Julius Caesar

by
William Shakespeare

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Julius Caesar

by William Shakespeare

3.53 · rating details · 41,296 ratings · 931 reviews

In this striking tragedy of political conflict, Shakespeare turns to the ancient Roman world and to the famous assassination of Julius Caesar by his republican opponents. The play is one of tumultuous rivalry, of prophetic warnings -- "Beware the ides of March" -- and of moving public oratory "Friends, Romans, countrymen!" Ironies abound and most of all...more

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Published June 16th 2010 by Mars Media/Foreign Media (first published 1601)

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Dec 29, 2008

Madeline rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: shakespeare

Julius Caesar, abridged:

BRUTUS: I love Caesar!

CASSIUS: He's a power-hungry bastard. I think we should kill him.

BRUTUS: Dude, we totally should.

DECIUS: Happy Ides of March, Caesar. Ready to go to the Senate?

CAESAR: I dunno. My wife just had a dream about you and the rest of the senators washing their hands in my blood, so I think I'm going to call in sick today.

DECIUS: Okay, I'll just tell the guys that you're a pussy who ...more

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Mar 09, 2011

Bird Brian rated it

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Shelves: history-antiquity-prehistory, literature-other

William Shakespeare obviously had a fondness for Classical history and literature. Here's a[n] (incomplete?) list of antiquity-themed works he wrote:
-Antony and Cleopatra
-Coriolanus
-The Phoenix and Turtle
-Julius Caesar
-Pericles
-Cymbeline
-Timon of Athens
-Troilus and Cressida
-Venus and Adonis
-The Rape of Lucrece
-Titus Andronicus

But the Bard left school at age fourteen, so how'd he learn so much history of antiquity? Was...more

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Mar 24, 2011

Bill Kerwin rated it

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Shelves: 16th-17th-c-brit

In the course of teaching high school sophomores for thirty years, I have read Julius Caesar more than thirty times, and I never grow tired of its richness of detail or the complexity of its characters. Almost every year, I end up asking myself the same simple question--"Who do I like better? Cassius or Brutus?--and almost every year my answer is different from what it was the year before. On one hand, we have Cassius--the selfish, manipulative conspirator who, after the assassination, sh...more

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Mar 26, 2009

Manny rated it

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Shelves: why-not-call-it-poetry

I once performed the whole of Mark Anthony's "Friends, Romans, Countrymen" speech on the steps outside the Great Hall in Trinity College, Cambridge, wearing a bedspread as a toga and with a bucket chained over my head. It's a long story. I think I still know the speech by heart.

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Jun 23, 2009

Greg rated it

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Shelves: teachers-kill-books

My tenth grade teacher killed this play, not Caesar style though, that would be the treatment my eleventh grade English teacher did in poor Macbeth, with lots and lots of daggers and bloodshed. I don't have a good literary reference to how Julius Caesar got killed by a teacher.

Supposedly the teacher was fucking at least one guy on the football team, and she was showing signs of being knocked-up by the end of the year. So maybe she had other things on her mind. In later years I'd...more

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Apr 23, 2011

Gorfo rated it

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Recommends it for: Shakespeare Lovers!

Shelves: historical-fiction, my-favorite-character-died, classic

I didn't expect to like Julius Caesar. For some reason I expected it to be one of Shakespeare's history, in fact it was actually a tragedy. After reading Julius Caesar I've come to realize that there is no way on earth that I will ever be able to pick my favorite Shakespeare play! It just isn't possible! How could one man create so much amazing work (of course there is speculation about whether he wrote it all, but I don't care much for doubting Thomas's).

Julius Caesar is not so muc...more

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Nov 09, 2009

Jeanette rated it

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Shelves: all-fiction, classics, plays, four-star-fiction, historical-fiction

Final body count = 6

I've not read many of Shakespeare's plays dealing with actual history. This was not only a gripping story, but educational as well. A handful of Roman patricians plot to kill Julius Caesar, claiming that he is to be crowned king, which goes against the ideal of the Roman Republic. Treacherous plans never come to a good end, and this story is no exception. There's an excellent "Modern Perspective" piece at the end of this version of the play. It fills...more

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Aug 12, 2007

Samyuktha pc rated it

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Shelves: favourites

When we study texts we learn to look deeper into a word. Of course, that depends on the teacher and personal interest. Literature studies is one of my favourite hobbies. I always like to see what is behind a word and draw it out.

Julius Caesar tested my abilities. It also unviersally made me understand that everyone is ambiguous in nature. It changed the way I relate to people. Surprisingly, a hard hitting tragedy made me learn to forgive whole heartedly.

