Wednesday, February 22 & Friday, February 24
Background
Written by Shakespeare
Tragedy and Comedy
Adapted work from story of JC by Plutarch
JC was real Roman conqueror
Rome is a republic (democracy)
Pompey was the previous ruler
About Shakespeare
Blank Verse - unrhymed iambic pentameter
Act I Scene I
Scene/Setting : Roman street
Characters: Flavius, Marullus, Cobbler, Carpenter
Plot - What happened?
Exchange between tribunes and commoners about the mob gathering to honor Caesar.
The commoners dodge the tribunes' questions with puns.
Eventually they admit that the working men have left their shops to assemble "to see Caesar and rejoice in his triumph."
Marullus rebukes the people for hard hearts and senseless cruelty in forgetting Pompey so soon and celebrating Caesar's victory much the same as they had celebrated Pompey's.
Marullus and Flavius warn the commoners that they will regret their actions and had better pray for mercy.
Flavius instructs Marullus to remove all decorations honoring Caesar from the city and drive people from the streets to keep Caesar's ambitions in check.
Theme - What does this mean?
Loyalty
-the mob
Fear of Leader
- Feared the rule of JC would end the republic & democracy
- Ambitious and dangerous
Note: The puns (double meaning) used by commoners referring to trades. How are the uses and meanings different?
"all" (awl) "cobbler" (shoemaker, bungler) "sole" (soul) "out" (out of shoes, out of temper), "recover" (save, mend)
Vocabulary:
tribune - ancient Roman official chosen by the plebs to protect their rights against the patricians
Literally means champion of the people.
Plebeian - common people
Act I Scene II
Scene/Setting: Roman street
Characters: Caesar, Antony, Calpurnia, Portia, Decius, Brutus, Cicero, Cassius, and Casca
Plot - What happened?
Feast of Lupercal - young noblemen ran through the streets, striking women to help them bear children.
Caesar tells his wife Calpurnia to stand in Antony's way so she will get whipped and bear a child.
Soothsayer warns Caesar to "Beware the Ides of March"
Soothsayer - one who claims to foretell events or predict the future
Caesar disregards the soothsayer calling him a "dreamer"
Cassius expresses his fear that Brutus does not love him anymore because his lack of affection.
Brutus reveals this is due to an internal conflict. (between duty to republic and love for Caesar)
Cassius complements Brutus as a just man and wishes that Brutus had Caesar's ego and self-esteem.
Conflict - struggle between opposing forces
Internal - occurs within a character's mind
Person vs. him/herself
External - occurs between a character and an outside force
Person vs. person
Person vs. society
Person vs. nature
Person vs. environment
Brutus admits he fears Caesar as king although he still loves Caesar and wants to be honorable to him.
Cassius speaks about honor and Caesar's lack of manly actions to convince Brutus of Caesar's unworthiness and that Brutus is more noble of a ruler.
We learn from Casca that Antony has offered Caesar the crown three times in front of the mob. Each time Caesar refused the crown and after the third offer fainted due to his epilepsy (falling sickness).
Cassius learns that Casca has the same feelings of dislike for Caesar and he announces his plan to forge letters to Brutus from leading citizens concerning Caesar's ambitions to overthrow the government and to praise Brutus.
Quote p. 832: Casca to Cassius - "But those that understood him smiled at one another and shook their heads; but for mine own part, it was Greek to me."
Cassius to Brutus - "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our starts,/But in ourselves, that we are underlings"
Theme:
Foils (Brutus and Caesar) - one that by strong contrast underscores the distinctive characteristics of another.
Soliloquy - speech where character speaks to him or herself revealing his deepest thoughts and feelings to the audience
Monologue - long speech by one person without interruption from others on stage
Aside - brief comment a character makes that is not heard by anyone
Act I Scene III
Setting/Scene: Eve of Ides of March (one month later), Lightening
Characters: Casca, Cicero, Cassius, Cinna, Brutus
Plot - What happened?
Casca meets Cicero and discusses prodigies and omens he has seen that night.
Omens & Portents - events that foretell the future (usually something bad)
- Men running on fire in the street
- Gods are showing their strength with storm
Gods make JC emperor
Cassius gets Casca on his side
Cassius and Casca try to get Brutus fully committed. They need Brutus because of his popularity among the people of Rome
Brutus's soliloquy - thinking about the + & - of killing JC
+ JC has been fair, rational, objective
- JC might change after being crowned emperor
Lucius finds the letter, gives it to Brutus who then makes up his mind to kill him
Cassius wants the group to swear an oath
Brutus says all are honest men and they don't need an oath due to their common shared loyalty to Rome
- If an oath was sworn to the Gods and broken, the person would be punished
Who is right, Cassius or Brutus?
- Would you completely trust one of your friends conspiring to kill another friend?
Tragic flaw - weakness in the tragic hero that causes his or her downfall
- What is Brutus's tragic flaw?
Cassius suggests killing Antony
Brutus says if Antony is killed it would seem that butchers are out for revenge
Portia wants to know what is wrong & Brutus doesn't tell her
Calpurnia has bad dream and asks JC to not leave for the Senate
Decius talks JC into going
JC leaves with all of the conspirators
Artemidorus writes about the conspirators to JC as a warning but JC does not accept it
JC is killed "Et tu, Brute? Then fall Caesar!"
Different Ideas About the Play
- JC dies in middle of play even though he is the title/center of play
- Mark Antony was a hedonist - when JC dies he comes a shrewd politician
Brutus Made 2 Mistakes
- Not killing Antony
- Allowing Antony to speak at the funeral
Brutus's Speech
+people respect his integrity
+good public speaker/politician
- common people did not understand it
- Wanted to appoint himself as next JC
Antony's Speech
First speech ever written in a play
Turns the crowd against the conspirators
Innocent Bloodshed - Whose fault is it?
Brutus spares Antony
Antony stirs up the crowd/mob
The crowd kills Cinna, the poet and innocent citizen
Vocabulary
Tragedy - dramatic form of writing in which the main character is involved in a great struggle that ends in disaster
Tragic Hero - main character (protagonist) in a tragedy whose downfall is his own tragic flaw
Catharsis - cleansing or purging of emotions by the audience at the end of the play
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