Tragic Hero
The play Julius Caesar was written by William Shakespeare around 1599. The play is about the actual events of the death of Julius Caesar and the conspiracy around it. The play revolves around the Caesar's death and the men who killed him. The main characters are Julius Caesar, Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony), Cassius, and Marcus Brutus. Although the play is titled Julius Caesar, it is really about the most honorable Brutus, who is the tragic hero. A tragic hero is a person that is honorable and is born of noble birth or has a noble upbringing. Like everyone, they have a flaw that makes them who they are, even though they are a hero. The flaw will tend to be the downfall of the hero, thus the tragedy part of his heroism. Brutus
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He thought Antony would not speak out against Brutus since Caesar is dead, so he lets him live. Brutus said Antony “ For Antony is but a limb of Caesar….for he can do no more than Caesar's arm when Caesar's head is off.” (2.1.165-182). He believed that they should only kill Caesar for justice and there would be no reason to kill Antony also. “He insisted in the first place that they should act only with strict justice.” (Simmons, 64). Brutus also made a massive mistake when he let Antony speak at Caesar's funeral. Brutus convinced all the plebeians that Caesar's assassination would benefit them and Rome, but he let Antony speak. Antony was able to convince them that Brutus and the conspirators were wrong and no more than low down bloody backstabbers. Brutus and the conspirators had to flee, because Antony was so effective at convincing the crowd they were evil. The third choice Brutus made that lead to his demise was his declaration of victory before the battle was won. His troops quit fighting and started to plunder and raid the countryside before the battle was really over. Also Cassius was losing his battle, but Brutus did not go help him. Brutus wanted to kill Caesar for the Republic. He believed if Caesar was assassinated Rome would not have to fall under the oppression of another tyrannical ruler and have to fight against him to restore order. He believed that the means of protecting Rome justified the cause. Brutus plan was overturned though by Antony's speech and the uprising of the people against Brutus. He was killed and the Republic
Brutus did not want to kill Caesar at first, but through the persuasion of Cassius and the conspirators, he eventually decides to fall into the group's views. Brutus is easily persuaded by the thoughts of the conspiracy. Consequently, he determines to unite with the association wanting the death of Caesar quickly. Brutus
Brutus allows Antony to speak after Caesar's death, despite the protests of his fellow conspirators. He does this because he feels it is only fair, not realizing Antony is a cunning man who will use the opportunity to turn
Brutus and Caesar were once best friends but had differing views on the best future for Rome. This not only drove them apart, but led Brutus to participate in Caesar’s assassination. Caesar was going to be crowned dictator for life and Brutus knew that he would “rather be a villager/ Than to repute himself a son of Rome/Under these hard conditions at this time /Is like to lay upon us” (I.ii.180-184). Brutus knows that if Caesar receives that amount of political power that comes with being a dictator, he will become even more power-hungry and egotistical. This causes Brutus to make the very difficult decision to join in the conspiracy of Senators that were planning to kill Caesar. His decision also marks a point of no return, Brutus would
He finally stood up and took it upon himself to murder Caesar because Caesar was leading Rome to its destruction. He didn’t feel good after killing his best friend. He actually had guilt after killing him. Brutus believed that the only way to “save” Rome was to kill and get rid of Caesar. He didn’t have another option and thought rationally when making this decision.
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar can be interpreted in multiple ways when it comes to who the characters are and if the name holds true. An immense amount of people would say that the conspirators are the antagonists while Mark Antony is the protagonist. Others may say it was only Cassius who was the antagonist. Many readers believe that the name of the play is completely wrong and William Shakespeare messed up. There are numerous amounts of evidence for each concept. As it does for many, my idea of who was who in the play varied as I continued to read on. Opinions may differ, but I believe the protagonist is Brutus while the antagonist is Mark Antony and the name holds true to the play.
Julius Caesar is a work of art by William Shakespeare in 1599. Within this play Julius Caesar is portrayed as a tragic hero. A tragic hero is defined as “the main character of a tragedy [who is] usually dignified, courageous, and high ranking” (novel study guide). Also vital to defining a tragic hero is that, “the hero’s downfall is caused by a tragic flaw” ( novel study guide). It is very evident that Julius Caesar in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar is a tragic hero given that he is of noble stature, has a fatal flaw and comes to an unhappy end.