This play increas...more

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Dec 28, 2008

Alex rated it

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Shelves: loomis

I played Cicero and Titinius sophomore fall. Perhaps I am not qualified to accurately rate this play, as I have never read it cover-to-cover, but only seen it acted. It works decently as a play, especially the first four acts; act five, with its mind-numbing series of death-inducing battles, runs too long and too dryly.

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Jun 07, 2011

Natasha added it · review of another edition

Techniquely, I didn't completely finish, but I had two pages left and I already knew what was going to happen. It was a good story, but I really only started to like it until Caesar dies and Mark Antony gives his speech. I'm not really a fan of Shakespeare's tragedies, anyways. It was a good story though.

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Jan 02, 2012

Amy rated it

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Shelves: classics, plays, historical-fiction

I've been avoiding The Tragedy of Julius Caesar for years. I'm not sure why; maybe becuase I was never much interested in the actual Julius Caesar (that's changed as I've aged), maybe because I didn't much enjoy some of Shakespeare's other historical dramas (I'm looking at you King Henrys and King Richards), or maybe it's just because it never made more than a tiny blip on my radar (school readings of Shakespeare were taken up by Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, King Lear, and A Midsummer Night's Dre ...more

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Oct 19, 2011

Lillie rated it

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So far this my third reading for Shakespeare and so far this is my favourite for its historical true events..
Since the play is named after Julius Caesar I expected lots of him, but I was surprised that he gets assassinated at only the beginning of the third act!
There's some parts that are completely unbelievable and just crazy like when Caesar's ghost appears to Brutus and Brutus talk with him so normally as if that isn't scary enough! and how all of them died at the end,well most of...more

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Aug 03, 2011

Matthew rated it

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Julius Caesar was not my favorite Shakespeare by a long shot. It lacked the technical depth of something like Tempest, the wit of something like Midsummer Night's Dream, and the action of Titus Andronicus, but there were moments within Caesar that were fantastic. The "Cry Havoc" soliloquy was just as good as it is made out to be, absolutely.

There were times that I felt Shakespeare was relying on his audience's knowledge of the events to tell the story. The pillaging scene was a mess...more

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Oct 22, 2010

Venus rated it

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Shelves: literature

اگر برای بررسی آثار هر نمایشنامه‌نویسی قائل به یک انگیزه خاص باشیم، برای شناخت آثار ویلیام‌شکسپیر انگیزه‌ها و ویژگیهای فراوانی وجود دارد، چون زبان خاص خود را دارد و از این لحاظ شبیه هیچ نمایشنامه‌نویس دیگری نیست. او در نمایشنامه «تراژدی قیصر٭» به کمک دیالوگهای عمیق، فلسفی و یا حتی روانشناسانه، تمام آنچه را که در اعماق ذهن و روح پرسوناژها نهفته است، به سطح می‌آورد. از این رو این اثر بیشتر بر درون‌نگری و درون‌جویی پرسوناژها و ذهنیتهایی که رویکردی به افسانه، اسطوره و اعتقادات تأویل‌پذیر دارند، شکل ...moreاگر برای بررسی آثار هر نمایشنامه‌نویسی قائل به یک انگیزه خاص باشیم، برای شناخت آثار ویلیام‌شکسپیر انگیزه‌ها و ویژگیهای فراوانی وجود دارد، چون زبان خاص خود را دارد و از این لحاظ شبیه هیچ نمایشنامه‌نویس دیگری نیست. او در نمایشنامه «تراژدی قیصر٭» به کمک دیالوگهای عمیق، فلسفی و یا حتی روانشناسانه، تمام آنچه را که در اعماق ذهن و روح پرسوناژها نهفته است، به سطح می‌آورد. از این رو این اثر بیشتر بر درون‌نگری و درون‌جویی پرسوناژها و ذهنیتهایی که رویکردی به افسانه، اسطوره و اعتقادات تأویل‌پذیر دارند، شکل گرفته است و شکسپیر بر آن است که بخشی از حوادث را به کمک همین خرده‌روایتها و ذهنیتهای جانبی به گونه‌ای تقدیری و اجتناب‌نا‌پذیر جلوه دهد.
به همین منظور پرسوناژ «غیب‌‌گو» و در تکمیل آن، خوابها و تعابیر ذهنی همسر قیصر (کلپورنیا) را زمینه تقدیری شدن چنین حادثه‌ای می‌کند. این تعابیر ذهنی گاهی برون از قصر و میان کوچه‌های روم به اسطوره‌هایی که اتفاقاتی مشئوم و بد‌شگون را خبر می‌دهند، تبدیل می‌شوند:
شکسپیر برای آنکه ذهن تماشاگر یا خواننده از دنیای طبیعی هم غافل نماند، گاه به چنین عواملی اشاره می‌کند، اما این پدیده‌‌ها صرفاً نه برای کامل کردن فضای نمایشنامه، بلکه به گونه‌ای شهودی که التزام معنا داری را همراه دارند، به کار گرفته شده‌اند. به کار‌بری حس‌آمیز، معنا‌دار و ایماژ‌گونه عوامل طبیعی که زنده‌تر از انسان به نظر می‌آیند، توجه کنید: «‌یک بار در روزی سرد و پر باد که رود «‌تیبر» آشفته و متلاطم با ساحل خود در خشم و خروش بود، قیصر به من گفت...» ‌، چنین بیانی در سراسر نمایشنامه برای ایجاد هیجان و تشدید انتظار حادثه، فراوان است....

