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Cassius in julius caesar character analysis
Roles and character of cassius in julius caesar
Roles and character of cassius in julius caesar
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One of life’s most basic lessons is to be truthful. Parents pound into their kids heads that lying is wrong. As you grow up you learn liars are looked down upon, and the deed of lying itself proves to be a trait of bad character. Liars are manipulative and deceptive. However, telling a lie is not the only way to deceive others. Some twist situations and have a way with words that are as manipulative as lies. For instance, one can be deceptive without lying at all. The character Cassius in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar possesses the ability to exploit others and stirs the pot throughout the entire play. He is the most influential character in Julius Caesar because without his manipulation, the plot of Shakespeare's play would not exist. “The …show more content…
(Mittelstaedt 119). The character traits he carries are the driving force behind his actions and his actions are the driving force behind the plot of Julius Caesar. Cassius instigates the entire conspiracy against Caesar. His emotionally based reasons to eliminate Caesar breed Cassius’ plot to kill him. Putting the plan in drive, Cassius persuade Brutus’ opinion of Caesar influenced him to join the rebellion. If not for Cassius’ manipulation, Caesar would have continued to reign over Rome. Additionally, his behavior influences his fellow conspirators, for they mirror his actions. For example Decius visits Caesar and his wife, Calpurnia, on the morning of the Ides of March. Calpurnia has had a horrific dream foreshadowing Caesar’s death causing him to contemplate staying home to ease her worries about what the day will bring. When Decius enters the room, Caesar shares Calpurnia’s concerns and asks him to tell the Roman people that he will not be going to the capital today. Decius is quick to rebut his reasoning, exclaiming, “This dream is all amiss interpreted; It was a vision fair and fortunate.” (Shakespeare 2.2.83-84). He continues on, convincing Caesar that Calpurnia has read this dream as dark and terrifying, but it is really about Rome praising him. Understanding Caesar is very susceptible to flattery, Decius manages to assure Caesar there is no danger. Like Cassius, Decius mirrored the maneuver of reading into certain traits of another person, and exploiting those traits to influence him to act in a certain
Cassius believes that he should not be ruler of Rome for a few very specific reasons, so to combat this he convinces Marcus Brutus to join his conspiracy by forging fake letters. Brutus is very honorable and is loved by many people in Rome, so he would bring the people to their side. On the 15th of March Caesar went to the capital despite the multiple warnings he was given. Calpurnia ,Caesar’s wife, dreamt of his statue running with blood and begged him to stay home. Although Caesar ignored it when Decius convinced him that it represented the good and richness that he would bring to Rome.
In addition to this characteristic of Cassius, he also has a devious nature. This attribute allows him to invent informed manipulative plans to eliminate his opponents. For instance, after saying his farewells to Brutus, he gives a soliloquy that reveals his idea of throwing writings of different handwritings in Brutus’ windows “as if they came from several citizens” all of which “tending to the great opinion that Rome holds of his name, wherein obscurely Caesar’s ambition shall be glancéd at” (Shakespeare I. ii. 306-309). Since Brutus and Cassius have been friends for a long period of time, Cassius holds an abundance of knowledge pertaining to his values--in this case being his honor and desire to please Rome’s citizens. This undermining plot Cassius has devised is based on an informed opinion of the most effective way to subvert Caesar’s authority, and because of the valid observations made of Brutus by Cassius, the likelihood that this clever scheme will be carried out successfully should make Caesar concerned about the intentions of his judicial
Honor and power is what drives the conspirators to assassinate Julius Caesar in William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar. Caesar is now the single leader of Rome, and members of the Senate have concerns that he will abuse his sole power. Therefore, they plot and accomplish the assassination of Caesar in an attempt to rebuild the balance of Rome. Rome falls into chaos with an unknown future with no central leader for the people to follow. In Act I, Scene 2, Cassius, a member of the Senate, explains to his friend, Brutus, that Caesar is not the god he makes himself out to be. Instead, he argues both he and Brutus are equal to Caesar and are just as deserving of the throne. Cassius’ speech to Brutus diminishes Caesar’s godly demeanor through
Jealousy in Julius Caesar & nbsp; Jealousy causes many of the characters in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar to commit dangerous and foolish acts. Cassius' jealousy drives him to kill. Caesar. All the conspirators, except the noble Brutus, kill Caesar because they feel threatened by his power. Brutus is the only conspirator who murders Caesar. for more honorable reasons. Jealousy is a very important theme in this play. & nbsp; Cassius feels very threatened by Caesar's power. He remembers when he was an equal to Caesar, and doesn't think that Caesar deserves this much power. He comments to Brutus, "I was born free as Caesar; so were you." fed as well, and we can both endure the cold winter as well as he" (Act I, p. 1).
