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Effects of Manipulation
Manipulation is very prevalent in today’s society, and always has been. Whether it’s someone tricking her sibling into making her food or fetching the remote from across the room, manipulation is an everyday occurrence. It usually does not have a very drastic outcome, but when it comes to killing one’s closest friend, things tend to get pretty serious. William Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, is a true story of a Roman dictator who is killed and the effects it has on the people who killed him. Several characters in the play use manipulation, the act of managing or influencing, to get others to do what they want. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Brutus is easily manipulated which ultimately leads to serious consequences and his own demise.
Brutus is an obvious example of a character whose life is put in danger because he is manipulated. He is very loyal to Rome, which makes him vulnerable. Cassius wants Brutus to
join the conspiracy, so he first tries to flatter him by stating, “‘Brutus’ and ‘Caesar’: what should be in that ‘Caesar’? /
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He was given many signs of his death, such as the Soothsayer’s warning, “Beware the ides of March” (I.ii.25) and the giant storm with raining fire. He had finally decided not to go to the Senate because of Calpurnia’s dreams, but when he tells Decius this, he replies, “Most mighty Caesar, let me know some cause, / Lest I be laughed at when I tell them so” (II.ii.69-70). Caesar doesn’t want to seem weak or scared so he tells Decius about Calpurnia’s dreams where he dies several times. Decius reinterprets the dream and tells Caesar:
This dream is all amiss interpreted.
It was a vision fair and fortunate.
Your statue spouting blood in many pipes,
In which so many smiling Romans bathed,
Signifies that from you great Rome shall suck
Reviving blood, and that great men shall
Cassius believes that he should not be ruler of Rome for a few very specific reasons, so to combat this he convinces Marcus Brutus to join his conspiracy by forging fake letters. Brutus is very honorable and is loved by many people in Rome, so he would bring the people to their side. On the 15th of March Caesar went to the capital despite the multiple warnings he was given. Calpurnia ,Caesar’s wife, dreamt of his statue running with blood and begged him to stay home. Although Caesar ignored it when Decius convinced him that it represented the good and richness that he would bring to Rome.
Although Brutus attempts to act with honor, and despite the fact that he places all of his trust into the honor of others, there are times when Brutus fails to see the most simple and obvious things, such as clear manipulation by Cassius, and this simple flaw leads him to betray his friend and his honor.
Brutus’ tragic flaw was his perception that all men were identical to him in their motives. This factored allowed his decisions to be easily influenced by others whose motives were devious. Cassius was able to convince Brutus to join the conspiracy because Brutus thought the only reason behind the conspiracy was to prevent one man from becoming “Rex.” He allowed Antony’s speech to occur because he was sure that Antony was motivated by the same “honor” which motivated himself.
Brutus is shown as being easily manipulated in the play. This trait is shown a few times in the play. At the beginning, Brutus is tricked by Cassius into believing that killing Julius Caesar would be for the better of Rome (1, 2, ll. 32-321). Cassius is able to deviously influence Brutus into thinking that Caesar is no different from Brutus. He says, “Brutus and Caesar: what should be in that Caesar?/ Why should that name be sounded more than yours?” (1, 2, ll. 142-143) Cassius also uses many other examples to manipulate Brutus. Later on, when the conspirators gather at Brutus’ home, Brutus believes that the other conspirators are killing Caesar for the good of Rome as well (2, 1, ll.114-116). After Brutus and the conspirators have killed Caesar, Mark Antony masks his anger ...
Manipulation is a very powerful word. People use this tactic everyday to get what they want in life. By deceiving people or tricking them into seeing a certain point of view, people gain power. To skillfully use the power of manipulation a person must use another person's weaknesses. By using a person's emotions against them, they can be manipulated with ease. In Shakespeare's Othello, the character of Iago uses these tactics almost to perfection to achieve his goals.
Brutus was a devious man, even though what he thought he was doing was right. Brutus told his fellow conspirators to kill Caesar “boldly, but not angerly.”(3.1.256-257) Brutus was one of Caesars right hand men, and yet Brutus kills his own friend. When Antony asks to speak at Caesars funeral, Cassius says no, but Brutus tell him that Antony will speak, but only what Brutus tells him to say. Brutus also embraces the fact that he just killed his friend, and also tells the senators who had just witnessed it to not be afraid, but to stay because ambition has paid its debt.
In the beginning of the Book Cassius uses anecdotes of Caesar’s weakness and faults, argumentum ad antiquatum, and ethos on Brutus to persuade him to join the conspiracy to kill Caesar, this works on Brutus and shows that anyone, even people as stoic as Brutus, can be persuaded by appealing to their motivations. Cassius, a very suspicious character thru ought the play tells Brutus to “be not jealous on me” (827), in the quote he tells Brutus to not be suspicious of him because he is just a friend who genuinely cares. Cassius does this to put himself on Brutus’ side and not seem like a distant person, this allows him to criticize Caesar and suggest that he is a bad influence on Rome which appeals to Brutus’ desire to keeping Rome safe. After setting himself up as a friend to Brutus, Cassius uses harsh anecdotes on the weakness of Caesar to show that he isn’t fit to rule Rome. Cassius recollects on a time when he and Caesar went swimming in the river Tiber and Caesar screamed “Help me, Cassius or I sink” (828) to de...
