“Cowards die many times before their deaths. The valiant never taste of death but once,” (Shakespeare, II.ii.32-33). In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Brutus is known to be a character of valiancy and determination. Earning the title of “honorable”, Brutus shows his highly-reputable character through his wise words and good intentions. The determination to be respectful when taking Caesar’s life and his unknowingness of the erroneous “evidence” presented before him demonstrates the purely honorable and virtuous character that Brutus possesses. Therefore, the death of Brutus was unmerited because he is honorable, unaware of the conspiracy’s intentions, and virtuous. Brutus shows his honorability among the other conspirators. When he becomes the leader of the conspiracy, he suggests that they kill Caesar for the benefit of Rome, not out of hatred or selfless means. Brutus says to Cassius, “Let us be sacrificers but not butchers, Caius… And, gentle friends, let’s kill him boldly but not wrathfully. Let’s carve him as a dish fit for the gods, not hew him as a carcass fit for hounds,” (II.i.173, 178-181). Brutus respected Caesar and was his friend, therefore he believes they should honor him in his death. Brutus wanted to kill Caesar in order to prevent his country from becoming a …show more content…
Although his heart was in the right place, Brutus realizes that his mistakes have left Rome in far worse condition than if Caesar had lived. In Act IV, Brutus admits his regret in killing Caesar when he says, “Your master, Pindarus, in his own change or by ill officers hath given me some worthy cause to wish things done, undone,” (IV.ii.6-9). However, Brutus acknowledging his faults further proves his character of honesty and integrity in that he is honest with himself and his mistakes. Brutus delivers his last words before he runs on his sword and says, “Caesar, now be still. I killed not thee with half so good a will,”
Even though Brutus knew that Caeser had turned down the crown three times, he still felt he was too ambitious to rule over Rome. If only Brutus would have had a level head on his shoulders like Antony. If anyone can call a murderer honorable, let them know. The third and final act Brutus committed that left him with a dishonorable image, was that he ran and then killed himself just to avoid battle. In early Rome, a man was thought to be noble and brave if he fell from an enemy’s sword, not if he ran and committed suicide.
Brutus turned on his best friend and stabbed him in the back. In Julius Caesar’s final moments he noticed his best friend as a traitor. “Et tu, Brute! Then fall, Caesar”, these are Caesars last words as he is stabbed in the back by his friend. Since Brutus thought what he did was for Rome, he did not kill his best friend out of spite or hate he killed his best friend Julius Caesar so that Rome could live.
After the murderous confrontation, it was not too late to prevent the anger of Caesar’s allies and the citizens or, even, to avoid future civil war. But it was here that Brutus made his second and third mistakes. Marcus Brutus rose before the Roman populace and attempted to offer a justification of Caesar’s murder. His flawed judgment came when he deemed Antony trustworthy and allowed him to speak at Caesar’s funeral. Brutus naively let Antony draw the mob in his favor. No one could dare refute Antony’s impassioned pleas in behalf of Caesar.
Brutus emerges as the most ambiguous and complex character in Julius Caesar and is also the play’s tragic hero. In his soliloquies the audience gains insight into the complexities of his motives. In Brutus’s first soliloquy he states “It must be by his death and for my part I know no personal cause to spurn at him But for the general”(Act 2,scene 1, Julius Caesar). This highlights the internal struggle brutus is going through. He loved Caesar as a friend but yet he loved Rome more, he had to make a decision to kill his best friend for the good of the Roman empire.
