Brutus as the Tragic Hero
According to Aristotle, “A tragic hero is a character who is not eminently good and just, yet whose misfortune is brought about not by vice and depravity, but by some error or frailty…” The classic tragic hero has some type of tragic character flaw which creates an inner struggle, leads to his making a serious error in judgment, and leads to his eventual downfall and death.
In Julius Caesar Brutus displays the traits of a tragic hero throughout this play. His tragic flaw is need to be nobel. He makes an error in judgment, and when killing Caesar causes all of Rome to turn against the conspirators everything from then on causes tragic events. All of which eventually lead to his death. The main reason that Marcus Brutus deserves the title of tragic hero is his noble personality. First of all, throughout the play, he never deceives anyone. Although he did murder Julius Caesar, it was for the good of Rome, not to deceive Caesar. Everything that he did was for the benefit of someone else. He cared more about others than he did himself. For instance, in the process of killing Caesar, he could have easily backed out because he knew he might have been punished, but he knew in the long run, that it would help the plebeians most. Even though he killed Antony's best friend Antony still recognized Brutus as “the noblest Roman of all.” Because he recognized that Brutus was the only conspirator that actually killed Caesar because he "loved Caesar less
Julius Caesar, I must admit, is an amazing play. Between the beautiful setting, complex characters, the devious plan, and the tragic deaths, it is an outstanding performance. Within the play, many characters are introduced, Marcus Junius Brutus is a very loyal, strong, intelligent, and a beloved person in the city of Rome. In the tragedy of Julius Caesar, Brutus is one of the seven conspirators who kill Caesar. He did this thinking he was doing Rome good. Although, there is a lingering question, is Brutus a villain or a hero? Personally, I believe that Brutus is a little bit of both.
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare depicts a tragic hero, or one who has high standing and causes his own downfall. The tragic hero is Brutus, and he makes multiple and ultimately fatal mistakes that lead to his enlightenment and then his death. Brutus’ death is the result of many misfortunes, including being herded into the conspiracy and thus aiding in the death of Caesar, hearing of the death of his loyal wife, and waging a war against Rome.
The tragedy “Julius Caesar” by William Shakespeare should be renamed “Brutus” because Caesar is not the tragic hero. He is only in a small portion of the play and does not possess a major tragic flaw; however Marcus Brutus fits the description of tragic hero much better than Julius Caesar. Typically, tragedies are named after the tragic hero, which Aristotle describes as: a person of noble birth with a tragic flaw that leads to his or her downfall because of that flaw. Brutus exhibits all of these qualities, therefore rightfully naming him a tragic hero.
This displays that Brutus has no personal resentment towards Caesar, but is doing what is best for the Roman people. Therefore, Marcus Brutus’s moral integrity shows in his decisions, which makes him a tragic hero.
The Tragedy of Brutus In every single story no matter what it is, there is a character that makes or breaks the story. Whether it is good or bad, without that one character, the story would be incomplete. If there was any character in any story like that every, it would be Brutus. Brutus is not like any other ordinary person; he is much more complex and the plays tragic hero.
Marcus Brutus does qualify as the tragic hero in Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. A tragic hero is a good or even great man and thus wins our sympathy causing catharsis. A tragic hero displays hamartia— the hero makes a mistake causing the downfall of his fortune. A tragic hero usually brings suffering and death to other characters, even a whole country. Finally, a tragic hero goes into a situation in which there is no getting out of because of the decisions he has made. Marcus Brutus has many characteristics of a tragic hero thus making him the tragic hero in Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar.
The reason Brutus is a tragic hero is because he sacrificed his life, friend, and wife just to save Rome because he cared for his people. Brutus didn’t kill Caesar for his own needs, but for others and that’s the definition of a hero. The reason any of this happened was because of Cassius and his selfish ways. Cassius is the whole entire reason Brutus is a hero, but Brutus is to blame for the tragedy. Brutus could have talked to Caesar first, but instead he jumped at his chance. Brutus flung himself onto a sword knowing Mark Antony was coming for him. Brutus is a tragic hero all thanks to
Marcus Brutus is a tragic hero because he drives the story and plot with his decision making. This trait makes him the protagonist. His first story changing decision is to join Cassius and the conspirators leading to the assassination of Caesar. He also let Antony speak at Caesar's funeral which Cassius said not to, which led to a Roman mob against all of the conspirators. Then lastly led to the civil war where Brutus made the decision to go from a strong defensive position to a weak offensive position that ultimately led to the conspirators defeat and shortly after, Brutus' suicide.
Shakespeare and history alike describe Julius Caesar as a great, powerful leader with various heroic qualities that surpass those of Brutus. The prerequisite to being a tragic hero lies in being a hero itself. In this aspect, Caesar easily overpowers Brutus. Caesar significantly expanded the Roman Empire
In the drama Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, the character Brutus is the head conspirator in a plot to kill Caesar, a Roman senator, deceives the public, then loses a major battle against the Triumvirate, which ends in his suicide. However, he can still be considered the hero of the Tragedy Julius Ceasar. Throughout the play, Brutus constantly believes that what he is doing is best for the Rome. Brutus is the hero because everything he does and all of the decisions he makes are made for the good of the people. All of the other main characters are motivated to do what they are doing for reasons like revenge, power, and personal reasons.
Do you believe that brutus was just a backstabbing friend, or really a tragic hero? Marcus Brutus from William Shakespeare’s, Julius Caesar, was a tragic hero in my opinion. I am going to try and convince you that he was and why he was a tragic hero in this essay. Brutus meets all of the criteria of a tragic hero. He is arguably the protagonist of the play; he has a fatal flaw that leads to his downfall, which he cannot recover from. He had good qualities like patriotism, and he was honorable. His tragic flaw was also one of his good qualities, he was honorable. He killed someone he loved for the good of his country. Brutus also killed himself for honor. In the following paragraphs I will be explaining all of this.
Is Brutus a tragic hero? In this play there are a few parts where Brutus is claimed to be a tragic hero. Brutus cared deeply about Caesar but he also cared about Rome and when he had to choose between the two he picked the wrong one. He truly believed that Caesar would have had a negative impact on Rome, and since Brutus put his country before his friends and even his family he then joined the conspiracy to assassinate Caesar. Brutus is a tragic hero because he is a poor judge of character, he makes foolish decisions, and he sealed his own fate through his decisions.
While Julius Caesar has been considered a tragic hero, in the play Julius Caesar, Brutus is the true tragic hero. Fitting all of the requirements, Brutus is fitted to be the tragic hero. In order to be considered a tragic hero; he/she needs to be in a high position or rank, have some kind of talent, a major flaw, and they need to deal with their downfall with honor and dignity. He shows these characteristics very clearly in the text. Being in the majority of the play, Julius Caesar, Caesar is only in a fraction. Brutus being in the majority of the play helps with him being the tragic hero.
The tragic hero of the play, isn’t really who you would expect it to be, it’s the beloved Brutus. The people of Rome thought that Brutus was a noble Roman. The people believed that Brutus possessed outstanding qualities, they believed that Brutus was a trustworthy, honest and noble person. Brutus thought that if Caesar was killed, it would prevent another monarchy. Brutus wanted what was best for Rome