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Power In Julius Caesar Research Paper

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"Do not imagine that the good you intend will balance the evil you perform."-Norman Macdonald. In the tragedy Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, Antony begins playing a larger role after his death. Thi has caused debate about whether he was a concerned friend of Caesar or whether he was a political power seeker. Despite this, the evidence in the text shows that power was more of a priority to Antony than concern for Caesar's death. Therefore, Antony's intentions were more focused gaining political influence that on worrying about Caesar, showing his position as a political opportunist in Rome. Antony's actions while he was in the triumvirate really shows his greed for power. for example, Antony and the triumvirate “have put to death …show more content…

In the beginning, Antony states that “[he] shall remember:/ When Caesar says ‘Do this,’ it is performed”. (779)(Antony). Antony is very obedient, and he respects Caesars commands and authority. this shows that he is a friend. However, he orders Lepidus to “Fetch the will hither” because the triumvirate “shall determine/ How to cut off some charge in legacies”. (845)(Antony). Antony is a power seeker because he is taking advantage of Caesar's death by directing some of it to his own pocket which then goes to his army. not only that, by breaking his friends will, he is basically disobeying his friends command after death, so Antony contradicts his previous statement. for this reason, Antony cannot be considered a legitimate friend, and he can certainly be considered a true political …show more content…

although Caesar may have wanted the conspirators to feel his revenge, it was still unnecessary for him to modify Caesar's will. this was unnecessary because “For [Brutus] can raise no money by vile means” and “By heaven, [he] had rather coin [his] heart/ And drop [his] blood for drachmas than to wring/ From the hard hands of peasants and their vile trash”. (850)(Brutus). first if Brutus was able to raise funds without stealing, then Antony should be completely able to do so also, proving that the task was unnecessary for Antony to do. since Antony did do such an unnecessary task to fund his army, then there must be another reason why he would do such a deed. This reason could be that Anthony wants to take advantage of the Caesars death, and he sees Caesar's death as an opportunity to gather more power. even though his choice was avoidable, he is so desperate and hungry for power that he is willing to go as far as to disobey his own master's will and command just to increase his own political power and status. Antony’s lust for power is shown here because he has done such an unnecessary wrong deed to his “friend”. it is also important to note that his choice was unjustifiable because a modifying will is pretty much disrespectful to any dead person, not to mention that he is modifying his “friends” will. by modifying the will, he is disobeying his

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