Steven Hermosillo
Professor Duran
History 101
30 March 2016
“The Assassination of Julius Caesar” Book Report According to Michael Parenti, author of “The Assassination of Julius Caesar”, states that “the writing of history has long been a privileged calling undertaken within the church, royal court, landed estate, affluent town house, government agency, university, and corporate-funded foundation.” Parenti writes this because he wants to point out the way history is published and mentions the church, royal court, landed estate, and affluent town house as a way history is written. “On the fifteenth of March, 44 B.C., in a meeting hall adjacent to Pompey’s theater, the Roman Senate awaited the arrival of the Republic’s supreme commander, Julius
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Parenti’s examination of how “Gentlemen’s History” sheds light on socio-political realities in our own day. “On the fifteenth of March, 44 B.C., in a meeting hall adjacent to Pompey’s theater, the Roman Senate awaited the arrival of the Republic’s supreme commander, Julius Caesar…at a given signal, they began to slash at their prey with their knives, delivering fatal wounds” (Parenti). The assailants believed that they save the Roman Republic. The assassination of Julius Caesar marked a turning point in the history of Rome. “The Senate aristocrats killed Caesar because they perceived him to be a popular leader who threatened their privileged interests…an inquiry into this incident reveals something important about the nature of political rule, class power, and a people’s struggle for democracy and social justice—issues that are still very much with us” (Parenti). Caesar was killed due to the Senate aristocrats believing that Caesar threatened the aristocrats’ privileged interests. Parenti notes that “Historians are fond of saying that history reflects the age in which it is written…the history of seemingly remote events vibrate “to present needs and present situations.” History tends to repeat itself and history depends on the time or place that the history is happening. Parenti states that “My primary interest is not in Julius Caesar as an individual but in the issues of popular struggle and oligarchic power that were being played out decades before he was born, continuing into his life and leading to his death.” Parenti lets his audience know from the beginning of the book “The Assassination of Julius Caesar” is not a biography about Julius Caesar, but it is about the struggles and issues that occurred before Caesar was born and how it continued into his life and that lead to his death. To refer back to the hook, Parenti writes this because he wants to point out the way history
The play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare showcases many characters and events that go through many significant changes. One particular character that went through unique changes was Julius Caesar. The 16th century work is a lengthy tragedy about the antagonists Brutus and Cassius fighting with the protagonists Octavius, Antony, and Lepidus over the murder of Julius Caesar. Although the play’s main pushing conflict was the murder of Julius Caesar, he is considered a secondary character, but a protagonist. Throughout the theatrical work Julius Caesar’s actions, alliances, character developments, and internal and external conflicts display his diverse changes.
Julius Caesar was unquestionable a cunning Politian as portrayed within historical documents, even though the events were documented after the accounts of his rule materialized there are still numerous theories about his political ability’s and how he was viewed by the people he governed. This paper is intended to present the reader clear vision on how Julius Caesar was viewed during his dictatorship of Rome. Was Julius Caesar a selfish dictator or model politician? There will be five diverse source accounts of the events which will be examined for similarities and differences based on the historical evidences.
The book Julius Caesar is full of happiness, conspiracy, power, and betrayal. The people of Rome deeply loved julius Caesar and wished to make him their king. A group of senators however were not so fond of this idea and formed a conspiracy. The leader of this group was a man by the name of Cassius. In order to make sure that his scheme of killing Caesar would work and would look honorable he had to convince a senator by the name of Brutus to help. After being convinced that they had to kill Caesar to protect Rome from a tyrant Brutus joined the conspiracy and soon became the principal conspirator.On the day in which Caesar was to be crowned king he was on the way to the senate when he was stabbed by all the conspirators panic ensued and to convince Rome of their honorable intentions Brutus gave a funeral speech. Mark Antony, a very close friend of Caesar, gave his speech after Brutus had given his. Mark Antony’s speech is more persuasive to the Roman people because of his outstanding use of pathos, sarcasm, and logos.
“His birth marked the beginning of a new chapter in roman history”. By 31, Caesar had fought in several wars and become heavily involved in politics; being appointed dictator and consul on multiple occasions (Biography.com, 2014). It was Caesar’s assassination and following events that ultimately brought an ...
Tragic Hero in Julius Caesar A tragic hero is the character whose actions deeply affect the other characters and who creates a series of events that eventually lead to the character’s downfall and the downfall of his loved ones. Such a hero possesses a flaw in character that influences his actions and thinking and especially his judgments. In logically determining who the hero in Julius Caesar is, one simply must find the one character who fits the above guidelines. Marcus Brutus is the only one, and, thus, he is the tragic hero.
Phillip Freeman’s Julius Caesar is a profound biography on the life, achievements, and personality of Caesar. The author’s style and major themes can be displayed in quotations from significant passages. For example, when Sulla, a dictator, ordered Caesar to divorce his wife after Sulla had removed Caesar from position of flamen dialis, Caesar refused. Freeman describes his defiance, “Whether out of stubbornness, audacity, or simply love, Caesar was a defying man who had ordered the murder of thousands. In doing so, he lost everything he owned, and was now marked for death on the proscription lists,” (32). In another pressing manner, Caesar’s personality is also displayed when he was captured by pirates. Freeman writes, “Caesar treated the pirates with a good-natured contempt that shocked and amused his captors. They were accustomed to terrified prisoners who begged for mercy, but Caesar acted more as if the pirates were a minor distraction to his busy schedule,” (39). Not to mention, Caesar’s compassion for loved ones is also depicted within this biography. When his beloved aunt died, instead of the quiet funeral orientation typical for a woman, he chose to give a bold, family pride filled speech to a huge crowd for his dearly departed aunt. Caesar himself exclaims, “The family of my aunt Julia is descended from kings on her mother’s side, and through her father, from the gods themselves. For the Marcii Reges, her mother’s family, are heirs of Ancus Marcius, fourth king of Rome, while the Julians, of which our clan is a member, descend from the goddess Venus herself. My family therefore holds the sanctity of the kings who rule among men and of gods who rule over kings,” (52). In a similar case, the death of his young wife Cornelia, his wife Sulla had told him to divorce and risked his life for her because he loved her so much, Caesar honored
Julius Caesar (100-44 BC) was one of the most outstanding leaders in history. He was the first ruler of the Romano-Hellenic civilization and achieved his goals with great success throughout his life of 56 years. He was assassinated by the conspirators, who accused him for practicing tyranny. This essay will discuss whether it was right for the conspirators to murder Caesar and what its consequences were.
