How Does Shakespeare Use Ethos In Julius Caesar

In William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, the funeral speeches given by both Brutus and Mark Antony ARE TWO of the most significant parts in the play. Shortly after Brutus and many other conspirators killed Caesar in the Senate, the eulogies took place. Shakespeare utilizes ethos, logos, and pathos throughout the speeches of Brutus and Antony in order to sway the audience. Although this is true, in the end the audience is only swayed by the man who executes his persuasive skills the best and sends out the most powerful message. Not only did it influence the outcome of the play, but each speech also offered a unique insight into the speaker and their true feelings about the death of Caesar. Shakespeare demonstrates how to powerfully persuade the people of Rome through his words in the speeches of Brutus and Mark Antony.

Brutus’s speech becomes one of absolution, not only for the people of Rome, but for Brutus himself.

He speaks to justify his actions for killing Caesar and uses his “honor and nobility” as a shield against the crowd. Brutus makes his first mistake by dispersing half of the audience by saying, “Those that will hear me speak, let em’ stay here; those that will follow Cassius, go with him.”(3.2.5-6) Here, Brutus is making Cassius seem equal in power, and he is not emphasizing how he needs the attention of the whole audience. Additionally, throughout the speech Brutus is not specific enough when explaining his reasons for Caesar’s death. He continuously refers to himself as an honorable man, and said Caesar was too much of a threat to Rome. On (3.2.31-33) “Who is here so rude that he would not be a Roman?” Shakespeare is illustrating the powerful use of pathos during this moment. He pauses for effect, knowing that no one would publicly admit to being unpatriotic. Brutus is using a more intimidating and cold form of persuasion here, and we later come to discover that his lack of insight and human nature aided in the hopelessness of his

cause.
In Antony’s speech, his word choices are simple, yet they are effective enough to convey his message to the citizens of Rome. He especially uses two words throughout his speech, which are “ambition” and “honorable”. Brutus painted the word ambition in a dark light, but rather antony speaks of Caesar's ambition and his wanting to help others. Brutus says, “When the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept.”(3.2.100) Here, Shakespeare uses pathos in order to invoke sympathy from the audience by describing how Caesar was one of the people, and he never did any wrong. Although Brutus has his friend, Julius Caesar, literally in the back, Anthony says he can not speak badly against the “honorable” and “ambitious” man.
Antony also uses exact pathos and paints himself as a heartbroken man, which convinces the people to listen to him. He remarks about himself, “For I have neither wit, nor words, nor worth, nor utterance nor the power of speech”(3.2.215) Shakespeare uses Ethos and Pathos in this moment to say that Brutus is nothing special, that his words are not meant to manipulate nor to put flawed logic in their head but to tell them the simple and plain truth, that Caesar loved Rome, had loved its people and was tragically murdered for his ambition by “honorable men.”
Although both of Caesar’s funeral speeches serves the basic purpose of persuading and appealing to the audience, their dissimilarity serves as a great significance. Brutus’s speech, which appeared to have an ordered procedure and rhetorical questions, ultimately became a speech of utter dishonesty. Along with this, Brutus lacked a strong emotional attachment to the crowd because of his rare use of pathos. Therefore in Antony’s speech, his rhetorical skills are that of a master. He manages to use components of language, diction and tone to form a valid argument. Through the use of pathos that Shakespeare uses, the speech pierces the heart of the reader and of the republic of Rome. Through this speech, Mark Antony manages to create havoc, inspire mutiny and command the minds of the Republic- even if for a short period of time. Here, Shakespeare demonstrates in order to successfully persuade, you must connect with the listener on another level, which he illustrates through the use of ethos, logos, and pathos.