In Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, portrays the assassination of Roman ruler Julius Caesar, the aftermath of his death and the eventual death of the assassins, including Brutus and Cassius. In Act 1, Scene 2, funeral speeches are being given by Mark Anthony and Marcus Brutus after Caesar’s death; although Brutus’ use of ethos was more compelling than Anthony’s, ultimately Anthony’s speech was more persuasive than Brutus’ because of his impressive use of pathos and logos. One type of rhetorical strategy used in speeches and discussion is ethos, or an appeal to ethics. Brutus uses ethos for the majority of his arguments. An example of this is at the very end of his speech. Brutus states, “With this I depart,-- that, as I slew my best lover …show more content…
Brutus uses this technique when talking about his relationship with Caesar; he expresses, “If there be any in this assembly, any dear friend of Caesar’s, to him I say, that Brutus’ love to Caesar was no less than his.” Brutus is developing a tone of love for Caesar. This feeling not only helps him relate through emotion with the audience, but also gives the impression that Brutus didn’t kill Caesar for personal reasons. Antony similarly used pathos to describe Brutus and Caesar’s relationship. Antony shows the people a hole in Caesar’s robe, explaining, “Through this the well-beloved Brutus stabbed; […] This was the most unkindest cut of all; for when the noble Caesar saw him stab, ingratitude, more strong than traitors’ arms, quite vanquished him: then burst his mighty heart.” Antony uses extremely vivid and connotative language. This description gives the audience an image of what happened when Brutus stabbed Caesar and sways them to feel sympathy for Caesar and dislike for Brutus. Albeit Brutus used pathos wisely and effectively, Antony’s use of pathos played more with the emotion of the audience and essentially negated Brutus’ claim of