Julius Caesar

“I rather tell thee what is to be feared

Than what I fear, for always I am Caesar.

Come on my right hand, for this ear is deaf,

And tell me truly what thou think’st of him.” 

Caesar’s deaf ear, an invention of Shakespeare, symbolizes his refusal to listen to advice. Caesar’s arrogance is ultimately his undoing; he would rather dictate to others than take council from them. Though he is wary of Cassius, he arrogantly ignores every sign of conspiracy that is presented to him.

“Beware the ides of March.” 

One of the most famous lines from Julius Caesar, the soothsayer’s warning is one of many that Caesar receives and ignores. The Ides of March (March 15th) was a Roman holiday that, among other things, was a deadline for settling debts. It is also the day Caesar was assassinated. Shakespeare often used prophecies in his plays to advance the action and foretell doom for his characters. One of the most famous examples of this literary technique is in Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

“I would not, Cassius; yet I love him well.

But wherefore do you hold me here so long?

What is it that you would impart to me?

If it be aught toward the general good,

Set honour in one eye and death i’th’ other,

And I will look on both indifferently;

For let the gods so speed me as I love

The name of honour more than I fear death.” 

Brutus is conflicted by his love for Caesar and his love of the Roman Republic. He recognizes that Caesar’s popularity risks the freedom of the populace. Were Caesar to accept the crown, it would mean the end of the Republic. Brutus values honor: this passage indicates that he weighs it equally with death and would die to preserve his honor. Yet he is put in an impossible situation in which he must choose between honoring his friend or honoring the republic.

“Casca:

So can I.

So every bondsman in his own hand bears

The power to cancel his captivity.

Cassius:

And why should Caesar be a tyrant then?

Poor man, I know he would not be a wolf

But that he sees the Romans are but sheep.

He were no lion, were not the romans hinds.

Those that with haste will make a mighty fire

Begin it with weak straws. What trash is Rome,

What rubbish, and what offal, when it serves

For the base matter to illuminate

So vile a thing as Caesar!”

Cassius argues that it is not Caesar’s fault that he stands to become dictator; it is the fault of the Roman populace. Cassius exhibits a patrician’s disdain for the plebeian classes. While the plebeians could reject tyranny, they instead opt for populism instead of true freedom. This also shows that Cassius does not act out of love for the Roman Republic and its people; he does so to further his own political ambitions.

“‘Brutus, thou sleep’st. Awake, and see thyself.’

‘Shall Rome, et cetera? Speak, strike, redress.’—

‘Brutus, thou sleep’st. Awake.’

Such instigations have been often dropped

Where I have took them up.

‘Shall Rome, et cetera?’ Thus must I piece it out:

Shall Rome stand under one man’s awe? What, Rome?

My ancestors did from the streets of Rome

The Tarquin drive when he was called a king.

‘Speak, strike, redress.’ Am I entreated

To speak and strike? O Rome, I make thee promise,

If the redress will follow, thou receives

Thy full petition at the hand of Brutus.”

Cassius’s letter to Brutus craftily plays on Brutus’s sense of honor and virtue, along with his respect for his ancestors. By invoking Brutus’s predecessor, who drove the tyrant Tarquin from power, Cassius makes deposing Caesar a familial responsibility for Brutus. Like another Shakespearean tragic hero, Othello, Brutus meets his doom in part because he is manipulated by a savvy political operator.

“I could be well moved if I were as you.

If I could pray to move, prayers would move me.

But I am constant as the Northern Star,

Of whose true fixed and resting quality

There is no fellow in the firmament.”

This passage evidences Caesar’s ego, arrogance, and pride—his fatal flaws. He will not listen to warnings concerning his own safety, and instead views his immovability as a virtue. Unlike Brutus’s tragic flaw, Caesar’s flaw needs no outside force to spur it on. Rather, it is inherent in the man’s personality.

“Et tu Brute?—Then fall Caesar.”

Caesar’s final words are famous and often parodied. Shakespeare’s depiction of Caesar’s death has Brutus delivering the killing blow. This emphasizes depth of Brutus’s betrayal. Despite being stabbed dozens of times, Caesar’s question “And you, Brutus?” shows that Brutus’s betrayal has broken his spirit, ending his will to live. 

“Had you rather Caesar were living, and

Die all slaves, that that Caesar were dead, to live all free men?

As Caesar loved me, I weep for him. As he was fortunate, I

Rejoice at it. As he was valiant, I honor him. But as he was

Ambitious, I slew him.”

