The Failure Of Truth In Julius Caesar, By William Shakespeare

Trying not to overstep the boundaries of the citizens to get kicked out of power or not doing enough that they replace you. With the power gained from leading it is expected that other princes will try to take power away so the only way to prevent this from happening is to make alliances and maintaining a strong military. Later on, in the novel Machiavelli goes on to focus on what qualities a prince should have and how virtu plays a role in making a proper prince. Although a short novel, it is Machiavelli’s most widely known work and is responsible for creating a negative view on rulers/politicians and also making it seem like anything you do, even immoral, is justifiable if the end goal is worth it. Machiavelli writes “He who neglects what is done for what ought to be done, sooner effects his ruin than his preservation” showing that the use of immoral means is justifiable when the end goal is survival and glory. This book follows the ideals of Italian humanism from the author being from Florence, the heart of the renaissance, dedicating the novel to Lorenzo de’ Medici, an example of a man who invested a lot in helping people learn about philosophy and such subjects to become better humanists.

Manipulation is human nature. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton manipulate the society everyday in order to capture votes. This is feasible using propaganda, which could be described as idea’s that are often false and are used to prove a point. In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, the characters use propaganda to manipulate someone else.

Manipulation can serve as a very impressive social tool in order to bend someone's will to fulfill your agenda and trick them into carrying out a specific action. To manipulate is to manage or influence skillfully, especially in an unfair manner. This is prevalent in the tragic play Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Macbeth, an ambitious general, is manipulated by both his wife and three witches to commit heinous crimes. The witches manipulate Macbeth by using his faith in the supernatural to force him to carry out certain actions. As well, they present him with deceiving prophecies to give him false confidence. Lady Macbeth manipulates Macbeth by questioning his manhood

The tragedy of Julius Caesar is a story of struggle and betrayal; however, in it, Shakespeare conveys messages about human nature. Three of the main characters in the play convey the ways that power corrupts and changes people. Brutus’ attitude towards killing Caesar and rising to power, along with his personality, change throughout the first three acts. Cassius’ need for power makes him lose himself and his humanity. Mark Antony, changed by Caesar's death, rises to power after taking it away from those that killed him. In Shakespeare’s play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, he conveys notions regarding human nature and the ways that power changes and corrupts people; he does this through his characters Brutus, Cassius, and Antony.

The power of manipulation is a very powerful tool and can easily be misused to benefit

In my attempt to compare the past and the present, I must explain to you the inner thoughts and workings of an ancient icon known as Niccolo Machiavelli on his publication “The Prince”. To do this, I must first start with explaining the brighter side of an ill fate. William Enfield suggested that “The Prince” was a ridicule of Machiavelli’s own perception of political leaders in his time. All in all, declaring that the book was written to “pull off the face of tyranny” and that “men were always fickle, liars, and deceivers” (Enfield, William) as the reporter points out in his article summary as well. Machiavelli’s personality makes this idea a double standard because of the fact that he wrote of breaking the bond of love and even trust if

The topic of leadership in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar has been discussed and argued ever since the play was written. The most prevalent discussion of leadership in the play revolves around Shakespeare’s tragic hero, Marcus Brutus, and the cause of his downfall. According to Shakespeare critic James Bundy, “Brutus... is a man whose affections sway more than his reason, in whom there is this tragic confederacy of passion and imagination against reason” (qtd. in Palmer 402). Ernest Shanzer, however, says that Brutus is “by no means devoid of political shrewdness and practical wisdom”, but he is a “bad judge of character” (Shanzer 1). Although both critics’ descriptions of Brutus have merit, Brutus’ shortcoming, as well as the success of the opposing leader, Mark Antony, is more accurately explained using the observations of Niccolo Machiavelli in The Prince. In this book Machiavelli outlines the characteristics of a successful leader. When using The Prince as a lens to read Julius Caesar, the correlation between a leader’s Machiavellianism and their success becomes very apparent. Marcus Brutus is undoubtedly an honorable and respectable man, but his morality prevents him from adhering to Machiavelli’s principles. Due to his lack of princely virtues, Brutus is doomed to fail, while Antony, a much more Machiavellian prince, successfully seizes power.