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Oct 21, 2010

Prof. Mohamed Shareef rated it

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Teaching Julius Caesar

Paper presented at the Sambalpur University, Orissa,August, 2002.

Teaching Julius Caesar at the Degree level has its own unique problems which I would like to present in this short paper on English Language Teaching. The degree students of Kerala state have three papers in English—Two during the first year and a third one (i.e. Shakespeare) during the second year. Their exposure to English literature is, in fact, very limited since they study on...moreTeaching Julius Caesar

Paper presented at the Sambalpur University, Orissa,August, 2002.

Teaching Julius Caesar at the Degree level has its own unique problems which I would like to present in this short paper on English Language Teaching. The degree students of Kerala state have three papers in English—Two during the first year and a third one (i.e. Shakespeare) during the second year. Their exposure to English literature is, in fact, very limited since they study only some prose, a single play and a novel during the first year. Even during the plus-two period they were not exposed to good quality literature as school text books concentrate on grammar.
So, when you introduce Shakespeare at the Degree level for non-English major students, it is like pushing philosophy to primary school students. Students of B.Sc. Physics and Chemistry Majors can learn it easily but the problem comes with the students of Humanities who have very little competence in learning such a tough piece of literature like a Shakespearean play.
To begin with, the students are not even equipped with a proper textbook. Good editions of Shakespeare with standard proofreading and all are not available in the local shops. What they buy is a volume released by some cheap publisher who gives the whole story in vernacular at the end of the book. So even before the teacher begins his lecture, the students are equipped with too much of Roman history so that even the role of the teacher gets questioned.
Students coming from upper and middle class families usually do their schooling in the English medium convent schools. They studied everything in English during the 12 years of their schooling but still their English standard is pitiable. They have very little imagination and the complex plot of Shakespearean drama is Greek to them. The only benefit of studying in the convent school appears to be a marked improvement in handwriting.
Students coming from poor families do their schooling in the local language schools run by the government. These schools have poor furniture and dangerous buildings but the teachers are well qualified since they are recruited by the Public Service Commission. The main difference is that those who had studied in the vernacular schools of the government have developed enough imagination so as to enjoy a superb work of Shakespeare.
This is the age of pragmatism and Shakespeare is being removed from the syllabi of most universities in the English speaking world. But I don’t understand the logic of many Indian universities that insist Shakespeare for the degree course.
For English we have nine periods of 60-minute duration for the first year degree students and only five periods for the second year. Out of this three periods go for learning Shakespeare. So the teacher has to cover some twenty to thirty lines every day to finish the play by the end of the academic year.
When you teach Shakespeare to the ignorant, the fist few days are crucial. The teacher has to develop an active interest in the play; otherwise they will resort to ‘cutting’ the ‘unintelligible hour’. What is more, the university allows them to be absent in 25% of the classes.
So a rapport has to be won during the first few days so that the students are not discouraged totally. Words like ‘hath’, ‘thee’ and ‘thou’ appears to be big obstacles to these youngsters. But very soon they pick up the jargon and start enjoying Cassius and Brutus.
Certain words and usages are highly sensitive and a taboo in Kerala society where communists dominate. You cannot describe the cobbler and the carpenter as members of the lower classes. A more acceptable way is to say ‘the working classes’. Similarly the students readily reject the dictatorial tendencies of Julius Caesar as everyone wants the reign of democracy in Italy.
To conclude, Shakespeare can be made enjoyable at the degree level if the teacher remains a little flexible i.e. the backwardness of the students is to be taken into account and a few words in the vernacular will not be(less)