Brutus’s argument for his cause is rooted in logic and ethics. He makes his case plainly to the plebians: he loved Caesar but killed him for his ambition. Ultimately, this proves to be a flaw in his argument. Brutus does not address all the good that Caesar did for the average Roman, and Mark Antony uses this to leverage the crowd’s favor against the conspirators. 

“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;

I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.” 

Antony’s famous opening line to his funerary oration states his case. In line with the agreement he made with Brutus, he is not supposed to be making any sort of argument for Caesar or against Brutus. By addressing the crowd as friends and countrymen, he places himself on the same level as the crowd. 

“Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest—

For Brutus is an honourable man;

So are they all, all honourable men—

Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral.

He was my friend, faithful and just to me:

But Brutus says he was ambitious;

And Brutus is an honourable man.” 

Mark Antony’s repetition of the adjective “honourable,” as applied to the conspirators, is paired with examples of Caesar’s deeds which serve as counter arguments to Brutus’s reasoning. This degrades the crowd’s opinion of the conspirators. At each repetition, Brutus and the others appear less and less honorable.

“What cause withholds you then to mourn for him?

O judgment! thou art fled to brutish beasts,

And men have lost their reason!

[He weeps]

Bear with me;

My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,

And I must pause till it come back to me.”

Unlike Brutus’s speech, Antony’s oration is steeped in pathos—a perfect method of persuading an already emotional crowd. The term “brutish beasts” may be a pun on Brutus’s name, and it accuses the crowd of being on Brutus’s side. His strategic, emotional pause at the end of this passage gives the plebeians some time to mull over his argument. 

“I come not, friends, to steal away your hearts:

I am no orator, as Brutus is;

But, as you know me all, a plain blunt man,

That love my friend; and that they know full well

That gave me public leave to speak of him:

For I have neither wit, nor words, nor worth,

Action, nor utterance, nor the power of speech,

To stir men's blood: I only speak right on;

I tell you that which you yourselves do know;

Show you sweet Caesar's wounds, poor poor dumb mouths,

And bid them speak for me: but were I Brutus,

And Brutus Antony, there were an Antony

Would ruffle up your spirits and put a tongue

In every wound of Caesar that should move

The stones of Rome to rise and mutiny.” 

Mark Antony again uses rhetoric to twist his words into arguing exactly what he says he is not arguing. Self-effacement makes his words seem humble, but the striking image of Caesar’s wounds speaking like mouths shows the power of his oration. The effect of this speech and the subsequent unveiling of Caesar’s body stirs the crowd to mutiny. 

“Cinna:

Truly, my name is Cinna.

First Plebeian:

Tear him to pieces! He’s a conspirator.”

This brief scene shows the negative effect of mob mentality. The crowd of plebeians, stirred up by Mark Antony, is out for blood. They do not care that the Cinna in this scene is a poet, rather than Cinna the conspirator. The crowd is so bloodthirsty that it ultimately rationalizes its decision to kill the poet Cinna on account of his bad verses.

“Let us do so, for we are at the stake

And bayed about with many enemies;

And some that smile have in their hearts, I fear

Millions of mischiefs.” 

Octavius Caesar is named in Caesar’s will as his legitimate heir. Because of this, Octavius has a claim to Caesar’s political position. Octavius and Antony immediately begin conspiring to fill the power vacuum left by Caesar’s death. This is the ultimate irony of Julius Caesar: That the conspirators’ efforts to preserve the Roman Republic resulted in the dissolution of the republic and the elevation of Octavius to the permanent dictatorial position of Roman Emperor, initiating a line of supreme authoritarians that would rule Rome for centuries.

“Remember March, the ides of March remember:

Did not great Julius bleed for justice’ sake?

What villain touch’d his body, that did stab,

And not for justice? What, shall one of us

That struck the foremost man of all this world

But for supporting robbers, shall we now

Contaminate our fingers with base bribes,

And sell the mighty space of our large honours

For so much trash as may be grasped thus?

I had rather be a dog, and bay the moon,

Than such a Roman.” 

Brutus chastises Cassius for what he views as dishonorable behavior. Because Cassius accepted bribes, this threatens to violate the sanctity of Caesar’s assassination: part of the reason that he was assassinated was due to alleged corruption. It is yet another example of the hypocrisy that lies at the heart of Cassius’s supposedly noble actions.

