Julius Caesar Conspiracy Essay

Conspiracy by definition is the planning of a secret act. Often when people think of the connection between conspiracy and William Shakespeare they think of the Shakespeare Conspiracy Theory. This conspiracy theory portrays William Shakespeare as illiterate and as a man paid by the Earl of Oxford to present “Shakespeare’s plays” as his own. However, others link conspiracy and Shakespeare with the worldly known tragedies of Macbeth, Hamlet, and Julius Caesar. In these works, Shakespeare utilized this theme of conspiracy to vividly describe the characters in their quest to protect the nation, seek revenge, or gain power.

“William Shakespeare was born on April 23, 1564” (Fandel 8) in the small English town known as Stratford-upon-Avon. William

was “the third child born to Mary Arden and John Shakespeare” (Fandel 8). However, William was the first of their children to survive past infancy. Shakespeare began attending the New King’s School, in Stratford, at the age of 5, six days a week. The average school day in Shakespearean England began around seven in the morning with a Latin grammar lesson and concluded at approximately five. William’s schooling days came quickly to an end around the age of 12 in order to work along side his father at the family glove-making business. This information is allegedly factual, but the years from age 5 to William’s early 20’s are known as the “lost years” (Mabillard 1) because of the lack of official documents citing Shakespeare’s childhood and teenage life. The only official certificate acquired from this mysterious period was William and his wife’s marriage license.
“A bond certificate dated November the 28th, 1582,” (Unknown 1) divulges information that Shakespeare, 18 years old, married the allegedly pregnant 26-year-old Anne Hathaway. Anne and William had three children together. The first, Susanna, was born six months after the marriage in May of 1583. After two years, Anne gave birth to twins, Hamnet and Judith, named after Shakespeare’s very close friends Hamnet and Judith Sadler. Sadly, Shakespeare’s only son, Hamnet died at age 11 from unknown causes - the only child that could have continued the illustrious name of Shakespeare. In 1592, William and his family moved to London so he could pursue his career as an actor and playwright.
Shakespeare’s career started off slowly because of the large pool of competition in the acting/playwright world. The competition diminished quickly due to the rise of the Black Plague in London. Shakespeare quarantined himself in his house composing plays and constructing poems and sonnets to produce and publish when the bubonic scare ended. Once Shakespeare’s works began to be published and nationally recognized, Shakespeare was chosen to become a member of the eminent Lord Chamberlain’s Men, an acting guild. Throughout Shakespeare’s career, he formulated 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other shorter poems. In 1599, due to the termination of a lease on the Blackfriars Theatre, Richard Burbage and James Burbage built the Globe Theatre for The Lords Chamberlain’s Men to utilize. The Globe Theater became the stage for most of Shakespeare’s works and the center of his career.
The original Globe Theatre was circular, had three tiers of seating, an open roof, and contained a 44 by 26 foot long stage. The theatre was constructed using wood from another theatre known as The Rose. The Globe rested on the shore of the Thames River in the outer banks of Southwark. The Globe’s bottom level was called the penny public. The playgoers would pay one penny in order to stand in a large area in front of the stage. For an extra penny or so, as a playgoer, you could sit in one of three galleries slightly raised higher than the stage (second level). The wealthier citizens and Queen, however, would sit on the upper level, known as the center balcony for a much higher price. Queen Elizabeth I was a big supporter of theater and attended Globe Theater productions often. The Playhouse possessed a motto and a crest. The motto was “Totus mundus agit histrionem” (Alchin 1) which meant the whole world is a playhouse, which was later modified by Shakespeare to “All the world’s a stage” and used in his play As You Like It (Alchin 1). The crest displayed Hercules with a globe on his shoulders. These appeared directly above the entrance to the Globe. Hundreds of plays were performed flawlessly in this theatre, but the production of Henry VIII went terribly wrong.
