Julius
Caesar was an important figure in the history of Rome, because he helped to
bring about the end of the Roman Republic for 450 years, Rome had not been
ruled by a single person, but instead had elected officials a Senate a system
of checks and balances and a political system that kept one person from having
all the power, Julius Caesar was a successful general who conquered territories
outside of Rome, and helped turn Rome into a large Empire, he became such a
powerful figure that after
defeating
his political rivals, he took on the role of dictator, so that he picked all
the candidates for the Senate, and decided personally which laws would be
passed, he didn’t have a title such as Kanger Emperor, and Rome was technically
still a republic, but it wasn’t working like one anymore it had become a
permanent dictatorship.
Julius
Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC, he was stabbed by a group of senators as he
was on his way to the Senate, the assassin said they were killing him to bring
back the Republic, Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar isn’t about Julius Caesar
the character so much as it is about the assassination, and what happened
afterward the two people responsible for the assassination are Casius and
Brutus, Cassius’s motives are pretty simple, he hates Caesar because Caesar
doesn’t like him and he resents Caesars power, so his motives are personal, but
he knows he can only get away with killing Caesar if he can get enough people
to believe that the assassination is for the good of Rome, in order for that to
happen he needs his brother-in-law Brutus.
Brutus
is the central figure in the play he’s from an old and famous family and he has
a reputation for being Noble in fact one of his ancestors 400 years earlier was
responsible for overthrowing the last king of Rome, and founding the Roman
Republic in the first place, so it’s partly Brutus’s family name that’s
important, but Brutus is helped it’s easier for the conspirators to say the
assassination was for the good of the Republic, another reason Casius needs
Brutus is that Caesar loves Brutus, Brutus and Caesar are friends while Casius
is obviously not Caesars frien, so if Brutus is the leader it won’t look like
he’s doing it for personal motives, at the beginning of the play crowds of
people are in the streets celebrating because he Cesar has returned from
beating his rival Pompey in a civil war, two of the elected officials Flavius
and Marella’s go around driving these people off the streets, and removing
decorations from the statues what they say to the people is look Caesar didn’t
come back from conquering a foreign enemy.
He
just beat Pompey another Roman leader so he could be dictator what’s to
celebrate about that, later we find out that Caesar has them removed from
office for doing this next we see Caesar and his followers on their way to a
celebration and a footrace whenever we see Caesar he seems very arrogant, he
gives orders to those around him and speaks about himself as if he’s invincible
Calpurnia Caesars wife is with him here, so is Mark Antony Caesars most loyal
supporter, Mark Antony loves games sports parties and drinking, Caesar trusts
Mark Antony because he thinks someone like that who enjoys life is less likely
to threaten him than someone who’s always brooding and thinking like Casius.
Casius
makes Brutus hang back from this crowd, so he can try and convince Brutus that
a lot of people in Rome think Brutus is just as good as Caesar, and wish he
would stand up and challenge Caesars power this is a lie Casius is just trying
to manipulate Brutus, later Casius even throws rocks with notes attached
through Brutus’s window and leaves notes on his chair in the Senate so Brutus
will think multiple people are trying to get him to stand up to Caesar, Brutus
agrees to be part of a conspiracy against Caesar, and the rest of the
conspirators gather at his house late at night we can tell two things about
Brutus already one he’s idealistic and two he’s a fool, a series of dramatic
events occurs leading up to the assassination a soothsayer or fortune-teller
warned Caesar to beware the Ides of March the day he actually does die that’s
marked 15 a massive thunderstorm moves over Rome with so much lightning.
It
seems to be raining fire people see a lion in the Capitol building, another see
the lion giving birth Brutus his wife Portia tries to convince him to tell her
what he’s up to since she’s his wife, he almost does but gets distracted at the
last minute Calpurnia has a dream in which caesar is spouting blood from many
wounds, she tries to convince him not to go to the Senate that day, and he
agrees but the conspirators Decius convinces him he’ll look weak if he doesn’t
go, a man named artem odorous gives caesar a paper telling him about the plot,
but he can’t get caesar to read it all of these events suggest two different
interpretations the first is that even though all of these things might have
stopped the assassination it’s as if there are higher powers that are moving
events towards Caesar’s murder meaning its fate the second interpretation is
that Caesar could have avoided being killed his fate wasn’t predetermined, but
his arrogance caused him to ignore all these warning signs.
So
his death was his own fault, the way the assassination occurs is that Caesar is
on his way to the Senate together with a crowd of people, including the
conspirators who are going to the Senate to because their senators before they
get there a conspirator named Metellus gets down on his knees, and asks Caesar
to bring back his brother whom Caesar banished, Caesar refuses and Brutus and
the others crowd around Caesar and kneel, then they all stab Caesar one after
the other starting with the senator named Casca, and ending with Brutus, Caesar
says at tu brute a meaning you too Brutus and then dies, the populace goes wild
as the news spreads Mark Antony first runs away, but then sends a servant to
ask if he can safely come and ask them the reasons for the assassination.
Casius
and the other conspirators all want to kill Mark Antony too, but Brutus says no
that will seem too violent now that Caesar is dead, Mark Antony won’t stay
loyal to him this is a big mistake Mark Antony asks for permission to speak at
Caesars funeral again Casius and the others say no way, but Brutus says to let
him as long as he doesn’t say anything bad about them and if he’s doing it with
their permission nothing can happen this is another big mistake, Brutus gives a
speech explaining that he loved Caesar, but Caesar was ambitious meaning he
wanted to be a king and so Brutus killed him because he loved Rome more the
populace likes the speech, then Anthony speaks he says he’s not going to
criticize the conspirators, but he reminds them how much Caesar did for them
and how he offered Caesar a crown and Caesar refused, then he shows them
Caesars cloak and all of the holes stabbed through it pointing out how Caesar
loved Brutus, and trusted the others who turned on him.
He
also read them Caesars will in which Caesar left a huge amount of property to
the people of Rome, the crowd goes wild and decides to burn the houses of the
conspirators mob rule ensues and Brutus and Casias flee for their lives, three
people take over in Rome Antony Julius Caesar’s nephew Octavius and Lepidus,
they raise armies to fight Cassius and Brutus and make lists of people to be
killed ,because they support Brutus, Cassius and Brutus each lead an army as
they fight a civil war against Antony Octavius and Lepidus the next time we see
them their meeting together with our armies, and they get in a big fight in
their tent Brutus criticizes kasia’s harshly for taking bribes, and then he
criticizes him for not sending Brutus money to pay his own soldiers, because
Brutus is too pure to take bribes himself, they eventually make up and become
friends again, but once again we can see that Brutus is idealism and poor
judgment our big weaknesses, he absolutely needs Casius to win this war.
So
it’s foolish firm to criticize Cassy, it’s the way he does and he’s
hypocritical, he needs money too, but he won’t do what he needs to do to raise
it, Brutus wants them to take their armies to fight Antony and Octavius at
Philippi Casius points out some flaws in this plan, but Brutus insists caesar’s
ghost appears to Brutus that night telling Brutus he’ll see him at Philippi the
armies meet and have a battle Antony’s army defeats Cassius’s army but Brutus
as army defeats octavius’s cassia sends his friend to tinniest to investigate,
and he thinks he sees two tinniest being captured even though titanius actually
meets friendly soldiers, but Casias commits suicide because he thinks he sent
his best friend to be captured, the armies fight again and this time Brutus
loses before he can be captured, he kills himself by running on to his sword
while one of his soldiers straight Oh holds it when Antony discovers Brutus’s body,
he says that he was the noblest Roman of all.