In the play Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare there are two forces at work fate and freewill and throughout the play they are both fighting for control over man. Fate was shown in the many prophecies and omens that the characters viewed throughout the entire play. Free will as defined in the play is the ability to overcome fate. Although in the end all three of the characters succumbed to their fate, Shakespeare shows again that there is a delicate balance between fate and human free will.
Of the three main characters in the play Julius Caesar, Cassius and Brutus, Caesar's fate was the most obvious to him and to the readers. Caesar though in many cases used free will to ignore fate or destiny. For example in the begging of the
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Because of this Brutus never resigned himself to live in the world during its current state. Because of Cassius' effort to better himself Caesar was led to comment, "Such men as he
are very dangerous" (I.ii.209-210). Cassius's role in the play was using his free will to overcome the fate that would come true, the fate that Caesar would become Emperor of Rome. Being driven by the desire to overcome this fate, he was able to achieve all obstacles that came his way and even achieved killing Caesar. Near the end of the play though Cassius's belief had not changed he mentions that the gods are not looking favorably on the mission. Cassius died on his own sword because he believed that his fate, as illustrated by the eagles, was too over whelming to defeat.
Brutus had a belief that was the exact opposite of Cassius's; Brutus was a stoic, which meant that he believed that bad things don't happen to good people because the gods won't allow it. Brutus just went along with life never taking rash like Cassius did. Brutus accepted everything as it came because he thought it was the will of the gods. Because of Brutus's beliefs Cassius has to go through much effort to persuade Brutus to join the conspirators. Cassius was then forced to write fake letters so that Brutus could see a
He compares Caesar to a serpent in an egg which he must kill before it hatches. Brutus knows that Caesar is gaining too much power too quickly and it must come to an end. He shows his belief in a republic government by saying, “We all stand up against the spirit of Caesar / And in the spirit of men there is no blood" (II.i. 180-181). Cassius is a character who is jealous of Caesar’s power and also wants it to end. He forms a group of conspirators who are against Julius Caesar. He persuades Brutus to help him and the other conspirators to kill Caesar during the ides of March. Brutus joins but only due to his love for Rome and its people. He proves this by saying "Let us be sacrificers, but not butchers, Caius." (II.i. 179). This also proves his love for Caesar because he wants to kill him with some sort of honor. Brutus wants the citizens to look at him not as a murderer but for someone who cares for his country. He expresses his ideas toward the stabbing by saying , “If then that friend demand why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer-not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more" (III, ii, 17-19).
Cassius flatters Brutus by saying that “[he] know[s] that virtue to be in ... Brutus,/ As well as [he does] know [his] outward favor”(Act.I.ii.97-98). Brutus is so immensely honorable that you can literally see it. Cassius lays down this foundation knowing that Brutus would want to cling to this fact. Subconsciously, he won’t go against what he was praised for since it had a positive effect on him and accentuated his feelings about his honor and pride. This pours into guilt, showing that if Brutus doesn’t join this Conspiracy, then he will lose his dignity and
Brutus was very naive and got influenced by Cassius very easily. Cassius was very smart and manipulated Brutus to make him agree with him. Cassius said, “If I were Brutus now, and he were Cassius, He should not humour me.” (Shakespeare, p.13). Brutus believed that his friend, Caesar had a negative impact on Rome decided to join the conspiracy to assassinate Caesar. Even though Caesar was his friend, Brutus always showed loyalty towards Rome. Brutus' tragic flaw is that he is not good at figuring out other’s intentions, and trusted Cassius. If Brutus never listened to Cassius in the first place, he would not have joined the conspiracy, and might not have had a tragic end.
