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Critically analyse the role of brutus in julius caesar
Brutus as a villain in Julius Caesar
Brutus shakespeare analysis
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In William Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, the play begins with the people of Rome celebrating Julius Caesar’s victory over the deceased Pompey’s sons. Prior to Pompey’s death Caesar and Pompey shared power over Rome, and now that Pompey has died the people of Rome want Julius Caesar to become emperor. Mean While Cassius a powerful general and senator is jealous of Caesar and is leading a conspiracy to assonate. Marcos Brutus is a respected senator of the republic that is Julius Caesars close friend, he is well liked by the public and has strong family connections to the republic but he also has a strong desire to be well liked and thought of as a noble man to the people of Rome. Cassius is able to use those qualities to manipulate Brutus into betraying his dear friend Julius Caesar so that he can benefit from the respectability Brutus involvement will bring. Shakespeare characterization of Brutus’ personality demonstrates that Shakespeare finds Brutus’ motives to be self-centered to glorify himself rather than him simply being a man of honor. Although Brutus appears to be working for noble intentions, he is also driven for his own personal pride. Brutus states that he would do anything for the good of the people “as [he] love[s] the name of honor more then [he] loves death” (1.2. 88-89). Brutus’ righteous …show more content…
Brutus’ willingness to put himself over the welfare of a nation showcases his principled and righteous personality. But Brutus’ determination to be viewed as a man of honor and good intentions is what in turn gives him the motivation to act in such a way that allow him to be viewed as such. Brutus is portrayal as a man of good intentions gives the audience symphony for him and allows for the reader to justify Brutus’ actions of murdering his close friend Julius
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...
A dream which Brutus gladly fights when he utters, “Let us be sacrificers but not butchers, Cassius. And in spite of the men, there is no blood”(2.1.173-175). Brutus offers insight into his notion of worth, he will kill for a righteous deed, an honorable action, but not slay wantonly. Brutus is a true martyr for a deceptive plan, when he says, “I have the same dagger for myself, when it shall please my country to need my death”(3.2.41-43). A person of high moral values, an individual who strives to accomplish his ambition, Brutus was the most honorable Roman.
“Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more.” (3.2.24) This quote reflects the motive of Brutus for the assassination of his friend, Caesar. I believe Brutus killed him not out of disrespect, but in a selfless act to protect Rome from the decree of Caesar yet to come. I also believe that he did this out of force from the manipulation from his “friend” Cassius. In Shakespeare's “Julius Caesar”, Brutus’ two most significant characteristics are virtue and unconscious hypocrisy. In order to fully understand these characteristics, it is necessary to analyze all other contributing characteristics, the manipulation of friendship that Cassius uses against him, and the motivations for
Throughout the play many characters are not who they turn out to be. Julius Caesar is a very good judge of character, he does not ruts Cassius, he says “ He thinks too much man, such men are dangerous”( shakespeare,1.2.195). Caesar foreshadows now dangerous Cassius is, Cassius is one person who stabs Caesar. Unlike Caesar, Brutus trusts people too much to see who they are. After Caesar 's death, Brutus trusts Marc Antony to give his speech, but Cassius says “ You know not what you do. Do not consent./ that Antony speak in his funeral. I know you how much the people may be moved/ by that which he will utter.” (shakespeare,3.2.333-335). Caesar was an amazing military leader, Brutus was not. Before Caesar becomes king, he gained land back to Rome “ Julius Caesar has just returned to Rome after a long civil war in which he defeated the forces of pompey” (applebee) Caesar led his military to victory and has the chance to take full control of Rome. brutus is a humble military leader company to Caesar. After Brutus won his battle over Octavius’ army, he left his men begin looting. Instead of helping Cassius’ army “ O Cassius, Brutus gave the word too early,/ who, having some advantages on Octavius/ took it too eagerly. His soldiers fell to spoil/ whilst we by Antony are all enclosed .(Shakespeare,5.3.5-8) Brutus had a bad call when he did not send his army to help Cassius. With Caesars flaw being
As a “speculative man of high motives and refined sensibility”(Catherine C. Dominic) Brutus does have his confusion of motives. Act I, scene ii, is the first we see his weakness, “his concern with reputation and appearance, his subtle vanity and pride”(Gayle Green). Yet the main bases of Brutus’s bewilderment of motives takes place in Act II, scene I, with his famous soliloquy beginning with “It must be by his death”. This speech may be the turning point in which Brutus feels better about the assassination of his once called friend.
Brutus was a man of noble birth. He had multiple servants and was often referred to as “Lord”, which indicates a certain level of respect for him. He was a very highly thought of person in Rome. At no point did he ever betray anyone, although he did kill Caesar, he did it to better Rome, not to mislead him. Everything he did was for the advantage of someone else. Even after Brutus dies, Marc Antony says “This was the noblest roman of them all; all the conspirators, save only he, did that they did in the envy of Caesar; he only in a general honest thought and common good to all...” This shows that regardless of brutus killing Caesar, he is still considered noble because he had good intentions. Brutus was also the best friend of Julius Caesar, the most powerful man in Rome. Had he been a commoner, Caesar most likely would not have associated with him or trusted him as a friend.
Throughout most of the play Brutus is constantly internally conflicted. Does he do what he believes is best for Rome or stay loyal to his friend and leader? Should he assist in the murder of one person to benefit many? Although killing Caesar was in the end a bad choice, Brutus always tries to do what is best for Rome and for the people. However even though all of Brutus’ motives are good he still has the tragic flaw of pride, which ultimately leads to his downfall. The reason that Brutus gets caught up in the conspiracy is because Cassias appeals to his pride and flatters him with forged letters from the Roman people saying he is a greater leader then Caesar.