Cassius is the greatest manipulator in the play, Julius Caesar. Cassius, an envious and ambitious man, believed that the ruler of Rome, Julius Caesar, had too much power over the senate and the people. To put an end to what he considered to be conspiracy, he fabricated a plan to eradicate Caesar for the sake of Rome. Cassius uses manipulation as his weapon of attack using Brutus as the target. Cassius succeeds in persuading Brutus, one of Caesar’s good friends, to join their plot. Cassius uses flattery, self-gain, and the people of Rome to manipulate Brutus into his likings.
Initially, Brutus was wary of Cassius when Brutus said, “Into what dangers would you lead me, Cassius?” (1.2.69). Subsequently, Brutus is persuaded as he states, “.what you have said / I will consider” (1.2.176-177). Cassius is willing to control any person who stands in his way. Cassius successfully turned Brutus against his best friend in order to achieve what Cassius believes to be best for Rome.
Ultimately, Caesar’s pride helped cause the end of his life. He was so self-absorbed and so confident that Decius was telling him the truth that Calpurnia’s dream was taken the wrong way. Noble Caesar believed the Roman citizens loved him and that he was their lifeblood, but really they wanted him gone. It is possible that Caesar would have been killed by the conspirators another day, but since he did not listen to what the soothsayer and his own wife had to say, he was tragically taken for
The word manipulation is most commonly defined as exerting shrewd or devious influence especially for one’s own advantage. The most common manipulation used to influence human behaviour is known as psychological manipulation. Psychological manipulation is a type of social influence that aims to change the perception or behaviour of others through underhanded deception. In the tragic play, Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the author demonstrates the use of manipulation through the two main characters Prince Hamlet and King Claudius. The character fulfill their needs through dishonesty and learn that the effects of manipulating other has serious consequences that is able to manifest into a powerful force that consumes all aspects of one’s self. Just like how Hamlet uses his actions to manipulate the people around him to avenge his father’s death and how Claudius uses his words, actions, as well as his power as king of Denmark to manipulate people into fulfilling his needs. Through these characters the readers learn that by putting up a false mask of deception one loses their self as the lies take over.
The ambition possessed by each character, leads Caesar, Brutus, and Cassius to power. It will be the same ambition, that quest for power, that makes each one susceptible to their own weakness. For Caesar, it will be his ego and inability to heed warnings, Brutus his love of Rome, and Cassius his dedication to power. These qualities prove that although intentions may be noble, ambition can make a person ruthless and blind them to their original goals. Ambition kills those who lose sight of their conscience and although it may prove beneficial in many instances, in this case, it leads the characters to lose all that they
They also used flattery and manipulation to soothe any feelings of doubt that Caesar may have had about their sincerity. These tactics would gain trust, which is the key to all friendships. This trust was lost and transformed into betrayal with the murder of Caesar. Although Brutus and Cassius plotted against and murdered Caesar, the theme of friendship remained strong as it falsified the conspirators' intentions. Caesar was susceptible to the power of friendship, just like any normal person, and his friendship with the conspirators unfortunately blinded him until Brutus's final blow, by which time it was too late for him.
The power of deception/manipulation in the William Shakespeare play Julius Caesar was a major aspect of the play. Deception is a trick or scheme normally used to get what you want out of a situation. Manipulation is the ability to control or play upon by artful, unfair, or insidious means especially to one's own advantage. These are things normally used to someone’s advantage against someone else. They both played a major role in the development of the narrative role in Julius Caesar. Characters such as Cassius, Antony, Decius, and Brutus demonstrated that these two qualities are necessary to achieve an overall goal. Deception and Manipulation play a major role not only in the key moments of the tragedy of Julius Caesar, but also in the basis
Throughout, William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar, the theme of friendship would prove to be a very delicate and manipulative element. This element would be the very entity that would seal Julius Caesar's fate. Brutus, Decius, and all the other conspirators would use this to their power, and to Julius's weakness. Friendship was used as a cover to blind Julius from the truth, from the plots against him. Flattery along with manipulation was used as a way of persuasion to soothe any feelings of doubt or weariness. These essentials would gain trust, the key to all friendships. This trust would be lost and transform into betrayal. Even though Caesar was plotted against and murdered by the likes of Brutus and Cassius, friendship still proved a strong theme because it would cloke the conspirators intentions. Julius was vulnerable to the power of friendship and was blinded by the shrewd ways of Decius, Brutus, and all the other conspirators.