Julius Caesar Rhetorical Analysis

In William Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, Mark Antony uses rhetorical devices of verbal irony and the use of props throughout his speech at Caesar's funeral in order to convince the plebeians to rebel against the conspirators in Act 3 Scene 2. First, Antony uses verbal irony to frequently mock the idea of Brutus being honorable. For example, he says to the crowd, “He was my friend, faithful and just to me, / But Brutus says he was ambitious, /And Brutus is an honorable man.” (3.2.94-96). It is clear that Antony does not actually find Brutus honorable because he just stabbed Caesar and to Antony, that is unjustified because Caesar has not yet done any harm to Rome. The reason why Antony claims that Brutus is honorable is because it is unfathomable that a man who contributes to a murder could possibly deserve respect.

Secondly, Antony says to the plebeians, “For I have neither wit, nor words, nor worth, / Action, nor utterance, nor the power of speech / To stir men’s blood.” (3.2.233-235). Antony undersells himself with these words and claims that he is not intelligent enough to form an argument against the conspirators because of the conspiracy’s prior belief that he is just a party-goer that could not fight back against injustices. In reality, Antony knows that he is a great speaker but he instead brings attention to the fact that he is falsely seen as an irresponsible drunkard that could never do any harm. Another technique Antony uses to persuade the Romans to side with him is the use of props. First, Antony displays Caesar’s will to show the crowd his generosity and thoughtfulness for the well-being of Rome. For example, Antony reads “To every Roman citizen he gives, / To every several man, seventy-five