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Jun 03, 2010

Rowland Bismark rated it

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Julius Caesar takes place in ancient Rome in 44 B.C., when Rome was the center of an empire stretching from Britain to North Africa and from Persia to Spain. Yet even as the empire grew stronger, so, too, did the force of the dangers threatening its existence: Rome suffered from constant infighting between ambitious military leaders and the far weaker senators to whom they supposedly owed allegiance. The empire also suffered from a sharp division between citizens, who were represented in the sen...moreJulius Caesar takes place in ancient Rome in 44 B.C., when Rome was the center of an empire stretching from Britain to North Africa and from Persia to Spain. Yet even as the empire grew stronger, so, too, did the force of the dangers threatening its existence: Rome suffered from constant infighting between ambitious military leaders and the far weaker senators to whom they supposedly owed allegiance. The empire also suffered from a sharp division between citizens, who were represented in the senate, and the increasingly underrepresented plebeian masses. A succession of men aspired to become the absolute ruler of Rome, but only Julius Caesar seemed likely to achieve this status. Those citizens who favored more democratic rule feared that Caesar’s power would lead to the enslavement of Roman citizens by one of their own. Therefore, a group of conspirators came together and assassinated Caesar. The assassination, however, failed to put an end to the power struggles dividing the empire, and civil war erupted shortly thereafter. The plot of Shakespeare’s play includes the events leading up to the assassination of Caesar as well as much of the subsequent war, in which the deaths of the leading conspirators constituted a sort of revenge for the assassination.

Shakespeare’s contemporaries, well versed in ancient Greek and Roman history, would very likely have detected parallels between Julius Caesar’s portrayal of the shift from republican to imperial Rome and the Elizabethan era’s trend toward consolidated monarchal power. In 1599, when the play was first performed, Queen Elizabeth I had sat on the throne for nearly forty years, enlarging her power at the expense of the aristocracy and the House of Commons. As she was then sixty-six years old, her reign seemed likely to end soon, yet she lacked any heirs (as did Julius Caesar). Many feared that her death would plunge England into the kind of chaos that had plagued England during the fifteenth-century Wars of the Roses. In an age when censorship would have limited direct commentary on these worries, Shakespeare could nevertheless use the story of Caesar to comment on the political situation of his day.

As his chief source in writing Julius Caesar, Shakespeare probably used Thomas North’s translation of Plutarch’s Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans, written in the first century A.D. Plutarch, who believed that history was propelled by the achievements of great men, saw the role of the biographer as inseparable from the role of the historian. Shakespeare followed Plutarch’s lead by emphasizing how the actions of the leaders of Roman society, rather than class conflicts or larger political movements, determined history. However, while Shakespeare does focus on these key political figures, he does not ignore that their power rests, to some degree, on the fickle favor of the populace.

Contemporary accounts tell us that Julius Caesar, Shakespeare’s shortest play, was first performed in 1599. It was probably the first play performed in the Globe Theater, the playhouse that was erected around that time in order to accommodate Shakespeare’s increasingly successful theater company. However, the first authoritative text of the play did not appear until the 1623 First Folio edition. The elaborate stage directions suggest that this text was derived from the company’s promptbook rather than Shakespeare’s manuscript.

Julius Caesar raises many questions about the force of fate in life versus the capacity for free will. Cassius refuses to accept Caesar’s rising power and deems a belief in fate to be nothing more than a form of passivity or cowardice. He says to Brutus: “Men at sometime were masters of their fates. / The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, / But in ourselves, that we are underlings” (I.ii.140–142). Cassius urges a return to a more noble, self-possessed attitude toward life, blaming his and Brutus’s submissive stance not on a predestined plan but on their failure to assert themselves.

Ultimately, the play seems to support a philosophy in which fate and freedom maintain a delicate coexistence. Thus Caesar declares: “It seems to me most strange that men should fear, / Seeing that death, a necessary end, / Will come when it will come” (II.ii.35–37). In other words, Caesar recognizes that certain events lie beyond human control; to crouch in fear of them is to enter a paralysis equal to, if not worse than, death. It is to surrender any capacity for freedom and agency that one might actually possess. Indeed, perhaps to face death head-on, to die bravely and honorably, is Caesar’s best course: in the end, Brutus interprets his and Cassius’s defeat as the work of Caesar’s ghost—not just his apparition, but also the force of the people’s devotion to him, the strong legacy of a man who refused any fear of fate and, in his disregard of fate, seems to have transcended it.

