The Morality Of Marcus Brutus

Sean Stasiak Mrs. Day Honors World Literature and Composition-7 18 September 2015 Brutus the hero 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.

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.

Loyalty and honor are the only tragic flaws that Brutus has but these are the reason that he has killed Caesar. Brutus had said that he had killed Caesar for the good of Rome and that his ancestors would have wanted this. Which is true that his ancestors had said that if any man were to claim themselves the king of Rome to kill them, but Caesar had never claimed himself king. The conspirators had only assumed that. So in reality by killing Caesar it wasn’t displaying loyalty and honor it was really showing stupidity. But Brutus’ tragic flaws are the real reason of his own downfall, as well as Rome’s.

In conclusion, Brutus’ mistakes and flaws are overshadowed by his honorable intentions and genuine motives. In a society littered with dishonorable, deceitful people like Antony, Brutus, with his sense of honor and integrity, contrast them all. Brutus’ greatest weakness is his tendency to believe people who script words to purposely lie or misguide him. Due to his actions, he ends up dying an honorable death of a self-suicide. Having genuine compassion and sympathy towards others is not a bad thing. However, decisions should not be so heavily influenced by the opinions of others. The significance of planning things out before doing them is clearly illustrated, as it is a way to foresee possible complications or problems that may arise. Ironically, the conspirators’ cause is for naught as Antony becomes the tyrant that they fear Caesar would have become.

Brutus, Honorable Man Brutus, an honorable conspirator? Honorable is defined as genuine, truthful and displaying integrity while a conspirator is defined as one that ingages in an agreement to commit an illegal or wrongful act. Anyone can clearly see that these two words do not belong together. There are also other reasons why Brutus should not be considered honorable. In the play three distict act can be recalled.

Brutus’s arrogance, aided by Cassius’s equally prevalent arrogance, caused them to make the murder of Julius Caesar an acceptable idea. It took only a few weeks for Brutus to be completely convinced that there was nothing wrong with the murder of an innocent man. “Let’s be sacrificers, but not butchers, Caius” (Shakespeare, Julius Caesar II, i, 166) This quote is Brutus explaining to Cassius that killing Caesar is fine, but killing Antony would be too much; that, if they were to kill anyone other than Caesar, they would become murders in the public eye. This quote, in order to completely connect, needs more corroborating information. At first, Brutus was skeptical, unsure of the decision to kill Caesar. However, Cassius had a greed for Caesar’s power and his greed began to toy with Brutus’ arrogance. “Why is Julius in power? Why is he so special? Why aren’t you in power” are questions Cassius began to plant on Brutus. After weeks of t...

First, one should look at the play that is Julius Caesar, and pay attention to the exchange between Brutus and Cassius. Many times in the first act, Cassius attempts to persuade Brutus by offering reasons as to why Caesar must be killed (Eng. Literature). He repeatedly states how Caesar is weak, and that if he is given power, will become corrupt and twisted, thinking only of himself. While Cassius provides many reasons as to why Caesar must be killed, Cassius’s true motive is simply anger and a need for revenge against Caesar. This means that Cassius’s actions cannot be justified in the end, if he was simply doing it for himself the entire time. However, many people think Brutus could be excused, since he thought that by killing Caesar, he would be keeping Rome safe and leaving Caesar uncorrupted. I do not think that even with the ‘noble reasons’ that Cassius gave would excuse Brutus for killing Caesar, simply becaus...

In deciding whether or not a person is good, all of their characteristics must be looked at.

... different possible answers, and it is all up to speculation. I personally believe that homicides can be justified in very few scenarios, but can be, nonetheless. Pertaining to Caesar, I believe Brutus had justifiable motive to kill Caesar, and the homicide, similar to the murder of Osama Bin Laden was committed to stop a tyrant from gaining more power. Had Brutus let Caesar live, he would’ve become a sovereign and all hell would’ve broke loose. Caesar would’ve tromped all who stood before him, and ancient Europe would’ve become an ant under Caesar’s boot. If Brutus really did kill Caesar for the good will of Rome, I do not believe he was in any way a bad man, and even proved how strong of a man he was. In most cases, homicides are ugly, heinous crimes. But in a select few instances, they can be not only justifiable, but the overall best outcome of a situation.

Did Brutus kill his beloved friend, Julius Caesar, in cold blood? Or was it justifiable homicide? These questions remain unanswered in the minds of many. However, upon further investigation, it is clear that there was no just cause for the murder of Julius Caesar. Is there ever really justification for murder, let alone the assassination of a brave, fearless, and selfless leader? What kind of person could murder a dear friend, regardless of said friend’s flaws? Even though there were others involved, Brutus was the key element in the assassination of Julius Caesar; he is guilty of premeditated, first-degree murder!