On June 29th, 1613 a cannon was fired during a scene of Henry VIII, which ignited the straw roof on fire. In less than two hours the playhouse was completely burned down and became a pile of ashes next to the Thames River. However, this was not the only time the Globe Theatre was destroyed. After being reconstructed in 1614 on the opposite side of the Thames River, the Globe was once again destroyed by the members of the Puritanical movement who viewed laughter as a sin and theater immoral. The Puritan movement shut down the Globe, as well as other theaters. In 1644, the Globe was dismembered. The Puritan’s put an end to the great theatrical era of which Shakespeare was a primary playwright. The Globe would not live again until 352 years later in 1996, when a replica Globe Theatre was built on the same land that the ash of the original lied on.
Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616 at age 52. His wife and two daughters outlived him. He was interred besides the Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon. On his gravestone, Shakespeare had the following curse engraved - "Good frend for Jesus sake forebeare, / To digg the dust encloased heare;/ Bleste be the man that spares thes stones, / And curst be he that moves my bones" (Reuters 1). It was common during this time for graves to be robbed of its bones and the valuables within it. The above phrase is a curse against any person who would desecrate it. Shakespeare remains a man of mystery because of the lack of personal information on his life. Luckily, he leaves behind an amazing volume of work that speaks for him.
“Beware of the ides of March” (Julius Caesar 103). These are the fatal words prophesied by a soothsayer in the crowd celebrating Julius Caesar’s victory over Pompey- words that Julius Caesar should not have ignored. The accumulation of more power after each victory begins to worry Caesar’s loyal supporter, Brutus. Brutus begins to worry that Caesar’s ever growing popularity will result in Caesar’s ascension to the throne which will ultimately result in the demise of the republic and of Rome. This perception influences Cassius and Brutus’s decision to organize a conspiracy, with its members joining the group in order to gain personal power or wealth – with the exception of Brutus whose motives are pure and solely for the purpose of saving his beloved Rome. During the constant formation of the conspiracy, Caesar and Calphurnia (Caesar’s wife) begin to see signs foreshadowing Caesar’s downfall on the Senate steps on the “ides of March”. Based on her ominous dreams, Calphurnia entreats Caesar to not leave their home, but when he finds out his supporters will be offering him a crown, he chooses to ignore the omens and go to the Senate escorted by the secret conspirators. Standing tall on the top Senate step, Caesar is struck by Casca’s, a conspirator’s, knife. One by one, as Caesar falls, the conspirators continually stab him to death. To revolt against the conspirators, Antony, Caesar’s most loyal pupil, forms an army with Octavius. During the bloody battle, Cassius dies along with many other conspirators. Receiving the awful news of Cassius’s death, Brutus kills himself. Perceived as an act of loyalty, Antony and Octavius name Brutus the most honorable man to live. They respected Brutus’s decision to stand behind his belief against Caesar’s kingship and therefore, they buried Brutus in Rome’s most honorable and holy areas.
Conspiracies are for the most part seen as a group of people with bad intentions. However, in Julius Caesar the lead conspirator, Brutus, had only the positive growth and protection of his beloved city of Rome in mind. Brutus said, “Crown him that, And then I grant we put a sting in him, that at his will he may do danger with” (Julius Caesar 617) when he first pondered about the success of Caesar. These lines represent Brutus’s constant stress over the safety of his city, whether or not the next person to ascend the throne will benefit the citizens or abuse the given power. The actions Brutus takes along side the other conspirators were to accomplish what Brutus could not accomplish on his own… kill Caesar. “It must be by his death” (Julius Caesar 612).
The struggle for humanity in Julius Caesar can be summarized as, “Julius Caesar depicts the senatorial conspiracy to murder Caesar and the political turmoil that ensues in the aftermath of the assassination” (LaBlanc 1). There is not much contrasting information from critic to critic about Julius Caesar. The common statement in each article describes how the possible gain of power caused a chain of events. “His (Caesar) assumption of power in Rome stimulates the conspiracy; later…inspires Antony and haunts Brutus” (Daniell 1). Despite only one conspirator, Brutus, actually fighting for the betterment of his city, the conspiracy prevails. Brutus dies an honorable man for standing firm on his belief that Caesar’s crowning would be the demise oSf democracy in Rome. Brutus therefore believes he is protecting the city from unpredictable, morally wrong, and unjust actions.