Julius Caesar is remembered as one of the greatest military minds in history and credited with arranging the basis for the Roman Empire. Caesar’s military brilliance bought Rome more land and more power, which led into the increase of size and strength of Rome. Caesar’s dictatorship helped the strength in Rome. Julius Caesar was assassinated which lead to a monarchy that was ruled by Octavin. Caesar’s death caused an effect to the collapse of the Roman Empire. Many people today in the 21st century try and follow the greatness of Julius Caesar. The assassination of Julius Caesar was a tragedy with the contributions Caesar made to strengthen Rome’s success.
In the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, I saw two main characters as tragic heroes. First, I saw Julius Caesar as a tragic hero because his will to gain power was so strong that he ended up losing his life for it. The fact that he could have been such a strong leader was destroyed when he was killed by conspirators. I saw Marcus Brutus as a second tragic hero in this play. Brutus was such a noble character that did not deserve to die. The main reason why he did die, however, was because he had led a conspiracy against Caesar and eventually killed him. These two characters were the tragic heroes of the play in my opinion.
Julius Caesar was born either on July 12th or July 13th of July 100 BC in Rome, Italy. Nobody knows for sure which day. He was born into the Julian clan. His full name is Gaius Julius Caesar. Although Caesar's family was closely associated with the Marian faction in Roman politics, his family would be considered middle class of today’s standards. Caesar married Cornelia around the age of 18. Cornelia was the only woman in Caesar's life to give birth to a legitimate child. While married to Cornelia, the dictator Sulla ordered Caesar to divorce Cornelia, Caesar refused, so Sulla put Caesar on the list of people to be executed. For this Caesar went into hiding. Caesar was eventually pardoned for the action. (McManus, 2011)
Julius Caesar was a strong leader of the Romans who changed the course of the history for the Roman world decisively and irreversibly. With his courage and strength, he created a strong empire and guided the empire for almost 20 years. His life was short, but had many adventures. I will tell of some of this man’s remarkable life. He did many things, therefore, I will only discuss a few. His name, part of his reign, one of his greatest battles, and his death will be told.
Greed, ambition, and the possibility of self-gain are always constant in their efforts to influence people’s actions. In Julius Caesar, Marcus Brutus, a venerable politician, becomes a victim of the perpetual conflict between power-hungry politicians and ignorant commoners. He is a man of honor and good intentions who sacrifices his own happiness for the benefit of others. Unfortunately, his honor is strung into a fine balance between oblivion and belief and it is ultimately the cause of his downfall. His apparent obliviousness leads him to his grave as his merciful sparing of Mark Antony’s life, much like Julius Caesar’s ghost, comes back to haunt him. Overall, Brutus is an honest, sincere man who holds the lives of others in high regard while he himself acts as a servant to Rome.
THESIS STATEMENT: The assassination of Julius Caesar was due to his increased power and the Senate's fear of losing their political relevance. PURPOSE STATEMENT: Through critical analysis and research, it has been shown that Caesar's gain in power worried the Senate. INTRODUCTION: On July 13, 100 B.C., Gaius Julius Caesar was born into a family that was proud of being patrician.
	Shakespeare illustrated Caesar as a tragic hero by showing that he was a noble man of high rank. Every Roman followed his leadership and Caesar also defeated the great Pompey. First of all, At the Feast of Lupercal Caesar manipulated the commoners and made himself look noble to the commoners. Casca said, "Why there was a crown offered to him;...people fell a-shouting" (I,ii,221-223). Next, To show how noble and great Caesar was, the Romans would stand along the street sides to watch him pass by. "Madam not yet, I go to take my stand; /To see him pass on to the Capitol," said the soothsayer (II,iv,25-26). Finally, Caesar had the greatest rank possible as he would have been crowned king if it wasn’t for the conspiracy’s plot. As Casca said, "Indeed they say senators tomorrow; /Mean to establish Caesar as king..." (I,iii,87-88).
In the play Julius Caesar, written and preformed by William Shakespeare, there are many characters, but two, Brutus and Cassius, stood out. The play begins in Rome where a celebration of Julius Caesar's victory over the former ruler of Rome, Pompeii. The victory leads to Caesar's betrayal by his jealous companions. Senators and other high status figures are jealous of Caesar's new and growing power, while others, like Brutus, fear the tyrannical rule Caesar could enforce. The conspirators, Brutus and Cassius being the most important, assassinate Julius Caesar and Marcus Antonius, better known as Antony, and Octavius Caesar, Caesar's heir to the thrown, revenge Caesar's death. Antony convinces the Roman populous to destroy the conspirators and eventually begins a war with Cassius and Brutus' armies. Both Cassius and Brutus commit suicide to save their honor and Antony and Octavius win the war. The characterizations of Brutus and Cassius show a distinct contrast in their character traits and motives for the assassination of Julius Caesar.