Much of the play’s tragedy stems from the characters’ neglect of private feelings and loyalties in favor of what they believe to be the public good. Similarly, characters confuse their private selves with their public selves, hardening and dehumanizing themselves or transforming themselves into ruthless political machines. Brutus rebuffs his wife, Portia, when she pleads with him to confide in her; believing himself to be acting on the people’s will, he forges ahead with the murder of Caesar, despite their close friendship. Brutus puts aside his personal loyalties and shuns thoughts of Caesar the man, his friend; instead, he acts on what he believes to be the public’s wishes and kills Caesar the leader, the imminent dictator. Cassius can be seen as a man who has gone to the extreme in cultivating his public persona. Caesar, describing his distrust of Cassius, tells Antony that the problem with Cassius is his lack of a private life—his seeming refusal to acknowledge his own sensibilities or to nurture his own spirit. Such a man, Caesar fears, will let nothing interfere with his ambition. Indeed, Cassius lacks all sense of personal honor and shows himself to be a ruthless schemer.

Ultimately, neglecting private sentiments to follow public concerns brings Caesar to his death. Although Caesar does briefly agree to stay home from the Senate in order to please Calpurnia, who has dreamed of his murder, he gives way to ambition when Decius tells him that the senators plan to offer him the crown. -Caesar’s public self again takes precedence. Tragically, he no longer sees the difference between his omnipotent, immortal public image and his vulnerable human body. Just preceding his death, Caesar refuses Artemidorus’s pleas to speak with him, saying that he gives last priority to his most personal concerns. He thus endangers himself by believing that the strength of his public self will protect his private self.

Much of the play deals with the characters’ failures to interpret correctly the omens that they encounter. As Cicero says, “Men may construe things after their fashion, / Clean from the purpose of the things themselves” (I.iii.34–35). Thus, the night preceding Caesar’s appearance at the Senate is full of portents, but no one reads them accurately: Cassius takes them to signify the danger that Caesar’s impending coronation would bring to the state, when, if anything, they warn of the destruction that Cassius himself threatens. There are calculated misreadings as well: Cassius manipulates Brutus into joining the conspiracy by means of forged letters, knowing that Brutus’s trusting nature will cause him to accept the letters as authentic pleas from the Roman people.

The circumstances of Cassius’s death represent another instance of misinterpretation. Pindarus’s erroneous conclusion that Titinius has been captured by the enemy, when in fact Titinius has reunited with friendly forces, is the piece of misinformation that prompts Cassius to seek death. Thus, in the world of politics portrayed in Julius Caesar, the inability to read people and events leads to downfall; conversely, the ability to do so is the key to survival. With so much ambition and rivalry, the ability to gauge the public’s opinion as well as the resentment or loyalty of one’s fellow politicians can guide one to success. Antony proves masterful at recognizing his situation, and his accurate reading of the crowd’s emotions during his funeral oration for Caesar allows him to win the masses over to his side.

While one could try to analyze Calpurnia and Portia as full characters in their own right, they function primarily not as sympathetic personalities or sources of insight or poetry but rather as symbols for the private, domestic realm. Both women plead with their husbands to be more aware of their private needs and feelings (Portia in Act II, scene i; Calpurnia in Act III, scene ii). Caesar and Brutus rebuff the pleas of their respective wives, however; they not only prioritize public matters but also actively disregard their private emotions and intuitions. As such, Calpurnia and Portia are powerless figures, willing though unable to help and comfort Caesar and Brutus.(less)

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Dec 17, 2009

Georgia_W rated it

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"Beware the Ides of March". This is one of the most famous quotes in the Shakespearean drama, Julius Caesar. William Shakespeare's play, Julius Caesar, mesmerized me with its unique writing style and supernatural elements.

William Shakespeare's style of writing differs in so many ways from other authors. He writes his plays in a way that requires a deeper thinking. Some stories are more straight forward, however in the play Julius Caesar, Shakespeare turns the words around t...more

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Dec 15, 2009

Crist rated it

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Shelves: fall-2009

What really happened in the minds of the conspirators that murdered Caesar? What could have resulted from this tradgedy? Shakespeare's Julius Caesar took me back to the days of the Romans, and showed me an intersting possible story behind the actual events surrounding Julius Caesar's death.

The theme of Julius Caesar is that every action has a reaction, or consequences, and we must deal with them, weather good or bad. Throughout the play, Brutus, the main character, is constantly face...more

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Dec 13, 2009

Chris added it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics

Julius Caesar, like many other works of famous literature by Shakespeare, is one of those books that everyone has to read at one point or another. It's a play that is considered to be a classic, like most of Shakespeare's works, and was a fairly decent book. The language used by the characters and the writing style were very outdated, but this was actually a book that was a decent read. Julius Caesar by Shakespeare was better than I expected it to be and was also a fairly good book.

