How Does Antony Use Manipulation In Julius Caesar

There’s a difference between a friend trying to help you for your own good and a friend bringing you down for their own benefit. The difference being persuasion and manipulation. Persuasion is executed with a sense of trust, whereas manipulation is accomplished with a falsity of information. This is shown in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, where three of the main character use these two very similar techniques. But, they each use them for different reasons. Antony uses his to honor Caesar in his death and validate his success and fame. Brutus uses it to justify the killing of Caesar he did. Cassius uses them to gain power for himself.

Antony was the best friend of Julius Caesar and respected him greatly. So, when finding Caesar dead, he asked to speak at his funeral. Which is where he boasted about how great Caesar was and sarcastically how great the Senate was. In Antony’s speech he says, “For Brutus is an honorable man” (Line 80). This shows how Antony is sarcastic about the side he believes did the right thing. The rhetorical devices that are used are pathos and logos. Appeal to fear was used within pathos and actual example within logos.

Brutus was convinced by Cassius that for the good of Rome, Caesar had to die. Brutus then had to convince the crowd that he did the right thing. As shown in lines 13-17, “Romans, countrymen, and lovers. Hear me for my cause, and be silent, that you may hear: believe me for mine honour, and have respect to mine honour, that you may believe: censure me in your wisdom, and awake your senses that you may the better judge.” This shows that his main goal was to have the city of Rome ‘judge’ but really he wanted them on his side. Brutus uses appeal to fear within pathos to tell the city of Rome that Caesar was a bad