“Why, farewell, Portia. We must die, Messala.

With meditating that she must die once,

I have the patience to endure it now.” 

Brutus acknowledges his wife’s death with a stoic indifference. Some scholars contend that this passage represents a discrepancy in Shakespeare’s drafting of Julius Caesar: a conversation with Cassius earlier in the scene reveals that Brutus already knew of Portia’s suicide. However, this exchange may highlight the Roman attitude toward public grieving. Brutus shows more emotion when speaking with Cassius, whom he is closer with, than with Messala.

“Brutus:

Speak to me what thou art.

Ghost:

Thy evil spirit, Brutus.

Brutus:

Why com’st thou?

Ghost:

To tell thee thou shalt see me at Philippi.” 

“Mark Antony:

Why do you cross me in this exigent?

Octavius:

I do not cross you, but I will do so.” 

Prior to the battle, Mark Antony and Octavius have a minor, strategical disagreement. Octavius, who is inexperienced in battle, should logically defer to the veteran general. By saying “I do not cross you, but I will do so,” Octavius foreshadows the future conflict between him and Mark Antony that will lead to Mark Antony’s downfall and Octavius’s ascent to Emperor. 

“No, Cassius, no: think not, thou noble Roman,

That ever Brutus will go bound to Rome;

He bears too great a mind. But this same day

Must end that work the ides of March begun;

And whether we shall meet again I know not.

Therefore our everlasting farewell take:

For ever, and for ever, farewell, Cassius!

If we do meet again, why, we shall smile;

If not, why then, this parting was well made.”

While Brutus disagrees with suicide on a philosophical level, he is not above using it as a last resort to avoid the dishonor of being captured by enemy forces. Brutus recognizes that death might very well be the outcome of their enterprise, and therefore, he bids a final farewell to Cassius. The two will not meet again. 

“Come down, behold no more.

O, coward that I am, to live so long,

To see my best friend ta'en before my face!

[Enter Pindarus below]

Come hither, sirrah:

In Parthia did I take thee prisoner;

And then I swore thee, saving of thy life,

That whatsoever I did bid thee do,

Thou shouldst attempt it. Come now, keep thine oath;

Now be a freeman: and with this good sword,

That ran through Caesar's bowels, search this bosom.

Stand not to answer: here, take thou the hilts;

[Pindarus takes the sword]

And, when my face is cover'd, as 'tis now,

Guide thou the sword.

[Pindarus stabs him]

Caesar, thou art revenged,

Even with the sword that kill'd thee.

[Dies]” 

Because Cassius spared Pindarus’s life. Pindarus is his bondsman. As such, it is his duty to assist Cassius in committing suicide. It is appropriate that Cassius uses the same sword on himself that he used to kill Caesar: killing Caesar set the events in motion that led to his own death. 

“Why didst thou send me forth, brave Cassius?

Did I not meet thy friends? and did not they

Put on my brows this wreath of victory,

And bid me give it thee? Didst thou not hear their shouts?

Alas, thou hast misconstrued every thing!

But, hold thee, take this garland on thy brow;

Thy Brutus bid me give it thee, and I

Will do his bidding. Brutus, come apace,

And see how I regarded Caius Cassius.

By your leave, gods:—this is a Roman’s part

Come, Cassius' sword, and find Titinius’ heart.” 

In Roman culture, suicide was an honorable death, depending on the circumstances. Titinius commits suicide when he returns from battle, victorious, and sees Cassius has done the same. Titinius blames Cassius’s distrust of good news for his suicide; this is, perhaps, due to the omen presented by the eagles abandoning Cassius’s army, or a sense of guilt for Caesar’s death. 

“Only I yield to die.

There is so much, that thou wilt kill me straight:

Kill Brutus and be honoured in his death.” 

At the point of capture, Lucilius impersonates Brutus, hoping to be spared. The real Brutus does not surrender, and Mark Antony sees right through Lucilius’s deception. Antony spares him, indicating that he will make a valuable captive. 

“Caesar, now be still.

I killed not thee with half so good a will.” 

Brutus’s last lines invoke the ghost of Caesar, hoping to calm both the restless spirit and his own conscience. While the reasons for killing himself differ from his reasons for killing Caesar, they both come from the same spirit of honor, virtue, and stoic analysis—not from malice or ill will. Those qualities also differentiate Brutus from the other conspirators, most of whom killed Caesar to fulfill their political ambitions.