Julius Caesar Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Rhetorical analysis of Antony’s speech in Julius Caesar

Throughout Antony’s speech, he utilizes rhetorical devices to appeal to the plebeians and persuades them to mutiny against the conspirators and get revenge for Caesar. Rhetoric is used to convince people to believe things. In the play Julius Caesar, by Willian Shakespeare, many characters persuade others using rhetoric. The story is about Caesar’s death and how he was betrayed by the people he thought were his friends but killed him brutally. Brutus, a conspirator, gives the plebeians a speech at Caesar’s funeral, and convinces them that he killed Caesar for the good of Rome, so the plebeians are now on his side and they agree with the idea that Caesar needed to die. Mark Antony, a good

He needs to make the plebeians not hate Caesar anymore, and start loving him again. Throughout Antony’s speech, he utilizes rhetorical devices to appeal to the plebeians and persuades them to mutiny against the conspirators and get revenge for Caesar.

Antony builds his credibility by establishing that he is not a bad man, and he is only there to “ bury Caesar; not to praise him” (Julius Caesar 3.2.83). Antony affirms that he is only there to bury who he loves the most and nothing else. He is only gonna talk about Caesar as the conspirators demanded. Antony introduces himself and repeats that he isn’t gonna do anything wrong and he is only there to bury Caesar. Antony is obviously lying and he made the plebeians think he won’t convince them wrong and they end up listening to what he has to say. He did that to catch the plebeian’s attention and listen to his speech. Antony begins his speech talking about how “[Caesar] was my friend, faithful and not just to me,/ But Brutus says he was ambitious,/ And Brutus is an honorable man” (Julius Caesar 3.2.94-96).

Antony reminds the plebeians that once “I thrice presented him a kingly crown. Which he thrice refused. Was this ambition?” (Julius Caesar 3.2.105-106). Antony uses rhetorical questions to point out that Caesar is not ambitious, and he is trying to show that Caesar is very humble because he refused the crown before. Antony reminds the plebeians that Caesar once refused the crown convincing them that he isn’t the ambitious man that Brutus says he is. Antony does that by asking them the question that has an obvious answer because a man that refuses a crown is not ambitious. Antony does that to bring the plebeians to hate Brutus for lying to them about Caesar. Antony lifts Caesar’s vestures and shows the plebeians his body and “Brutus, as you know, was Caesar’s angel./… Caesar loved him!/ This was the unkindest cut of them all. (Julius Caesar 3.2.193-195). Antony points at Caesar’s body where the cut was, and says who did it. He did that by taking Caesar’s clothes off and pointing at the body and naming every conspirator that did it. Antony did that because he was showing that even Brutus, Caesar’s angel, did the worst cut, the one that finished Caesar. Antony did that to show how big of a traitor and bad person Brutus really is. Antony continues to point at Caesar’s body and then asks the plebeians “What, weep [the plebeians] when you but behold / Our Caesar’s vesture wounded? Look you