In Shakespeare’s play, Julius Caesar, Marc Antony, Caesar’s closest friend, is gravely underestimated. Other characters, such as Brutus, failed to understand him and didn’t seem to take him seriously. They also assumed that he would take part in the conspiracy against Caesar. They truly belittled him. Loyal and admirable, Marc Antony demonstrated a strong sense of justice to take revenge against the conspirators of Caesar’s assassination.
Marc Antony asked to speak at Caesar’s funeral, and Brutus only allowed to do so on certain conditions. Conditions were that Brutus would speak first and Antony would speak immediately after. Antony needed to also not blame the conspirators for anything and admit that he was only allowed to speak based on Brutus’s permit (Act III.Scene I.254-271). Cassius is wary of this agreement, and he says to Brutus aside, “...do not consent that Antony speak in his funeral: Know how much the people may be moved by that which he utter?” (Act III.Scene I. 248-253) Cassius was well aware that Antony had the art of knowing the man. Antony’s rhetoric significance of emotional appeal, pathos, is indicated in the way he speaks. Antony denied any ability to “stir men’s blood.” as he puts it.
It seemed like Antony agreed to Brutus’s terms, but on the inside he was appalled. But, Antony did have two advantages over Brutus: his deception and his chance to have the last word. In Act III, Scene II, 277-278 & 294-295, Antony talked about Caesar“...Thou are the ruins of the noblest man that ever live in the tide of time ...and promises retribution through his famous rally, ‘Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war!” and promised him that he shall take revenge from the conspirators:
“The question of his death...his glor...
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...nes later, that’s all Antony intended to say...only in a way that was quite compelling. And carrying the acting so far, Antony actually stopped to cry in his speech, increasing effectivity of the speech.
Perhaps more than any other of Shakespeare's works, Julius Caesar is a play that hinges upon rhetoric through Marc Antony—both as the art of persuasion and an deceit used to conceal goal. More alarming, however, is Antony's cynical epilogue to the funeral speech as the crowd departs: "Now let it work: mischief, thou art afoot/Take thou what course thou wilt!" (Act III).There is mischief in the area, so let it take whatever course it wants to. Antony still didn’t lay out his cards, but made his first move in the right direction. As Antony represented, Shakespeare succeeded in writing a spectacular political speech, inserted in a play.
Works Cited
Julius Caesar
Analysis of the Funeral Speeches of Brutus and Marc Antony from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar At the funeral of Julius Caesar two characters make speeches to the plebeian mob, Brutus and Marc Antony. Shakespeare shows us the personalities of the two orators and gives one an advantage over the other. Marc Antony has an advantage over Brutus because he speaks after Brutus and he has Caesar’s body. He also interrupts Brutus’ speech.
Both speakers used an ethical appeal to the crowd and established their credibility first. Brutus starts off by saying he was Caesar’s friend, and he loved him, but because Ceasar was “ambitious” he had to “slew” him. Brutus knew that everyone in town thought he was an honorable man and he used that to establish his credibility, unlike Antony, who was thought to be a play boy, not serious about anything. He had to work harder to gain the crowd’s attention. The first sentence out of his mouth was that he was here to “bury Caesar, not to praise him” which is a great way to start since most of the people didn’t like Caesar at the time and didn’t want to listen to some silly friend of Caesar’s say wonderful things about him. Antony also mentioned many times that their hero Brutus is an “honorable“ man. This also helped get the crowd to listen to him, because they had just heard Brutus and were all fired up about the wonderful things he had said. So both the characters start off their speeches the same, gaining credibilit...
In act III, scene ii, Antony proves to himself and the conspiracy, that he has the power to turn Rome against Brutus. He deceived the conspirators with his speech during Caesar’s funeral. In this speech, Antony pulls at the heartstrings of the countryman by showing emotions and turning them against their beloved leader, Brutus. The scene takes place the day of Caesar's death. Leading up to this point the people loved Brutus because, reasonably he explains of them about Caesar's death and told them it was necessary. In Antony's speech he showed signs of hatred towards Brutus and the conspirators. He thinks for himself and deceives the people, when he explains how Brutus lied to the people . The plot depends on Antony’s speech.
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare is an intimate portrayal of the famed assassination of Julius Caesar and the complex inner workings of the men who committed the crime. In one particularly revealing scene, two of the men closest to Caesar, one a conspirator in his murder and one his second-in command, give orations for the deceased. Despite being simple in appearance, these two speeches do much of the work in developing and exposing the two characters in question. Though both have a love for Caesar, Mark Antony's is mixed with a selfish desire for power, while Brutus' is pure in nature, brought to a screeching halt by his overpowering stoicism. These starkly-contrasted personalities influence the whole of the play, leading to its tragic-but-inevitable end.
By saying this, Antony is showing how he was as a friend To Caesar and is showing his loyalty and faith to him to tell the audience how great Caesar was.
In the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, written by William Shakespeare, Mark Antony who once was a dear and loyal friend to the late Julius Caesar, gains an impactful opportunity to showcase his masterful art of rhetoric when he provides a speech at Caesar’s funeral. In the plotline of the play, a man named Brutus is swayed into killing Caesar, his close friend; because he is prodded by other deceitful men who claim that the murder of Caesar would benefit the future and well-being of Rome. After the murder is successfully conducted, Brutus and the other conspirators bathe their hands in the blood of Caesar and simultaneously stimulate tension and chaos among the people of Rome. Mark Antony valiantly goes to see Caesar’s body and to also speak
...ulsion and hate. Antony's dramatic speech won the crowd over and resulted in a downfall.