Hamlet opens with the supernatural visit of Prince Hamlet’s dead father, the previous king of Denmark. He reveals the truth about his death; how it was Hamlet’s uncle, King Claudius that killed him by funneling poison into his ear. Hamlet’s father haunts Hamlet from beyond his grave in hopes that Hamlet will avenge his death and end Claudius’s illegitimate kingship. Hamlet already harbored great rage for Claudius since he married Hamlet’s mother. Shortly after Hamlet speaks with his father’s ghost, Hamlet lets his mother, Gertrude, know that he finds it repulsive that she is having an affair with Claudius, an inferior man to his father. During this conversation Polonius is listening from behind a curtain. As Hamlet begins to get rough with Gertrude, Polonius cries for help. Thinking it was Claudius behind the curtain, Hamlet stabs at him through the curtain. As Polonius’s body falls out from behind the curtain, Hamlet is struck by great despair. He just murdered his love’s, Ophelia’s, father.
Before actually killing Claudius, Hamlet devises a plan to make sure Claudius truly killed his father. Hamlet sets up a play to recreate the scene of his father’s death. He sees that Claudius is not pleased and is uncomfortable with what is being shown; Hamlet now knows definitively that Claudius did murder his father. This gives Hamlet even more motivation to kill Claudius. Ophelia, who is profoundly stricken by grief over her father’s death, drowns herself in the river. At her burial, Hamlet and Laertes, Ophelia’s brother, begin to fight about whom she loved more. Laertes blames Hamlet for her untimely death. The next day, Hamlet and Laertes are set to fence in front of King Claudius. Before the fight, Claudius pours a drink into two cups, one with poison. He also tips Laertes’ sword with poison as well. Gertrude accidentally drinks the poisoned cup that was meant for Hamlet’s consumption instead, killing her. Laertes’ poisoned sword hits Hamlet but Hamlet turns the sword on Laertes as well. When Hamlet discovers Claudius’ deceptions, he runs Claudius through with the poisoned sword. There on the floor of the royal home, lay the entire royal family - dead. Shortly after, the Prince of Norway arrives and claims Denmark as his own.
Conspiracy is a theme in Hamlet starting with the visit of Hamlet’s dead father. “I am thy father’s spirit…revenge is soul and most unnatural murder”(Hamlet 155). From this line it is evident that the ghost and Hamlet are conspiring to kill Claudius. Without a second thought, Hamlet agrees to slay Claudius, the “adulterous beast”(Hamlet 160). Hamlet’s scheme to organize the reenactment and mentally break down his mother about Claudius is to assure himself that Claudius truly killed his loyal father and acted like a ravenous pig towards his mother. This allows Hamlet to fulfill his conspiratorial promise without guilt.
The major theme in Hamlet can be described as “the representation of ambition as a fiendish living force, driving on an heroic nature, that is possessed of high aims and capable of the grandest deeds, yet restricted by external barriers, to conspiracy against an anointed power”(French 1). Even though innocent people were killed along the way, Polonius, Ophelia and Laertes, Hamlet avenged his father by killing Claudius. After successfully fulfilling the conspiracy’s goal of killing Claudius, Hamlet’s father is now able to rest peacefully knowing justice was served and that no betrayer will rule the kingdom.
Shakespeare utilized the theme of conspiracy in Julius Caesar and Hamlet to describe the play’s characters in their quests to protect their nation or seek revenge.