Brutus is trying to justify to himself that killing Julius Caesar is the right thing to do for the good of Rome, because Caesar could become very dangerous if allowed to gain power by becoming king. His argument incorporates ethos, pathos, and logos to justify the necessity of Caesar’s death for the Roman people. Brutus establishes his credibility through ethos by stating: “I know no personal cause to spurn at him/ But for the general” (2.1.11-12). His claim demonstrates his moral righteousness and trustworthiness by explaining that he has no personal reasons for hating Caesar, and his sentiments are for the best interest of the Roman people. Brutus further argues the logical progression of ambition
He has two opposing desires that he has to choose between. These are killing Caesar to preserve democracy in Rome and to save Caesar, since he is a friend of Brutus. A quote from J.L. Simmons that summarizes this well is, “Certainly the material lends itself to a conflict between private and public affections” (Simmons 64). Brutus wants to kill Caesar for Rome because the citizens of Rome want to preserve democracy and Caesar is preventing that by being dictator for life. A quote that puts this in other words is, “The ultimate factor in persuading Brutus to join the conspiracy is his belief that his countrymen wish him to act on their behalf” (Shalvi 71). Killing Caesar would be a choice made for not himself, but the citizens of Rome while saving him would be for himself and to preserve his friendship with Caesar. Saving Caesar would be a deed for himself and would strengthen his relationship with Caesar. He could have warned Caesar of the conspirators’ plans and put a stop to them. Brutus ultimately makes the choice of following through and assassinating Caesar. His plan was for this to be a honorable action, but it ended up negative on his behalf. The majority of the citizens in Rome did not take this lightly and wanted revenge for his actions. This is the main mistake made by Brutus that lead to his own
Brutus was a devious man, even though what he thought he was doing was right. Brutus told his fellow conspirators to kill Caesar “boldly, but not angerly.”(3.1.256-257) Brutus was one of Caesars right hand men, and yet Brutus kills his own friend. When Antony asks to speak at Caesars funeral, Cassius says no, but Brutus tell him that Antony will speak, but only what Brutus tells him to say. Brutus also embraces the fact that he just killed his friend, and also tells the senators who had just witnessed it to not be afraid, but to stay because ambition has paid its debt.
Well, according to Antony within his speech, “Brutus says he was ambitious, and Brutus is an honorable man. You all saw that on the Lupercal feast day I offered him a king’s crown three times, and he refused it three times. Was this ambition?” (Act 3, Scene 2, Page 5). Indeed, Caesar showed no intentions of being blood-lusted in power, feeling sympathy when the poor cried, and refusing the seat to the throne thrice. In any case, there’s no denying that Brutus killed and murdered a living soul who sought him as his close friend, with Caesar’s dying words, “Et tu, Brute! Then fall, Caesar” establishing Brutus as a betrayer. However, the key that pushed Brutus to such a task was the fake letters constructed by Cassius, encouraging Brutus to assassinate a friend whom he was close to with each letter sounding as they truly, “came from several citizens—all testifying to the great respect Romans have for Brutus, and all alluding to Caesar’s unseemly ambition” (Act 1, Scene 2, Page 13). Knowing deep inside that Brutus loves Rome, he claims that he’ll do any deed “If it’s for the good of all Romans”, even if it meant his very own life. (Act 1, Scene 2, Page 13). In brief, taking the life of his close friend, Caesar, unquestionably showed that even friendship won’t get in the way toward his love for
Brutus was a man of noble birth. He had multiple servants and was often referred to as “Lord”, which indicates a certain level of respect for him. He was a very highly thought of person in Rome. At no point did he ever betray anyone, although he did kill Caesar, he did it to better Rome, not to mislead him. Everything he did was for the advantage of someone else. Even after Brutus dies, Marc Antony says “This was the noblest roman of them all; all the conspirators, save only he, did that they did in the envy of Caesar; he only in a general honest thought and common good to all...” This shows that regardless of brutus killing Caesar, he is still considered noble because he had good intentions. Brutus was also the best friend of Julius Caesar, the most powerful man in Rome. Had he been a commoner, Caesar most likely would not have associated with him or trusted him as a friend.
