was the only one truly looking out for the good of Rome and not himself.

When the conspirators were discussing plan on how they should preceed on killing Caesar , Brutus made it very apparent on how the killing should go, stating “Let’s kill him boldly but not wrathfully. / Let’s carve him as a dish fit for gods, / Not hew him as a carcass fit for hounds.” This meant that Brutus loved Caesar enough to respect his remains and not have the murder perceived as gruesome but as essential for Rome to remain free, peaceful and have liberty. Brutus wanted his body to be in such pristine condition that it would be fit for the gods. He was keeping in mind that he was not killing Caesar out of his personal strife, but for greater well-being of Rome. This way of thinking would affect the murder from being seen as savage to humane, only doing what was necessary to kill him. However this would mind-set would change if Brutus hated Caesar. Brutus would not care to respect a body of a man he hated, he would want to kill him wrathfully, and try to cause the most pain he possibly could.

“How foolish do your fears seem now, Calpurnia!; I am ashamed I did yield to them.; Give me my robe, for I will go.” (Act Two, Scene Two)

Brutus a high-ranking, well-regarded Roman nobleman that killed Julius Caesar, went to the top of the ranks and was crowned king. Even though Brutus was able to become king, he was not going to get that title without killing Caesar. In the play Julius Caesar, Brutus agrees to kill Caesar and is one of the three murderers that stabbed Julius Caesar. In Act III scene i William Shakespeare writes “CASCA and the other conspirators stab CAESAR. BRUTUS stabs him last.” This is when Brutus’s fate begins because he starts listening to the wrong people such as, when Cassius uses his power and authority to convince Brutus that he loves Caesar but loves Rome more. This is quoted when Shakespeare writes in Act III scene ii, “ I say to him that my love for Caesar was no less than his. If, then, that friend demands to know why I rose up against Caesar, this is my answer: it’s not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more.” This shows Brutus’s major flaw and when he starts to believe things that other people tell him. Brutus shows that he is the Tragic Hero right when he agrees to kill Caesar because this is his tragic flaw that begins the downfall of himself.

Brutus finds himself swarmed with thoughts as he shows his private identity for the first time. Seeming to be at war with himself he says, “It must be by 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” (2.1.10-13). Brutus convinces himself that the assassination of Caesar will be for the good of Rome, not for his personal advancement. Shakespeare shows the reader this side of Brutus that has not been seen before. In public, Brutus appears to be confident and loyal to Caesar, but deep on the inside he is conflicted on what choice to make and is worried about the actions he may be taking. Due to these troubling thoughts, Brutus becomes stressed and starts to stray away from his true self. “And therefore think him as a serpent’s egg / Which hatch’d would as his kind grow mischievous, / And kill him in the shell” (2.1.32-34). Brutus is conveying his true thoughts about Caesar. He wants to kill Caesar before he becomes king and it is too late. However, because Brutus appears to be loyal to Caesar, he will have to keep his plans secret from everyone or else it will harm his public status. It is just the beginning of Brutus unveiling his true, inner self and how contradictory it is to his public persona.

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

William Shakespeare's play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, was mainly based on the assassination of Julius Caesar. The character who was the mastermind behind the assassination was, ironically, Marcus Brutus, a senator and close friend to Julius Caesar. But what would cause a person to kill a close friend? After I examined Brutus' relationship towards Caesar, his involvement in the conspiracy and his importance to the plot it all became clear. Brutus had one particular reason for killing Caesar and that was for the good of the people and the republic. Brutus had no personal reason for killing Caesar. Some of his most admirable traits were his morality and leadership skills.