The two plays conspiracies differed drastically. In Julius Caesar, not every conspirator had the same goal. Brutus worried about the future status of the nation under Caesar’s rule and was taking action to stop it. However, the other conspirators only joined forces for personal benefit of wealth as co-rulers. Brutus ultimately achieved his goal of killing Caesar, but died in battle along with multiple other conspirators, by the hands of the citizens who were loyal to Caesar. Unlike the conspirators in Julius Caesar, the conspirators in Hamlet agreed on what had to be done to seek revenge. After receiving the truth about his father death, from his father’s ghost, Hamlet decides to take initiative and kill his father’s murderer. Even though Hamlet died shortly after Claudius, the killer, he succeeded in his duty to avenge his father. Due to the cooperation between the conspirators and understanding of the morally correct actions that had to take place, Hamlet and his dead father can rest in peace knowing they fulfilled their intentions. Dissimilar from Julius Caesar and Hamlet, Macbeth tells the story of Macbeth’s wife conning him into unlawful

actions.
In this five act play, Macbeth kills the King of Scotland, King Duncan with the assistance of his wife, Lady Macbeth. The three witches play a major role in the death of Duncan by predicting that Macbeth will become king, but she also foretells that Banquo, Macbeth’s best friend, will have sons that will become King of Scotland. Macbeth kills Banquo and ascends to the throne. As king, he begins a rule of terror and kills anyone that may take his position away from him. The ghost of Banquo haunts Macbeth at an important banquet, and tries to make Macbeth feel remorse for his actions. Ultimately, Macbeth’s wife kills herself and Macbeth is slain by Macduff, who the witches predicted would harm him. This prediction stated that someone from Birnam Wood who was not born of a woman would kill Macbeth. Macduff was not born of a woman since he arrived via C-section. MacDuff slays Macbeth in battle, which allows Malcolm to ascend the Scottish throne and end Macbeth’s reign of terror.
By definition, conspiring is “a secret plan by a group to do something unlawful or harmful” (Oxford). However in my opinion this conspiracy formed due to the use subterfuge. Lady Macbeth deceived Macbeth by concealing the truth about the additional consequences that will come from killing the King- Lady Macbeth knew there would be ramifications. “Before my body I throw my warlike shield. Lay on, Macduff, and damn'd be him that first cries, Hold enough”(Macbeth 60). This line describes Macbeth accepting that being slain by Macduff has always been his fate. Lady Macbeth made their murderous path seem as if there was only happiness to follow not their own demise. This is how Lady Macbeth uses subterfuge to con Macbeth into conspiring to kill Duncan.
Lady Macbeth and her extremely loyal husband Macbeth conspire to perform a deed for power gain. However, this feeling of power is not a completely mutual feeling. Lady Macbeth dictates the plan to conspire and slay King Duncan. “Duncan announces that he is going to pay Macbeth a visit at his castle. A servant back at his castle informs Lady Macbeth of Duncan's approach. Energized by the news, Lady Macbeth prepares her for the murder of Duncan. Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth that they will plot Duncan's murder” (Bloom). When Macbeth returns, Lady Macbeth orders Macbeth to follow her steps. With no time to rethink and only the immediate thought of ultimate power over Scotland, Macbeth follows the direction of the conspiracy leader, Lady Macbeth and kills Duncan.
William Shakespeare utilizes the concept of conspiracy to display the characters’ desire to protect the nation, seek revenge, or gain power. Brutus, head leader of the conspirators, had one goal in mind - prevent the crowning of Caesar. Although Brutus is Caesar’s right-hand man, he feels that the safeguard of Rome is more important than the life of a fellow nobleman. In Julius Caesar, Brutus and the other members of the conspiracy did anything possible to halt Caesar’s advance up the political ladder and to the throne. In Hamlet, Hamlet and his father’s ghost develop a plan to seek revenge on Claudius, Hamlet’s uncle who murdered his father to gain power. The two conspire and kill Claudius to restore the little amount of humanity left in the kingdom. Unlike Hamlet and Julius Caesar, Macbeth was about a relatively modest nobleman and his power hungry wife who scheme to overthrow and kill the king in order to gain power over northern Scotland and own Inverness – the castle of the king. What sets Macbeth apart from the other plays is that the conspiracies goal was for strictly for personal wealth and power with no regard to the Scottish citizens or the sustainability of Scotland.