T...more

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Dec 11, 2009

Laureng rated it

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Shelves: fall-2009

Many people think that dramas written by William Shakespeare are dull and boring. This is not the case with Julius Caesar. I loved the historical action that Julius Caesar provided.

Julius Caesar tells the story of the demise of Julius Caesar and the consequences of his death. In an act for the common good, Marcus Brutus plots with a group of patricians to kill Caesar. They believe that with his death, a tyranny will be ended. Their plan begins to backfire when Mark Antony, a friend o...moreMany people think that dramas written by William Shakespeare are dull and boring. This is not the case with Julius Caesar. I loved the historical action that Julius Caesar provided.

Julius Caesar tells the story of the demise of Julius Caesar and the consequences of his death. In an act for the common good, Marcus Brutus plots with a group of patricians to kill Caesar. They believe that with his death, a tyranny will be ended. Their plan begins to backfire when Mark Antony, a friend of Caesar's, turns the people of Rome against them.

The main characters in this drama, such as Caesar, Brutus, and Mark Antony, are real people. They all lived way before my time, so there is no way I could know how they felt or thought. Julius Caesar provides an insight to historical events through these characters. Although Shakespeare could not have know how they felt either, it is interesting to see how he interpreted their feelings.

The setting of the drama is ancient Rome. As with the characters, ancient Rome was a real place, but it thrived before my time. I have seen pictures of ruins and drawings of what it may have looked like, but never have I been able to envision how people interacted in the city. This drama provides that look into the lives of those of ancient Rome. However, by simply reading the play, I cannot vividly see what the town looked like. The only descriptions I get are from the characters.

The style of Shakespeare is widely recognized. He usually writes in iambic pentameter. Iambic pentameter is characterized by ten syllables in each line. Since he lived in old England, he also uses old English language in Julius Caesar. Sometimes, this language can be hard to understand, but the version of the drama I read provided explanations on the side to aid in comprehension. All in all, the language Shakespeare uses adds to the overall effect of Julius Caesar.

I enjoyed reading Julius Caesar. Everyone should be required to read at least one of Shakespeare's dramas, and Julius Caesar makes a very good choice.

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Aug 22, 2009

Darcy rated it

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Shelves: classics

I had to read this book in English. It was somewhat accurate and somewhat not. William Shakespeare writes a lot of plays about real and fictional characters. What I dislike the most is how it is written in Old English. Even his revised copies are difficult to read. I can't relate to any of the characters. I don't even find this play entertaining. I hate how you have to read so much William Shakespeare. I'm not a fan of him at all. All the rhythmic makes it too confusing. I know it was for them t...more

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Jan 12, 2012

Vicki Cline rated it

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Shelves: historical-fiction

After reading Rome and Rhetoric: Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, I watched the DVD version with Marlon Brando as Mark Antony, and thought I should read the whole play. It was interesting how often Caesar refers to himself in the third person, as in his Commentaries (The Conquest of Gaul). I was struck by the number of familiar phrases in the play. Not only "Beware the Ides of March" and "Friends, Romans, Countrymen..." but also "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our star...more

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Dec 11, 2009

Nelson_h rated it

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Shelves: fall-2009, classics

Julius Caesar, written by greatest English playwright ever, William Shakespeare is a captivating drama showcasing the downfall of Julius Caesar.

The main theme of Julius Caesar is do not kill people because the deed will come back to haunt you. This theme is portrayed throughout most of the novel.

William Shakespeare's writing style is different from current writing styles but not so different from writing styles of his time. Because Shakespeare wrote plays, Julius Caesar...moreJulius Caesar, written by greatest English playwright ever, William Shakespeare is a captivating drama showcasing the downfall of Julius Caesar.

The main theme of Julius Caesar is do not kill people because the deed will come back to haunt you. This theme is portrayed throughout most of the novel.

William Shakespeare's writing style is different from current writing styles but not so different from writing styles of his time. Because Shakespeare wrote plays, Julius Caesar has no description of any setting in the drama. This is because the settings were meant to be seen on the stage in the form of backgrounds.

The characters in Julius Caesar are not really described at all, again because Shakespeare wrote plays. The characters were played by a different actor each time so describing a character would make the position harder to fill. However, their personalities come across well in the words they speak.

Julius Caesar is set in Ancient Rome. Therefore the setting and our current world are very different. The citizens of Rome eat different food, live in different types of houses, do different activities for fun, and even speak in a different way than we as a society do today. Shakespeare does not make me feel like I am in the drama because the work was a play and the settings were meant to be seen.