Cassius' loyalty line goes the other way. In the beginning he is out to set himself up in a position of power, and through Caesar's death he continues to act out of self-interest. By the end of the play, however, he has developed a sense of loyalty to Brutus and to Titinius. Brutus's pattern lies somewhere in between Antony's and Cassius's. In the beginning of the play most students feel that Brutus' loyalty is ambiguous. Although he seems loyal to Caesar, he is swayed by flattery to himself. By 2.1, when he makes the decision to participate in the murder, Brutus seems to be acting out of self-interest, though he disguises it in a rationalization of the good of the country. I find that students often engage in a really interesting discussion of the subtle shifts in Brutus' use of language; he shifts, for instance, to the use of the royal "we." By the end of the play Brutus, like Cassius, develops a sense of loyalty to his new comrades, and his last words, like Cassius's, are a self-condemning recognition of
They both share long conversation together that shows Brutus’ gullibility. Brutus is gullible for having a strong stance to be on Caesar’s side in the beginning of their conversation; however, throughout of the process of them talking, he falls into Cassius’ trap of plotting against Caesar. This first starts off with Brutus stating “I love him well” when is asked by Cassius how he feels about Caesar (I, ii, 82). Here Brutus is clearing taking a stand for Caesar in front of Cassius. This is only at the beginning of the speech where one will find Brutus being on the side of Caesar since after this Cassius will sway him adrift. Cassius is first able to do this by saying “ ‘Brutus,’ and ‘Caesar.’ What should be in that ‘Caesar’/Why should that name be sounded more than yours” (I, ii,142). Here Cassius is comparing their names. He trying to get Brutus to see himself has the same as Caesar by also following with “write them together; your is as fair a name” (I, ii,143). This gets Brutus listening to Cassius and considering why he is not as valued as Caesar. Consequently, Brutus’ walls are being taken down on how he originally felt on Caesar. Yet, Cassius takes it a step forward into trapping Brutus with his words by bringing up his ancestors. Cassius builds confidence in him by saying “There was a Brutus once that would have brooked/ the eternal devil to keep his state in Rome/ As easily as a king” (I, ii, 195-161). Here he states a story of Brutus’ ancestor who took care of and protected Rome. At this point in their conversation, Brutus as goon from being on Caesars side to being on plan to take Ceasar down; nevertheless, Brutus’ change has been sparked by Cassius comparing them along with boosting his confidence. This showing how gullibly Brutus is. This gullibility then translates to a bad potential leader since it often puts much pressure on others that
Antony and Cassius, unlike Brutus, never separate their private affairs from their public actions while Brutus tries to prove himself by acting only with respect to honor and virtue, completely ignoring his personal concerns. For example, Cassius disliked the fact that Caesar became “godlike” in the eyes of the Romans, so he leads Brutus to believe that Caesar had become too powerful and must die by sending him forged letters claiming that the Roman people support the death of Caesar, ultimately converting Brutus to his cause. At last Brutus ends up murdering his good friend in an act he truly believed was honorable. Marc Antony, who also shares in Cassius’ selfish trait, persuaded the conspirators that he is on their side, therefore gaining their leniency. He proceeds to persuade the plebeians of the conspirators’ injustice and gains support of the masses.
He states that Brutus is just as noble and worthy as Caesar. (Act 1, scene ii). He says that Brutus cannot see what everyone else does and recognize his worthiness. Cassius and the other senators do not want Caesar to be king because they would lose all their power. Cassius is slowly luring Brutus in to do his dirty work. He builds Brutus’s confidence up to make him thing that killing Caesar is the right thing to do. Cassius is basically playing with Brutus’s head because he knows Brutus will listen. So, Brutus joins the conspirators in killing Caesar. Cassius tells Brutus that it is for the good of Rome, and that he is saving them from a dictatorship. Cassius is going for Brutus’s weakest point, his care and concern for Rome. He knows that if Brutus believes the people distrust Caesar, then he will be convinced that Caesar must be thwarted. Brutus knew that if Caesar was crowned, he would never have a chance, and he was power hungry. This is what ultimately leads to the tragedy of Julius Caesar. After Brutus kills Caesar off, he starts to feel guilty for killing his friend, thus creating an internal conflict. Brutus was so confident that the plan would go exactly as planned that he fell apart when they encountered problems. If Brutus and the other conspirators had taken more time to think things through, they probably would have been more prepared for the situation that was handed to them.
Unlike Cassius, Brutus is always doing what he feels is best for the Romans. In addition, Cassius feels inferior to Brutus. Brutus has much power from the people and is friends with the soon-to-be king, which is why Cassius is so desperate to have Brutus on his side. Once he persuades Brutus to join him, he shifts from being the leader of the conspirators to the subordinate of Brutus. For instance, Brutus gives Antony permission to speak at the funeral, even though this went against Cassius’ own will. Lastly, Cassius is quick to make decisions but Brutus analyzes things before coming to a final decision. It takes Brutus many days of agony to finally agree that joining Cassius was the right thing to do. In contrast, Cassius spends only a few seconds to decide on committing suicide. Directly after Pindarus says, “Now they are almost on him… And hark they shout for joy,” Cassius kills himself. (Act V Scene III Lines 31, 34) He is quick minded, not realizing that Brutus has actually not been captured.