In the beginning of the Book Cassius uses anecdotes of Caesar’s weakness and faults, argumentum ad antiquatum, and ethos on Brutus to persuade him to join the conspiracy to kill Caesar, this works on Brutus and shows that anyone, even people as stoic as Brutus, can be persuaded by appealing to their motivations. Cassius, a very suspicious character thru ought the play tells Brutus to “be not jealous on me” (827), in the quote he tells Brutus to not be suspicious of him because he is just a friend who genuinely cares. Cassius does this to put himself on Brutus’ side and not seem like a distant person, this allows him to criticize Caesar and suggest that he is a bad influence on Rome which appeals to Brutus’ desire to keeping Rome safe. After setting himself up as a friend to Brutus, Cassius uses harsh anecdotes on the weakness of Caesar to show that he isn’t fit to rule Rome. Cassius recollects on a time when he and Caesar went swimming in the river Tiber and Caesar screamed “Help me, Cassius or I sink” (828) to de...
Brutus’ ignorance creates an expectation that develops a path which leads him awry. When Brutus mentions,“ I would not Cassius; yet I love him well” (1.2.81-88 ), he portrays his internal conflict. Brutus depicts the rendering struggle between Cassius’ acquisitions and Caesar’s actions. His oblivion toward the truth and goodwill concerning the greater health of Rome prompt him astray. He acts with the innocence of a child, deceive and swindle by Cassius, Brutus is an
Cassius is the greatest manipulator in the play, Julius Caesar. Cassius, an envious and ambitious man, believed that the ruler of Rome, Julius Caesar, had too much power over the senate and the people. To put an end to what he considered to be conspiracy, he fabricated a plan to eradicate Caesar for the sake of Rome. Cassius uses manipulation as his weapon of attack using Brutus as the target. Cassius succeeds in persuading Brutus, one of Caesar’s good friends, to join their plot. Cassius uses flattery, self-gain, and the people of Rome to manipulate Brutus into his likings.
Decius uses flattery and persuasion when speaking to Brutus. Decius is an active member of the Conspirators so he is very motivated into getting Caesar to go to the Senate House. The first thing that Decius says when he walks into Caesar's house is "Caesar, all hail! Good morrow, worthy Caesar" (II, ii, 30). Decius also goes on and calls Caesar "most mighty". Decius is already on Caesar's good side. After catching up on Calpurnia's dream, he uses his quick wit to distort Calpurnia's foreshadowing dream by saying it is "misinterpreted". He explains that the dream "Signifies that from (Caesar) Rome shall suck/Reviving blood, and that great men shall press/for tinctures, stains, relics, and cognizance" (II, ii, 31). Caesar seems to be amazed by this version of the interpretation; in fact, he likes this version a lot better mainly because Decius uses so much flattery.
In life, people and things are not always as they appear. William Shakespeare displays this idea throughout his play, Julius Caesar. The play portrays the historical murder of one of ancient Rome's most precious leaders, Julius Caesar. The play takes its readers through the minds of the conspirators as they plot this massive murder and deal with the responsibilities of its consequences. During the aftermath of Caesar's death, Octavius talks to Antony about how they should bring peace back to Rome. He states, "And some that smile...have in their hearts...millions of mischiefs" (4.1.50-51). Here, Octavius is referring to the false appearance of the conspirators. He says that they might appear harmless, but behind their false smiles is a heart full of dirty tricks. He is also saying that someone's outward appearance doesn't always symbolize how he or she feels inside. This theme of appearance versus reality can be seen various times throughout Julius Caesar. It is developed through the personalities and actions of Antony, Brutus, and Cassius. These characters deceive their friends and add to the intriguing plot of the play.
