How Does Julius Caesar Use Of Persuasion

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Protecting Reputation with Persuasion In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, characters use persuasion to either benefit themselves or others depending on their motivation. Gaius Cassius, Marc Antony, and Marcus Brutus all persuade themselves or other of different things, but they all achieve the same result. Overwhelmingly, more characters use persuasion to affect others in order to fulfill their needs and wants, whether they intend to or not.
In Julius Caesar, Marcus Brutus, the best friend of Julius Caesar, tries to convince himself that he should join the conspirators to kill Caesar. Brutus believes he joins the conspirators for the good of the people, but really he benefits himself in a roundabout way. “It must be by his death. And for my …show more content…

Caesar poses such a threat that his best friend would go so far as to compare him to a serpent. Brutus decides he must kill Caesar “in the shell”, or before he becomes too powerful and he nips it in the bud. Although Brutus wholeheartedly believes that he is killing Caesar for the common good, Caesar’s death still benefits Brutus. Since killing Caesar prevented him from becoming a power-hungry dictator, it saved Brutus’ back in a roundabout way. Since Brutus was best friends with Caesar, if Caesar became dictator for life and abused his position of power, Brutus would be looked down upon as well because he didn’t do anything to stop Caesar. Therefore, Caesar’s death benefitted Brutus in the way that it protected his …show more content…

As a person, Cassius is mischievous and good at manipulating, making him the perfect persuader. In order to persuade Brutus to join the conspiracy against Caesar, Cassius bad-mouthed Caesar and pointed out his flaws. “He had a fever when he was in Spain... / How he did shake. ’Tis true, this god did shake / His coward lips did their color fly” (126, 127-128). Cassius is acquaintances with Caesar, so he knows a decent amount about his life. Cassius tells Brutus about a time when he and Caesar were in Spain and Caesar fell ill and had a seizure. By telling Brutus this, Cassius is pointing out flaws in Caesar that make him an unfit leader. Cassius also calls Caesar a coward, showing his utter disrespect and dislike for him both as a person and a leader. Cassius also mocks Caesar by calling him a god, implying that he is the opposite since he would be so weak as to have a seizure. Although Cassius claims that he wants to kill Caesar for the good of the people, those are not his real motivations. Cassius constantly belittles Caesar and tries to prove that he is not a good leader, showing his jealousy. “I had as lief not to be as live to be / In awe of such a thing as I myself” (I.ii.102-103). Cassius does not get why everyone is in awe of Caesar’s glory and believes that he deserves just as much glory as Caesar. Cassius states that he would rather die than worship a man who is below him.

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