Does a single villain exist? “The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but y those who watch them without doing anything.” -Albert Einstein It becomes ever so apparent in the very beginning of the play [Julius Caesar] that many distrust the leadership, or rather, dictatorship of Caesar, one of the most influential and remembered figures in all of history. There is a feeling of dread and fear, a malicious and ruinous combination in many cases throughout the span of our short history. Most notably, we observe Cassius praising Brutus, which, in my personal opinion during my early reading, is a clever ploy devised to bring Brutus closer to Cassius, which just so happens to be true, as shown when Cassius tells Casca that, “-Three parts of him is ours already, and the man entire upon the next …show more content…
But the true villain of this tale isn’t man, it is man’s nature. Now, using Albert’s quote [above] as a frame of reference we can make the comparison that Cassius is the hero because he is acting on the evil he sees in the world around him. He is trying to make the world better, is he not? Even under his mistakenly zealous ways of doing so, isn’t it the thought that counts? If this is to be taken as fact, then reasonably Caesar is the villain of our story, is he not? Before we go and crucify our suspect, we must first look at why Cassius is trying to dethrone Caesar (“And after this let Caesar seat him sure, for we will shake him, or worse days endure.” [1.2.316-17]). From Cassius fear of their [Rome’s] new leader, a plot to remove the emperor arose, with Cassius at it’s leader. This small coup d'etat behavior is expected from Cassius because his opponent is
He wants their support so he paid them off.” So as you see Cassius was jealous of Julius and wanted to get at him. This proves Cassius guilty of taking part in the murder of Julius
A quality all humans possess is questioning leadership. The reasons why we challenge or rebel against our leaders describe what kind of individual we are. Cassius and Brutus have different reasons for questioning Caesars power. Both characters have a common goal but exceedingly different values, thought process, and motives for killing Caesar. Cassius and Brutus are characters who have opposite values.
In William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar, Cassius is a foil to Marcus Brutus, for Brutus is consistently described as honorable and kind, contrasting the always clever and self-centered, Cassius. Cassius acts as a character who goes against the virtues and weaknesses of the main character. Brutus announces, “Why man, he doth bestride the narrow World like a Colossus, and we pretty men Walk under his huge legs and peep about To find ourselves dishonorable graves” (Shakespeare I. 2. 142-145). By appealing to Brutus' feeling of honor and loyalty to Rome, Cassius hopes to persuade him to join the conspiracy against Caesar.
While Brutus maintains noble intentions, Cassius goes into this scheme with every intention of leaving everyone else behind to claim the power for himself, as he has been compelled by their society to do. Cassius tells Brutus that Caesar “doth bestride the narrow world like a Colossus” while convincing him that Caesar is accumulating too much power for one man, despite harboring the belief that all of that power should be his (JC I.ii.142-143). To further prove his point to Brutus, Cassius gives Brutus fake letters telling him that the common people would rather have Brutus in charge than Caesar. While this is just Cassius himself manipulating Brutus, Cassius is motivated by the pressures of their society and Brutus, motivated by the belief that his society wants him to, joins the conspirators in their plot to kill Caesar and take power for themselves. Caught in a vicious cycle of societal pressure, these men continue to fight for power even after they achieve their original goal as evidenced by the civil war that breaks out following the assassination of Julius
The final reason why Julius Caesar was a villain is the fact that he took action first without thinking about what the consequences would be. Some people might say that Caesar was a hero because he conquered new lands and saved Rome from the hardships of war. Except Caesar, like stated before, only cared about fame and wealth so, he sought out to conquer new lands when really he just started the wars and put Rome in a zone of danger. He started unnecessary wars without thinking about how the rise of taxes (due to the war) would affect the economic part of Rome and it’s citizens.
The stage directions say that ”CASCA first, then the other Conspirators and BRUTUS stab CAESAR” (Shakespeare). All of the conspirators were responsible for the death of Julius Caesar. Each conspirators stabbed him many times, including Cassius, ultimately making partially him responsible for his death. After the stabbing, Cassius says “Some to the common pulpits, and cry out Liberty, freedom, and enfranchisement! '’ (III,I, 88-89).
And when my face is coerced, as ‘tis now, / Guide thou the sword - Caesar, thou are revenged” (5.3 41-45). He died at the voice of his command towards his servent. Not only did he die in battle, he also perished on his birthday. Cassius felt only as if killing himself would save his noble reputation as a general so being captured could not be a
Brutus fled his country where he eventually killed himself. While Brutus experiences an impactful turning point, Cassius ' actions and personality remain fairly constant within the negative traits. He represents gloominess from the beginning of the play; he is jealous, manipulative and pessimistic. “O coward that I am, to live so long to see my best friend ta 'en before my face.” (V.III.34-35).
Cassius saves the life of Caesar, sees him beg for water, and witnesses his epileptic seizure. From these weaknesses, Cassius finds himself to be just as worthy of the crown as is Caesar. His reasons are emotionally tied to getting rid of Caesar, Brutus chooses to become a conspirator for the good of Rome. He does not know how Caesar will use his power.
Brutus and Cassius are two prominent conspirators in the play Julius Caesar; one of these two fits Aristotle's depiction of a tragic hero. The difference between a normal hero and a tragic hero is that the latter will have a tragic flaw that keeps them from succeeding. These characters are often sympathetic and will cleave to the reader's pity. Firstly, we shall discuss Cassius. He was a man of questionable character.
Cassius manipulates Brutus to the point of making him feel as if there are several people wanting Brutus to do something about Caesar. Cassius also wants to convince Brutus that “Caesar’s ambition shall be glanced at” so they can eliminate his power for fear that “worse days [may] endure”. Cassius is not the only senator wanting to eliminate Caesar’s growing
Caesar had his flaws, but he was only human. Caesar was seen as a serpent who was ready to strike and create a society that revolved around himself and would keep him at the top. On the contrary, even though the conspirators claim to have had the best intentions of Rome in their conscious and actions when assassinating Caesar, Rome still plunged itself into a civil war that disrupted the peace in the nation. Therefore, was Caesar a menace to society even though he led Rome to victory over Pompey, brought peace and created a sense of nationalism in Rome, and enforced the laws strictly in the case of Metellus Cimber in Act 3, Scene
Cassius is often referred to as a villain in the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. A villain is a play or stories antagonist. Traits of a villain include manipulative and untrustworthy. Cassius was a known companion of Caesar’s that was an active part in the assassination (Gaius). First of all, Cassius manipulates Brutus and the rest of the conspirators into helping him assassinate Caesar.
The fear that the conspirator had against tyranny was so commanding that it pushed them to murder their emperor. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. Julius Caesar was an emperor of Rome, a renowned military leader, and a beloved friend to all of his subjects. Cassius created a conspiracy that feared tyranny and what Caesar would become if he gained more power. Cassius corrupted Brutus, who was a long-time friend of Caesar 's, to betray him and join the conspiracy.
One of the reasons why Caesar was exiled is because the conspirators believed he would abuse his power. Cassius had a bit more of a greedy reasoning. Cassius knew Caesar was still involved with Pompeii and he also just didn’t want Caesar to be acquainted ruler. So he knew the only way to get Caesar’s