Comparison of Julius Caesar's Leadership and Leader Qualities Theorized by Macchiavelli and Castiglione

In the famed author William Shakespeare’s playwright Julius Caesar, we are introduced to an extraordinary plot of a powerful ruler, Julius Caesar, who gained power through astonishing victories and remarkable strategies but fell victim to betrayal. The betrayal that led to his demise was led by some of the very people that surrounded him the most, even some people that he considered as friends. The theme of betrayal and the notion of friendship and its validity are both topics that are worth examining but perhaps the most prevalent topic that drives this plot is the image of Caesar. Caesar ascended into power after a long period in Rome where the rise of tyranny had been fought systematically and physically. He had to not only be a powerful leader but also a wise politician when it came to his decisions. His image tarnishes more and more as his power increases and he too chases after it. He becomes so ambitious over power that he begins to feel immortal and free from danger. His conspirators do not just want him out of power for the simple sake of it but because some of them, either persuaded or not, earnestly believed that Julius Caesar’s death would save Rome not hurt it. What makes this playwright’s so extraordinary is not the dynamic drama alone, but also the depiction of Julius Caesar and how even in the monstrosity of his murder, his image was still arguable causing division amongst men. Although William Shakespeare has, for a very long time now, been known for his great writings it is clear that he himself depicted a ruler that would win favor in the eyes of the great Italian political philosopher and writer Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli but not the profound Italian writer Baldassare Castiglione. Both writers wrote ab...

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...tature and refusal to see the realistic fact that he was in danger brought him to his end. He was ambitious, as we all should be, but he allowed his stature and achievements cloud his judgments and even the advice of those nearest to him, like his wife. A leader is not always loved and Machiavelli would not have had a problem with Caesar not being loved by all and in fact he may not even have had a problem with Caesar’s overzealous nature. Castiglione on the other hand, would not have been a fan of the image of Caesar. He, overlooking reality because of his societal stature, would anger Castiglione. That is not poised nor brave but rather ignorant and a stubborn nature.

Works Cited

Castiglione, Baldassarre, and George Anthony Bull. The Book of the Courtier. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1976. Print.

Shakespeare, William. Julius Ceaser. New York: Pocket, 1992. Print.