Rhetorical Devices In Mark Antony's Funeral Speech

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Mark Antony’s speech analysis essay Act III scene II marks a point of sorrow and rage in William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. In Mark Antony’s funeral address for Julius Caesar, he argues that his death was not justified. He uses persuasion techniques such as verbal irony, pathos, and logos in order to gain the trust of the townspeople, who once loved Caesar. In the beginning of Antony’s speech, he uses verbal irony to cause more of an “hidden” outrage and getting revenge on Brutus. He says many times that “Brutus is an honorable man” (3.2.87), while using an illiterate tone. Brutus killed his friend, their leader, which makes him anything but honorable in the eyes of Antony and the people themselves. Antony says “They that have done this deed are honorable/ What private griefs they have, alas, I know not/ That made him do it.” (3.2.212-213). This reveals the word honorable has became joke at this point in the speech while he is contradicting Brutus’s own words of being honorable. By calling them “honorable”, it helps the people understand that the one they liked killed the one they loved, so therefore he is not honorable. …show more content…

In effort to get people on his side he says “My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar/ and I must pause it can come back to me.(3.2.106-107) Antony reveals his love for his friend Caesar by saying that he is suffering of pain and sorrow for what Brutus did to him. He does this to make the citizens feel the sorrow as well in order to get them on his side. near the end of his speech he continues to use pathos by saying, “He was my friend, faithful and just to me” (3.2.84) This shows that Caesar was faithful and trustworthy and never should have been killed. Antony is also showing the character of Caesar and how much he cared for him and the

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