In William Shakespeare's play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, two speeches are given to the people of Rome about Caesar's death. In Act 3, Scene 2 of this play Brutus and Antony both try to sway the minds of the Romans toward their views. Brutus tried to make the people believe he killed Caesar for a noble cause. Antony tried to persuade the people that the conspirators committed an act of brutality toward Caesar and were traitors. The effectiveness and ineffectiveness of both Antony's and Brutus's speech to the people are conveyed through tone and rhetorical devices.
In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Mark Antony—a loyal friend to Julius Caesar, the former emperor of Rome—gives a speech to the Roman commoners in order to persuade them to turn against Brutus, for Brutus and the conspirators had slain Caesar. Antony’s uses rough and sharp diction, a scornful tone, and honest anecdotes in order to achieve his purpose of manipulating the common people to take his side.
Through the whole of his spectacular speech, Mark Antony influences the crowd using his distinct diction. He is able to inculcate a fired up anti-Caesar mass of people, and he makes the populace believe that Julius Caesar’s death was a true tragedy. Antony gracefully applies his proficiency with ‘logos’ and ‘pathos’ to his speech and is able to adroitly gain followers. His strong reasoning and explanations allow the Romans to buy what he has to say. Antony’s ability to speak in a roundabout way is a key constituent of his speech. Withal, he is extremely humble and the way he plays down his prowess is impressive. Mark Antony puts all the parts of his remarkable rhetoric together, and the result is a speech for the ages.
Later, the question of whether or not to kill Antony is brought up by the
Mark Antony's Speech from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar Mark Antony’s funeral oration over the body of Julius Caesar in act three, scene two is the most important speech in the play and effects the development of the play as a whole in many ways. Firstly this speech falls in the play where we have seen Antony’s distraught reaction to the murder of Caesar and his letter vowing allegiance to Brutus in return for being able to live. Act three, scene one prepares us for Antony’s rhetoric as here he states that ‘Brutus is noble, wise, valiant and honest’ which fits in with him repeatedly stating ‘Brutus is an honourable man’. It becomes evident in this scene that Antony has an ulterior motive for forming this allegiance and asking to do the funeral oration when he is ‘swayed from the point by looking down on Caesar’ and then states that ‘friends am I with you all, and love you all’ but still wants to know ‘why and wherein Caesar was dangerous’. Thus we the audience are aware that Antony is not being honest with the conspirators especially when he speaks in a soliloquy of the anarchy he will create when he states ‘blood and destruction shall be so in use…that mothers shall but smile when they behold/
...d saddened by Caesar’s death, this is also hyperbole. Antony is exaggerating his current emotions. He doesn’t truly need a moment before he goes on. He simply wants the crowd to react to his speech so far. In saying his heart died with Caesar, the pathos generated moves the crowd and gives them an opportunity to respond to Antony.
& respects the intelligence of the common people to understand a speech given in verse. Brutus's authoritative air is once again illustrated at the very opening line of his oration when he demands the attention of the people, "Romans, countrymen, and lovers, hear me for my / cause, and be silent, that you may hear. Believe me / for mine honor and have respect to mine honor, that / you may believe"(Act III, scene ii, lines 13-16). this one line, Antony uses Brutus's words to his advantage by changing them to make himself sound friendlier. By the very first word of Antony's speech, one can infer that he is about to give a humbling oration; he uses the ethical appeal to convince the people to believe in his cause rather than Brutus's. Finally, while the crowd is in awe of Brutus's raw power and booming authority, Antony uses sarcasm He is "an honorable man" (Act III, scene II, line 84) in a tone of biting mockery, therefore questioning Brutus's credibility. & nbsp; It is true that the Roman people have emotions that sway with the winds, but this is partly due to the great speaking skills of both Brutus and Mark Antony.
The speech made by Marcus Antonius, called Antony, in Act Three, Scene Two of Julius Caesar shows that despite being considered a sportsman above all else, he is highly skilled with the art of oratory as well. In the play by William Shakespeare, this speech is made at the funeral of Caesar after he is killed by Brutus and the other conspirators. Brutus claimed earlier, in his own funeral speech, that the killing of Caesar was justified. He felt that Caesar was a threat, and too ambitious to be allowed as ruler. Much of this sentiment, however, was developed by the treacherous Cassius. Antony, on the other hand, felt that the conspirators were traitors to Rome and should be dealt with. This speech used a variety of methods to gradually bring the crowd to his side, yet maintain his side of the deal with Brutus. This deal was that he, “shall not in your funeral speech blame us...” (3.1.245) for the death of Caesar. Antony holds his end of the deal for the majority of the speech, yet by doing so convinces the crowd of Brutus' and the others' disloyalty. In many ways, this speech can be seen as the ultimate rhetoric, and it includes all three of Aristotle's methods of persuasion. This are the appeal to credibility, called ethos, the appeal to emotions, called pathos, and the appeal to logic, called logos. All three of these devices are used to great effect during the speech of Marcus Antonius.