The plot of Julius Caesar is very interesting and easy to follow. The patricians and senators of Rome are worried about Julius Caesar becoming a tyrant. They begin to plot an assassination attempt on Caesar himself. The conspirators recruit several well known and powerful citizens to aide them in their attempt. However, the conspirators make one crucial mistake. They decide to only kill Caesar and spare his right-hand man Mark Antony. This mistake causes many problems for the conspirators and might turn into their downfall.

I would recommend this book to lovers of classic literature and Shakespeare enthusiasts. I would advise children to stay away because the book uses an older version of english that is hard to understand at times.

This book was 209 pages.(less)

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May 05, 2009

Mitchell rated it

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book club choice

This time around I was struck by a few things:

1- How much this play is about the power of rhetoric, especially rhetoric used to persuade. Cassius persuading Brutus, Antony persuading the crowd. Brutus' lack of rhetoric that indicates his guilelessness. Compare his flat-footed speech at the funeral to Antony's brilliant oration. The rhetoric defines the character.

2- This is a play of what happens after giants fall. Octavius/Antony and Cassius/B...more

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Aug 19, 2009

James rated it

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Shelves: classics, plays

Even people who haven’t read the play can recite lines from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar: “Et tu, Brute;” “I come not to praise Caesar but to bury him.” But the well-worn quotations produce a simplified sense of the plot, evoking an atmosphere of tyranny and retribution instead of the quickly shifting political landscape that makes up the drama’s core.

Shakespeare’s presentation of the political backstory is a model of economy, as he skillfully sums up the players, their alliances and ...moreEven people who haven’t read the play can recite lines from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar: “Et tu, Brute;” “I come not to praise Caesar but to bury him.” But the well-worn quotations produce a simplified sense of the plot, evoking an atmosphere of tyranny and retribution instead of the quickly shifting political landscape that makes up the drama’s core.

Shakespeare’s presentation of the political backstory is a model of economy, as he skillfully sums up the players, their alliances and their differing motivations. The nobility of Brutus is well-captured, as is the jealousy of Cassius and the fluid adaptability of Mark Antony.

But even as these iconic characters drive the action, they are also driven by the fickleness and easily kindled rage of the Roman mob. Citizens throng the streets, burn buildings and commit murder. Their allegiances flit back and forth on the basis of the latest soliloquy. To Shakespeare’s credit that these shifting loyalties never descend into deus ex machina. Instead, they seem to reflect the bloodsport of Roman politics, where leaders attempt to direct the mob even as they’re surrounded by it.

Shakespeare also adds his trademark psychological torment to the mix. As Brutus plans to strike down Caesar, he reflects:

“Between the acting of a dreadful thing and the first motion, all the interim is like a phantasma, or a hideous dream: The genius and the mortal instruments are then in council; and the state of man, like to a little kingdom, suffers then the nature of an insurrection.”

The language throughout is choice and fluid, and it’s funny that Shakespeare’s phrasings have come to define our view of Roman culture. (See how many period films have characters speaking in English accents; the HBO miniseries Rome, which we just began watching, is one of them.) Even as Shakespeare evokes the era, he remains faithful to the larger movements of history, making Julius Caesar a fine summation of its time as well as an excellent work of drama.
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Jun 13, 2011

Toby Lamarque rated it

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Shelves: read-since-joining-peace-corps

Ever so slightly disappointing. While the first three acts are absolutely terrific, full of cracking speeches and dramatic tension (the raging, fiery tempest in Acts I and II is particularly powerful), I felt the play trailed off rather badly in Acts IV and V. The conclusion lacked the emotional punch of Hamlet or King Lear, and ultimately simply wasn't that... well, tragic. The sudden conflict and equally sudden reconciliation between Brutus and Cassius in Act IV felt a little contrived, and Br...more

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Jun 30, 2010

Dan rated it

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Shelves: british-lit, kplays

This has got to be melodrama, generously globbed over (some) gorgeous poetry and (utterly) gnarly politics. While I can't even begin to understand Shakespeare's stance towards Brutus and Caesar, I can without any hesitation say, fuck mobs. Also, it's obvious, isn't it: Caesar's greatest strength was making everyone think if he fell, Rome fell. Holy shit. Note well, however, this play is not about that process; nor about how Caesar and Brutus came into their relationship, though the rumour was, b...more

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Jun 03, 2009

Eleanor rated it

· review of another edition

Hell yes I love Shakespeare. This Folger edition is pretty snazzy too, the intro chapters about word omissions, sentence structures, and old colloquialisms helps me sail through this stuff. Plus they assume you're awesome and don't need reiterations of footnotes, so they keep them to a minimum.