Brutus is a friend of Caesar who is torn about what he must do. Caesar is ambitious and wanting the crown so as to rule Rome. However, Cassius, a friend of Brutus, plants seeds of discord into Brutus and Brutus, through his own reasoning, realizes that there is only one thing he can do. Kill Caesar and know he saved Rome by doing so. “What means this shouting?
The play involves a highly respected senator, Brutus, who decides to join the conspiracy to kill Julius Caesar, in the effort to keep democracy intact. Brutus believes that if Julius Caesar is allowed to live, Caesar will take a kingship and turn the government into a monarchy. Brutus, Cassius, and the other conspirators kill Julius Caesar, yet they find Antony, a loyalist of Caesar, seeks revenge on them. Plato set out rules on the traits a tragic hero must possess. A tragic hero must neither be an evil villain nor a great hero,
Cassius reminds him, “Oh, you and I have heard our fathers say there was a Brutus once that would have brooked the eternal devil to keep his state in Rome as easily as a king” (Shakespeare 787, 1.2.158-161). It is important to Brutus that the Roman people see him as a protector of the republic like they saw his ancestors, not as a murderer without cause. Brutus explains to Cassius that they must kill Caesar to save Rome, but they must not kill Antony too, “Our course will seem too bloody, Caius Cassius, To cut the head off and then hack the limbs---Like wrath in death and envy afterwards; For Antony is but a limb of Caesar; Let us be sacrificers, but not butchers, Caius.” (Shakespeare 805,
William Shakespeare wrote Julius Caesar around 1599. The role of the `tragic hero' is extremely important as many of the characters in Julius Caesar exemplify the `tragic hero' qualities. Marcus Brutus, and Julius Caesar, display all the qualities of the `tragic hero': they are great men, with character flaws, and as a result of a mistake in decision-making many people suffer. In Cassius one can see these same qualities. Cassius can be seen as another tragic hero in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar.
The play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, has two main tragic heroes. Set in Rome and spanning from forty- four to forty-two B.C., the play tells of Brutus and Caesar whom both fall from the highest positions to the lowest of misfortune and then are enlightened on their mistakes. Brutus is the stronger example of a tragic hero in this story. Throughout this play, Brutus commits many faults, falls more drastically than all other characters, and regrets his previous actions by the end of the play.
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare is a tale not completely focused on Julius Caesar himself. But is instead focused more on the conspirators that surrounded him. Julius Caesar is unwilling to believe several warnings that could have saved his life, Julius Caesar ends up being murdered after ignoring all of the warnings, everyone has a different view of Julius Caesar. A tragic hero is a character of high standing in society that has a flaw that leads to their downfall and must feel enlightened in the end. Julius Caesar is a tragic hero.
As Brutus explains as to why he killed Caesar the citizens start to be on brutus's side because he said “if I had not kill him they all would rather have caeser living and they all die slaves”-Logic. Even though it was a hard decision for him to make he made the right one and it was because he loved him that he killed him Brutus loved Caesar more than anyone else, but he love rome more and was willing to make the sacrifice to save the people of rome from
Brutus made an overwhelming amount of decisions based on the good of Rome, not contemplating how it could affect or hurt himself or those around him. One example of this is after Brutus and the conspirators killed Brutus he gave a speech. In this speech he said, “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.” (3.2.20-22). This quote is saying that the reason Brutus killed Caesar was not because he disliked him, but because he thought it was for the good of Rome. Brutus made this decision solely based on patriotism. He never thought about the effects or consequences it
All things considered, Brutus made the right decision to join the conspirators against Caesar. Throughout his speech Brutus gives valid points and explanations for why Caesar must never become king. The fate of the Roman Empire can not rest in the hands of Caesar alone, therefore Brutus and the other Conspirators plan to be sure of that. They confirm that Caesar will never get a chance to be king by killing him. Brutus Provides adequate information on the assassination of Julius Caesar, and as to why it is the right thing for him to