The effect words have is huge. The power of words and the meanings they have is seen every day. It is not only seen in literature like Julius Caesar, but also on social media and in events happening daily. Robin Williams once said “No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.” However, silence has the same effect. Words have been used to influence people for thousands of years, and the play Julius Caesar is no exception. In the play, Marc Antony uses his voice in his speech to coax the Roman people to join his side against Brutus. During his speech he repeats several times that Brutus is an “honorable man” which he knows will convince the population to think the opposite of what he’s saying. Antony uses his words to …show more content…
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious…” (Shakespeare 3.2.90-97.). Antony knows that if he gives the people reasons to love Caesar that they will turn on Brutus. The power his words have over them turn the plebeians on all Brutus has said and makes the people want to kill Brutus for taking away dear Caesar. The influence Antony’s words have brought the people to take action on Brutus and the conspirators, and this circumstance is just one example of how the power of words can bring about action. The Milgram Experiment is yet another example of how words have the capacity to bring a reaction from people. The results from the Milgram experiment yielded Milgram’s Agency Theory. During the experiment, “when participants were reminded that they had responsibility for their own actions, almost none of them were prepared to obey” (McLeod). However, “many participants who were refusing to go on did so if the experimenter said that he would take responsibility” (McLeod). Whichever statement the experimenter told the participant had a huge effect on the experiment. The power in their statements shows through the action the participant takes. If the experimenter told the