However, when Decius arrives at Caesar’s home, he tries to convince Caesar that he has misinterpre...
A character from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Cassius, exhibits Machiavellian attributes by manipulation and a drive to accomplish his goal of assassinating Julius Caesar by any means. Cassius was able to successfully manipulate both Brutus and the fellow conspirators. Cassius was able to influence Brutus enough to make Brutus believe that killing Julius Caesar, Brutus’ best friend, was the right action. Initially, Brutus was wary of Cassius when Brutus said, “Into what dangers would you lead me, Cassius?” (1.2.69) Subsequently, Brutus is persuaded as he states, “...what you have said / I will consider” (1.2.176-177). Cassius is willing to control any person who stands in his way. Cassius successfully turned Brutus against his best friend in order to achieve what Cassius believes to be best for Rome. When Brutus says, “Let me not hinder, Cassius, your desires” (1.2.35) it is clear that Cassius has swayed Brutus to believe in his cause. In Julius Caesar, we do not see Cassius as the main leader of the cons...
In this play, Cassius’ motivation is completely inspired by evil and hatred. His jealousy of Caesar and greed for power drives him to create the conspiracy and start plotting the death of Caesar. While talking to Casca, he says, “What trash is Rome, / What rubbish and what offal, when is serves / For the bas matter to illuminate / So vile a thing as Caesar!” (I.iii.109-112). This shows some of the true feelings Cassius has about Caesar. He believes that Caesar is not worthy of his power and does not want anyone to hold more power than him. Although he justifies the killing of Caesar as an act for freedom from tyranny, his motivation is full of bad intent. In an attempt to disguise his true motives, Cassius convinces Brutus, an honorable and well-respected man, to join the conspiracy. He tells Brutus, “Brutus and Caesar-what should be in that “Caesar”? / Why should that name be sounded more than yours? / Write them together, yours is as fair a name. / Sound them, it doth become the mouth as well. / ...
He is so motivated by ambition that he decides to kill Caesar, the leader of Rome. Although dedication can be a good quality, in Cassius, it blinds him to all other things and makes him ruthless in his quest to rule Rome. Cassius’s desire for power is evident when he states, "Men at some time are masters of their fates. The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings" (1.2.146-148). Cassius’ ambition leads him to go as far as to convince a dear friend with manipulation and false notes to help him plot to kill Caesar. His ambition makes him power hungry and he lacks the honor to back up his overzealous behavior. Cassius envies Caesar and because of this he resorts to bribery, assassinations, and imposing taxes for personal
The conspirators had already decided how and when they would kill Caesar, and Brutus, Cassius, along with Decius, knew they had to lure Caesar close. They had an advantage at this because they knew that all they would have to do was prove to Caesar that they had a good, solid friendship, and this would help their situation and leave Caesar completely sightless to the fact that his situation had grown dire. So they decided to use their friendship with Caesar in a horribly deceptive manner, effectively, in order to kill him. Decius managed to start this off well by using flattery and quick wit in order to trick Caesar into going to the senate house, despite the fact that Caesars wife, Calpurnia had dreams of Caesars murder the night before.
Decius uses flattery and persuasion to form a strong union with Caesar. Decius is an active member of the Conspirators, so he is very motivated into getting Caesar to go to the Senate House. The first thing that Decius says when he walks into Caesar's house is "Caesar, all hail! Good morrow, worthy Caesar." Decius would also refer to Caesar as "most mighty". This would only make Caesar grow comfortable with Decius. Julius had lost all feelings of doubt and did not presume any caste of dire plot against him. Decius would deceive Julius into thinking that they had a resilient friendship by using his devious words. Caesar was not able to foresee his true faithful friends, such as Antony. He would grieve the killing of Julius and try to justify his murder by killing Brutus and Cassius. Antony was one of Julius's true and trustworthy friends.