Brutus put his trust in Antony to not turn on him at the funeral. He was lead to believe that Antony would only speak good of the conspirators and defend them for the actions they have made. He trusted Antony when he told him he would not express such hate and talk of the bad they did and then later turned against them for the vengeance of Caesar. Brutus told Antony, “You shall not in your funeral speech blame us, But speak all good you can devise of Caesar” (III.i.245-246). He told him that the only way he is going to be able to speak at Caesar’s funeral is if he speaks good of the conspirators. After Antony said his speech, the whole crowd immediately switched and sided with him against them. They wanted nothing more than for Brutus, Cassius and the other contributors to be dead. This reveals that Brutus is shameful for putting his trust in someone who was so close to Caesar. Brutus trusted that Antony wouldn't do anything and just imagined he would be to scared to step up and speak out. This leads to Brutus losing the trust he had for Antony and starting a war between the people and the conspirators. As the war was about to proceed, they all prepped for what was about to happen. Antony and his army completely dominated Brutus’ and lead to many of them fleeing for their lives. Many people died by genocide while other committed suicide. Brutus was among the ones of suicide. He no longer wanted to be alive and felt that he had lived and fulfill what he had wanted. People were dead and he knew he was going to be one of them. Brutus’ last words were, “Caesar, now be still; I killed not thee with half so good a will” (V.v.50-51). He wanted Caesar to know that he can now be at rest because the vengeance he was looking for has been given. Because of all the trust he put in the people that were taking advantage of him, he ended up finishing his life. This reveals that Brutus really did
When Cassius persuades Brutus to join the conspirators to kill Caesar, Brutus honestly believes that by joining the conspirators, he will prevent the citizens of Rome from tyranny.“Not that I loved Caesar less but that I loved Rome more”(III, ii, 21-22). Brutus never questions Cassius’ accusations of Caesar, and Brutus misjudges Cassius and looks past the true devious intentions of the lead conspirator. Because of Brutus’ faith and trust in Cassius, he kills Caesar and becomes overwhelmed with the guilt of the murder. This guilt and dishonor leads Brutus to his downfall, and Brutus kills himself. This same trait is also observed when Brutus interacts with Antony before the funeral. Brutus allows Antony to speak at the funeral simply because of Antony vowing to not say anything against the conspirators while speaking in front of the crowd. Brutus oversees the obvious risks that come with allowing Antony to speak in front of the plebeians, and seems blind to the manipulative and deceiving brain of Antony. At the funeral, Antony does the exact opposite of what he promised he would do and speaks against the conspirators and successfully turns the Romans against Brutus and his group. Because of Brutus’ trusting nature towards Antony, a war breaks out between the conspirators and Antony and his soldiers, an event that could have been easily prevented if Brutus did not possess such a trustworthy nature. Brutus’ tragic flaw of trustworthiness in Cassius and Antony leads to his downfall and eventually his
It is March 15, Julius Caesar has just been stabbed over 30 times, blood is pouring out of him, and he is slowly dying as his closest friend stands over him, a dagger in hand. In the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, Marcus Brutus, along with his other conspirators, assassinates the most powerful man in Rome. Rome has now lost Julius Caesar, yet another ruler, and Brutus has lost his closest friend. Even though Brutus changes drastically from being a supporter of Caesar to one of his assassins, he manages to hold on to the characteristics that shape him from the beginning: illogicalness, idealism, and nobility.
Brutus exclaims that the masses are worth more than an individual, that individual who is Caesar. In spite of those beliefs, Cassius offers him salvation. Cassius entices Brutus with the notion of a false faith, the end to his suffering with be at the end of Caesar's life. A dream which Brutus gladly fights when he utters, “ Let us be sacrificers but not butchers, Cassius. And in spite of the men, there is no blood”(2.1.173-175). Brutus offers insight into his notion of worth, he will kill for a righteous deed, an honorable action, but not slay wantonly. Brutus is a true martyr for a deceptive plan, when he says, “I have the same dagger for myself, when it shall please my country to need my death”(3.2.41-43). A person of high moral values, an individual who strive to accomplish his ambition, Brutus was the most honorable Roman. However, many would view
An honorable person can be defined as someone who rarely commits a sin and someone who is right and just throughout their whole entire life. There is a dispute going on about whether Marcus Brutus is an honorable man or not an honorable man. Most of the people that form the conspirators kill Caesar because of jealousy. However, Brutus kills him because of what is the best for Rome. Marcus Brutus is the hero in the play Julius Caesar because he is loyal to Rome, he is respectful to his people, and humble to those who are less fortunate than him.
Brutus is considered an honorable man by all those who live in Rome. He is a close friend of Caesar, husband of Portia, and is also a Senator. Brutus is drawn into killing Caesar by Cassius, who was jealous of Caesar's degree of power. Brutus was pulled into the scheme by letters brought to his house by Decius to make him think that the people of Rome wanted him to replace Caesar. Brutus also feels that Caesar is being given too much power and will destroy Rome's democracy. Brutus' reason for killing Caesar is to benefit Rome, he proves this when he states"If then that friend demand why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer: not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more." After losing to Mark Antony and Octavious, Brutus runs onto his own sword. He sticks to his beliefs, not altering them for others.