Who Is Julius Caesar Hero Or Villain

Heroes and Villains

What come to mind when thinking of a story? Most of the time the first thing that is brought to attention in a story is the hero or the villain. In Julius Caesar there is no clear hero or villain, but there are characters that have heroic and villainous traits. Julius Caesar may lack clear heroes and villains but it does have characters that can seem malicious or valiant. The reason that characters that have these traits are not heroes or villains is because, no matter the story, you can not have the hero and the villain be on the same side. So, while some characters could certainly be seen as a hero or a villain in another story, in Julius Caesar they could not. In addition to the point that heroes and villains can not

Throughout Julius Caesar, Cassius repeatedly commits actions that are selfish and often hurt others. He kills Caesar because he does not like him as a ruler. He involves some of Caesar’s best friends just so he can make sure he is not the only one to blame when the time comes. Not only does he kill Caesar, but he also wants to kill Antony because it would make things easier. For the most part, Cassius only thinks of himself and only commits actions that he believes will be beneficial towards himself. However, in the entire play, there is one moment that makes Cassius seem the tiniest

Brutus makes decisions, time and time again, that are extremely difficult for him, in order to do what he deems necessary for Rome. He kills Caesar, one of his best friends, because he believes that Rome will not be able to flourish with him as leader. Brutus also decides not to kill Antony, even though it would be easier than leaving him alive. He puts his foot down when Cassius says that he believes they should kill Antony, and says that they are not murderers. So, he does not take the easy way out, he remains honorable. With that being said, one of the main reasons that Brutus can not be considered a hero is because he does still do malevolent things. He does kill Caesar, which is something a hero would not do. A true hero would find another way to save Rome from Caesar’s reign. In addition, Brutus can not be called a hero when he is working with Cassius, who does heinous things and cares only about himself. To conclude, Brutus is the most hero-like character, but he does have his setbacks that keep him from being an actual