On Duties Sparknotes

He repeatedly appeals to Brutus’ anger and ego, making Caesar out to be a power hungry maniac. In one of his speeches, he says “He doth bestride the narrow world like a Colossus, and we petty men walk

A terror in a toga, the actions of Julius Caesar throughout his life have been unjust and rather egotistical. A person in authority shouldn’t force their way into that position of power. Caesar was pompous and would do anything to gain control and be higher than others. This big-headedness would make him feel threatened if anyone were to challenge his power. The founders of Rome wouldn’t approve of Caesar due to his desire for power, defiance and policies.

Cicero believed in equality and peace, in a time where men were raised only to fight and be violent to their neighbors. Cicero was a visionary who opened up a side to a common argument on war and peace, that others had not thought of yet. Cicero believed that through the power of speech, we as humans could overcome our violent primal urges and rise above our primate cousins. Cicero also believed that through this natural connection between mankind, came moral obligations that needed to be kept, no matter what time it was, whether it be peace or war time. To every argument ever made, comes at least one counter argument. In order to not fall victim to the counter argument, it is important to keep your moral compass aligned and to remember that every human was created equal. It does not matter where you are on the developmental scale because as long as you are human you are equal to those around you. Cicero may have found this out ahead of his time, but that does not make his argument at all less valid. When it comes to the Just War Tradition, it is important to keep all sides opinions in mind, as this moral agreement will be a part of every civilizations lives. No matter how hard anyone tries to be peaceful, there will always be an enemy who refuses to settle for anything but war. If everyone must agree to a set of rules that govern how and why each war

Shakespeare’s ideas towards kingship can be seen throughout the play. He shows that a king should be chosen by divine right and shows the attributes of what a good king should be.

Both characters, Caesar and Brutus, desire power or prosperity and are determined to strive for its attainment. Caesar’s ambition of ruling lead him to a bigger ego and a certain blindness to others, once he reached

Brutus says, “It’s not that i loved Caesar less, but that i loved Rome more” (III.ii.22-23). The rest of the conspirators that helped kill Caesar only killed him for revenge. Brutus definitely has a

Due to the powerful influence of the monarchy, the nature, duties and responsibilities of kingship were of particular interest to Shakespeare. The mark of a bad king was the decline of the political, social and economic climates, while the mark of a good king was the blossoming of such worlds. Therefore, the characteristics of the person occupying the kingship were crucial to the health of the nation. Shakespeare explores this issue in many of his plays by examining the traits of poorly fulfilled kingships, and the political and social ramifications of such monarchical failures. He does this most notably in Macbeth and Richard II. In both plays Shakespeare ultimately concludes that tyrants are

Brutus, a conflicted senator obsessed with his civic duty, convinces the people of Rome that his motives in killing Caesar were just and noble by rhetoric. Brutus is the only conspirator to have impersonal motives in killing Caesar. In fact, his motives are trying to find the best solution for Rome, and in the end, he must make the hard choice of killing his best friend for his homeland. As early as Brutus’ conversation with Cassius in Act I, Brutus exhibits this deep love and respect for Rome and how this love is conflicting with his love for his friend, Caesar: “[P]oor Brutus, with himself at war, / Forgets the shows of love to other men” (I.ii.51-52). Brutus brings up this internal conflict again when he tells the crowds that although he did love Caesar, he loved Rome and its people more. After Brutus’ murder of Caesar, he realizes that the issue of the public opinion of Rome is of the utmost importance. Because of this love for Rome, Brutus uses rhetoric to persuade these plebeians to approve of him and his cause. When Cassius warns Brutus about “how much the people will be moved / By that which [Marc Antony] will utter[!]” (III.i.252-253), Brutus tells Cassius that letting Marc Antony speak “shall advantage us more than do us wrong” (III.i.261). In these cases, Brutus demonstrates his awareness of

People could see that Caesar was a horrible person to everyone. They wondered if Brutus was a hero in to the Roman people. “For let the gods so speed me as I loved the name of honor more than I fear death”.(I ii 94-95) He did assume about people and was too trusting with people. He was a man of noble stature and nature.

When Cicero writes about the reasons for why people have duties towards the public sphere he believes that the individual is part of the community. He contributes it all the to belief of Stoicism. Aristotelian is another close source in which we can speak about duties, but Cicero’s true belief was that virtues is key to duty. Stoicism is the school of thought that holds the belief that the only way we can make sense of our own existence is by devoting ourselves to virtues. People who follow this pathway believe that the majority things of daily life are stuff we can’t control, but yet we can contribute our life to society in a better way. Honor is another reason why individuals choose certain choices that lead you to be seen as a noble person in your society. The wide picture is seen towards how the community sees the individuals actions according to the standards in which have been placed. It doesn't seem like an individual would ever perform a duty if honor wasn't the reward. An individual who doesn’t care for much pleasure would mostly likely seek out honor in the public sphere. In conclusion Cicero comes up with the belief that the main stance on duty should always be honor, because honor is the only

In Ancient Rome, Cicero in On Obligation iterates that the relationship to honor and justice is what creates a functioning civilization. Through this, the Romans began to value human fellowship and community over selfishness. Cicero argues good character is achieved by being just, useful, and honorable. Socially, Cicero states that, “Whatever is honourable is useful, and that nothing is useful which is not honourable.”

Marcus Tullius Cicero was murdered on December 7, 43 B.C.E. which was around the time of the fall of the Roman Republic. Cicero was many things such as an orator, lawyer, politician, philosopher, and writer. His writings, to this day, are a valuable source of information about such political events and was widely read in the 19th century. He also was dubbed one of the greatest philosophers of the ancient era. One of his greatest pieces was Hortensius. This writing was based on himself turning away from his sinful life and moving forward to God.

In his soliloquy, Antony praised Caesar’s great personality but at the same time, he would keep saying positive things about Brutus. An example is when he says, “He was my friend, faithful and just to me; / But Brutus says he was ambitious, / And Brutus is an honorable man.” (3.2.85-87). The way in which he spoke and by telling the citizens the context of Caesar’s will, turned the mob against Brutus and the rest of the conspirators. The anger possessed by the countrymen can be shown when a plebeian says, “Most noble Caesar! We’ll revenge his death!” (2.2.244). This betrayal by Antony caused Brutus to break off their friendship.

Brutus, is a well-liked and trusted man among the Roman people. He loves Rome and is a very loyal man. Brutus is a man of honor, he would rather die than be without honor. This is seen when he says “I love the name of honor more than I fear death.”(Shakespeare, 1, 2, 91) This is one on of the Major reasons that led to Caesar’s murder.