At the beginning, Fate chose Caesar to be the king and this is not what Brutus wanted.
Cassius, up to the end of the play, was very aware of his fate and took the largest strides to overcome that. This is due to the fact that Cassius followed the Epicurean philosophy, which believes that the gods do not involve themselves directly in the fate of man. This belief was highlighted when he told Brutus “Men at some time are masters of their fates: the fault, dear Brutus, is not in our starts, but in ourselves, that we are underlings” (I. ii. 139-141). Because of this belief, he never resigned himself to live in the world in its current state. He always felt that there was something he could do to better his standing in life. This diligent effort to better himself led Caesar to comment “such men as he…are very dangerous” (I. ii. 209-210). Cassius’ role in the play was using his free will to overcome the fate that would come true, the fate that Caesar was one day going to become emperor. Because he was so driven by the desire to overcome this fate, he was
One of the major concerns presented by Shakespeare in Julius Caesar is the struggle between fate and free will. This struggle is evident throughout the play through Shakespeares continual presentation of the supernatural. The supernatural is present in many different forms in the text, for example through omens, nightmares and sacrifices. Shakespeare believed that life was a combination of fate and freewill, he presents this idea to the audience through different events that occur throughout the play, events such as the Feast at the Lupercal, the Soothsayers prophecy, the animal sacrifice, Calpurnias dream and the presence of animals and Caesars ghost. These events build dramatic tension throughout the play, illustrating the struggle of
Cassius displays the personality of a shrewd opportunist, who doesn’t believe in the rule of one person. He believes there should be an elected set of officials; to decide on the laws for Rome. He resides as a very close friend to Julius Caesar, before he became the Roman king. Cassius played a large role in the assassination of Julius Caesar (I.ii.90-115). When Julius Caesar became godlike to the roman people, Cassius had much dislike toward Julius. He thought that Julius appeared too incompetent and weak to the point of embarrassment, and wanted him removed from the throne. In the play, Cassius manipulates Brutus into thinking that Caesar has become too powerful and that he needed to be killed. He also uses flattery to sway Brutus into becoming part of his plan (I.ii.48-51). Cassius tricked Brutus into finally believing the Roman people wanted Caesar dead by forging letters from the people that do convey these thoughts (I.iii.142-148). He also made Brutus feel like it was his civic duty to the Roman people. Cassius seems like just a very evil or cruel man, he committed suicide once he thought that his best friend Brutus was killed in the
Cassius and Brutus start to fight over the fact that Cassius is taking bribes. Brutus fights Cassius on this because in his mind this makes him a bad man because what Cassius is doing is against his moral code. “You have done that you should be sorry for. There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats; For I am armed so strong in honesty That they pass by me as the idle wind, Which I respect not. I did send to you For certain sums of gold, which you denied me; For I can raise no money by vile means. By heaven, I had rather coin my heart And drop my blood for drachmas” (4.2.65-73).
At the start of the timelessly classic play, Julius Caesar was in the final stages of parlaying his military prowess and growing cult of personality into enthronement as the long absent autocrat of Rome. His brother-in-arms, Marcus Brutus, after fighting at Caesar’s side for so long, was forced to weigh his loyalty to Caesar against his loyalty to Rome, setting the stage for the troubling events to come. As Caesar’s divine right to rule and infallibility were trumpeted throughout Rome, others were not so convinced of his purity and worthiness. Cassius, a dissident Senator, opened Brutus’ eyes to the circumstances unfolding before them and to what could be lost should Caesar take the throne. Cassius voiced his opposition strongly, saying:
In the play Julius Caesar, free will is given off to me. Brutus was not forced to stab Caesar, but he had the free will to do so. Brutus also had the free will to not stab Caesar, but he did instead. The soothsayer of the story foretold of the horrible incident that was to happen to Caesar, which represents fate, but anyone, not just Brutus and Cassius, could have stabbed Caesar. When Brutus and Cassius first started their plan of getting rid of Julius Caesar, they had the free will to choose not to murder Caesar, but they chose not to back out of their plan. Brutus says in Act two, scene one, “It must be by his death; and for my part, I know no personal cause to spurn at him, but for the general. He would be crowned.” this goes out to prove that Brutus had no personal opinion on killing Caesar, but was doing it for the people’s sake. Brutus believed that by getting rid of Caesar, he or someone else would rule in power over all