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.
Throughout the play, Brutus speaks about honor and his loyalty to his country. These two concepts become major conflicts for him when it comes to his friendship and loyalty to Caesar. Brutus life is conducted by the concept of honor. He constantly throughout the play speaks of how honorable he is and how honorable men should live. He 's very proud of how Romans view him as a noble and honorable man, who fights for what is right and is always following the moral and ethical code. Brutus ends up using the concept of honor and loyalty to his country as a reason why Caesar must die. He 's convinced that his countrymen will thank him for saving them from a tyrant and that Rome would be much better off without Caesar, but it ends up being a big miscalculation
He reveals what makes Brutus noble from the rest of the Romans and how taking challenges, risks and being strong, honorable, and able to face sorrows is what makes someone noble. The noblest ones take risks and face the consequences and challenges of proving what is right. Brutus loved Rome and when Cassius asks him to join the conspiracy, he only agrees, knowing that Caesars death would make Rome a better place. Killing Caesar was hard for him to do, but it was a risk he was willing to take, knowing it would bring democracy to Rome. After Brutus forces himself to make the last stab in Caesars heart, he mentions in his speech, “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I have loved Rome more” (iii. ii.
For example, when he addresses the crowd in his funeral speech, Brutus states, “Believe me/for mine honor and have respect to mine honor/that you may believe” (3.2.15-17). Brutus appeals to ethos and establishes his credibility by repeating “honor”. The public now believes that he does indeed have “honor”. He also convinces the public that he is trustworthy by appealing to ethos. Similarly after Brutus’ death Antony states, “This was the noblest Roman…/All of the conspirators, save only he/did that they did in envy of great Caesar” (5.5.74-76). Antony is the enemy of Brutus and yet he still refers to Brutus as the “noblest Roman”, which verifies that Brutus is actually honorable. Antony is stating that while all the other senators kill Caesar out of “envy”, Brutus’ intentions to kill Caesar was for the good of Rome and its citizens. This reveals that Brutus has no other hidden agenda for wanting to execute Caesar, and therefore Brutus has the most purest intentions out of all the other conspirators. This confirms that he is the most noble Roman because he is not thinking about what he wants. Instead, he is thinking about the people and how they would feel if Caesar becomes a dictator. Brutus possesses nobility and honor. Those two qualities are vital to being an effective leader because the people can then
Brutus is primarily motivated by his utilitarian ideals, causing him to have a weak, uncertain approach relative to Antony. Antony’s counter-conspiracy is driven by his emotional attachment to Caesar and desire to avenge him, giving him a powerful, instinctual base to operate from. As Brutus is considering an assassination of Caesar, he states, “It must be by his death; and for my part,/ I know no personal cause to spurn at him,/ But for the general” (Shakespeare II.i.10-12). By considering the absence of personal incentives for the planned attack on Caesar, Brutus reveals fickleness in his motives by giving himself a second option. He is inspired to participate in the conspiracy by his utilitarian ideals, while concurrently, he doubts himself by considering his lack of personal conflict with Caesar. This weakness is further exposed following the planning of Caesar’s as...
...ation and well being of a country, people, and republic. “‘This was the noblest Roman of them all. All the conspirators save only he did that they did in envy of great Caesar; he, only in a general honest thought and common good to all, made one of them’”(998). Although a seemingly menacing traitor to his country at first, Brutus makes the journey to a sympathetic and noble tragic hero in the end.
Brutus was a loving friend of Julius Caesar and wished anything but death on his comrade, but his love and dedication to the majestic city of Rome would force him to commit anything. He fights a war to defend Rome from a king or emperor's tyrannical rule. When the war was over, even his enemies saw that he was the most respectable Roman of them all. This (Brutus' body) was the noblest Roman of them all. All conspirators, save only he did what they did in envy of great Caesar....
In William Shakespeare’s tragedy Julius Caesar, the character of Marcus Brutus is tasked with making a difficult choice: either kill one of his most beloved friends, or risk the corruption and downfall of Rome. Though Brutus acknowledges the ethical and moral concerns of his actions, he commits to the conspiracy against Caesar, and carries it out with conviction. The question, however, is whether or not Brutus’ actions are justifiable from an objective point of view. Unlike most other political assassinations, Brutus isn’t a hysterical stranger distraught with the target, but a close ally, and trusted friend. Brutus justifies his own doings by convincing himself and others that they’re sacrificing, not murder Caesar, and acting not out of greed or personal gain, but to prevent what he truly believes to be a legitimate and potent threat to the Republic in Julius Caesar’s rising power; however, while this may be a coping mechanism to quash his own culpability, there are numerous feasibly supportive reasons that make Caesar’s death defensible. The primary reason for the necessity of Caesar’s death is the very real possibility that he would become corrupt once his power is no longer suppressible by the senate. This is Brutus’ main concern, as he seeks to ensure the freedom and safety of the Roman people, as well as the integrity of the Republic. Additionally, the combination of Caesar’s ego and ever-growing aspirations are threatening to Rome, as the socio-political foundation on which it has flourished would be disassembled. Ever since the genesis of the first Roman Triumvirate, Caesar’s lust for power rampaged forth, ultimately leading to the disempowerment of the senate and his own rise to power via military imposition.