There have been many rulers in history who have been betrayed by those they trust, but The Tragedy of Julius Caesar (William Shakespeare,1959) still holds a special place in Western literature as one of the most enigmatic human beings to ever exist. Powerful men like Julius Caesar shaped the life and times of the late Roman Republic, just before Rome would officially become the Roman Empire on the crowning of Augustus as the first Roman emperor. Julius Caesar was a powerful general who expanded Rome's power and who was beloved by the people for his generous charity after his successful conquests. Despite knowing the story of Julius Caesar to some extent, most 16th/17th century English would not have ever visited Rome, nor would know what the Roman Republic was like, which presented a unique opportunity to William Shakespeare to create a play unlike any other he had created before. (Shakespeare Julius Caesar, 1599) Shakespeare's Julius Caesar is a reimagining of Rome from a Elizabethan point of view, and despite some inaccuracies, the play depicts an enlightening view on Roman life, and the life of the Roman general, Julius Caesar.

Manipulation, a very swift technique of cleverly controlling a person through someone’s will. If you really think about it, manipulation is just one of the many things that happens to occur all around us, almost as if it was a daily routine, and very possibly - could happen to you. Anyways, many people today tend to arrogantly manipulate the poor, the inferior ones to satisfy their appetites. Sometimes it is a big community/group that come up with distinct, manipulative ideas. Despite what I have said, manipulation can also be used to achieve success in various events, although it may not be pleasantly done to the one that is being controlled, and Orson Scott Card’s book, “Ender’s Game” greatly exemplifies the good and bad types of manipulations.

Manipulation is a type of social influence that aims to change the behavior or perception of others through abusive, deceptive, or underhanded tactics in other words brainwashed. I society can be brainwashed by simple rules and media things like that. The book “1984” can be compared to the short story Harrison Bergeron by manipulation of society. The societies are manipulated in multiple ways through the use of technology, propaganda, and manipulated into believing that they live in the perfect world. In George Orwell’s novel the theme can be compared through the dystopian society and contrasted through the use of technology and propaganda by manipulation of society to Kurt Vonnegut’s short story Harrison Bergeron.

The power words are limitless. It does not matter in what language one speaks; persuasion is the key to manipulated people for good or bad. “Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill.” Words are a weapon, and when one uses words carefully to persuade people, it can lead to chaos. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Shakespeare portrays a universal theme in which friends and enemies turn to against each other, and a war stimulates out of lies and ambition for power. The usage of old and wise words to manipulated people lead to great revelry.

Manipulation makes it easier to persuade someone into something that could be wrong. For example, if you have ever had a friend offer you drugs they would try to appeal to your emotions using words like “It’ll make you feel good.” or “everyone is doing it.” Your subconscious tells you that you want to feel good or accepted so it’s better to take the drugs and get on with it. The same goes for our society. We want to feel good about the things we do in everyday life so we talk ourselves up targeting that feel good

During the Italian Renaissance and particular in the Florentine Republic, the Roman Catholic Church had a strong influence on the state and regarded the relationship between moral good governance and legitimate authority highly. In contrast during this period Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (1469-1527) an official in the Florentine Republic from 1498 to 1512, consisted that there is no moral basis on which to judge the difference between legitimate and illegitimate uses of power. When the Medici was out of power Machiavelli was involved in diplomatic and military affairs. Arrested and tortured in 1513, accused of conspiracy against Medici family, an important historian, politician, diplomat, philosopher, humanist, and writer; but best known today as the founder of modern political science and political ethics. Declared by Pope Leo Strauss ‘a teacher of evil’ (Leo Strauss) when writing ‘The Prince’(1513, published 1532) his most (in)famous book, placed on the Papal Index of banned books in 1559.

The Medicis contradict Machiavelli’s theory, “it’s better to be feared than loved”. While writing to Lorenzo de Medici, Machiavelli states how “a prince is always compelled to injure those who have made him the new ruler”. (Machiavelli 8) Machiavelli expounds the importance of harming those the ruler has conquered—in order to remain as an authoritative figure, penalization towards adherents is compulsory to engender more fear among citizens. When comparing Machiavelli’s idea of creating fear to the Medicis’ methods, both theories differ substantially. For example, Lorenzo de Medici was known for giving food and money towards meager residents of Florence.

“Confidence may not bring success, but it gives power to face any challenges.” Brutus shows throughout the whole play how he is confident. No matter what the situation is, Brutus stayed strong and confident that it will get better and things will be solved. He cared more about Rome and the people of Rome than Caesar and himself. Confidence later in the play starts to show cockiness and that is how this trait becomes a tragic flaw for Brutus. In William Shakespeare’s play, Julius Caesar, Brutus’s tragic flaw of confidence leads to his downfall because of the killing of Caesar and the war that started after Caesar was killed.