Reading Shakespeare is always like drinking honey that is also alcohol that is also clean gasoline for your brain and heart. I want to devour it as slowly as possible.

*******...more

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Dec 13, 2009

Natasha rated it

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Shelves: second-nine-weeks

Julius Caesar, penned by English playwright William Shakespeare, hooked my attention and presented a controversial issue in a different way.

When this play was handed out to my English class, I was a bit wary because I didn't think it would be good at all. We started reading, and to my surprise, I actually liked it. Though in my opinion Romeo and Juliet was better, I still enjoyed Julius Caesar, and part of that was probably because it was easier to understand than Romeo and Juliet wa...moreJulius Caesar, penned by English playwright William Shakespeare, hooked my attention and presented a controversial issue in a different way.

When this play was handed out to my English class, I was a bit wary because I didn't think it would be good at all. We started reading, and to my surprise, I actually liked it. Though in my opinion Romeo and Juliet was better, I still enjoyed Julius Caesar, and part of that was probably because it was easier to understand than Romeo and Juliet was.

The main characters of the play such as Caesar, Antony, and Brutus were actual people. The reason that I liked this play could have very possibly been because the story involves real people and actual historical events. It was really cool to see how Shakespeare interpreted these events and to see how he thought the characters would have reacted in certain situations.

The tragedy of Julius Caesar tells the story of the murder of Julius Caesar and the repercussions that his killers faced after his death. Marcus Brutus, along with a group of patricians, plotted to kill Caesar. Though most of the group aided only because of their jealousy, Brutus helped because he feared that Caesar would claim absolute power and become a tyrant. Their plan, which at the time seemed brilliant, ended up hurting them because Mark Antony, who dearly loved Caesar, turned the people of Rome against Brutus and civil war was brought upon the empire.

A theme of the play was that all acts bring about consequences and if you are prepared to commit the act, you better be prepared to deal with the consequences. After the conspirators kill Caesar, Antony turns many of the Romans against the conspirators and war breaks out.

I generally like Shakespeare's style and way of writing. He usually writes in poetry using iambic pentameter. Iambic pentameter can be recognized by ten syllables in each line, usually with every other syllable being stressed. In his plays, a lot of older language is used because of the time he grew up in. Because people in today's era aren't used to this way of writing, it can sometimes be very difficult to understand, but I think that the language aided to the historical aspect of Julius Caesar.

Though some of the play didn't interest me, all in all I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys plays or an unusual read.

209 pages(less)

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Nov 16, 2011

matt rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: theatrepieces, social-crit, political-badassery

Re-reading it for a class I'm taking, I was surprised to see that it's not the hoary, near-cliched, armchair statesman-like story I'd snored through in high school.

It's actually a taut, crackling, suspenseful political thriller which is more compelling, dire, complex, and profound than I'd originally noticed.

It's about revolution, revolutionaries, and the price one pays for irrigating the tree of liberty with the blood of tyrants. You get the restless, brittle, i...more
Re-reading it for a class I'm taking, I was surprised to see that it's not the hoary, near-cliched, armchair statesman-like story I'd snored through in high school.

It's actually a taut, crackling, suspenseful political thriller which is more compelling, dire, complex, and profound than I'd originally noticed.

It's about revolution, revolutionaries, and the price one pays for irrigating the tree of liberty with the blood of tyrants. You get the restless, brittle, inferiority complex of Cassius, he of the "lean and hungry look"- sort of a cross between maybe Lenin and one of the lesser lights in Dostoevsky's possessed "Demons"; you get the stoic (not with a capital "S"), noble, rational, idealistic, practical, pragmatic, steady-as-she-goes Brutus, whose integrity and manly fortitude is challenged not only by his co-conspirators but his family and employees, and- ultimately- himself; you get pompous, regal Ceaser who doesn't know when to call it in on the Ides of March; brutal, charismatic, eloquent Marc Antony, who cleans house like nobody's buisness.

It's not with a smile that I remark that Julius Ceasar seems to be one of those texts which seems to evidence that modern revolutions eat their young, but I was struck by how the drama of ideas, of breakable characters, plays out so vividly here. One of the spuerficial lessons we might learn is that if you are going to do violence in the name of liberty, patriotism or Reason itself you must make sure you have your emotional, physical, and ideological ducks in a row. Too often the grand sweep of incisive engagement means that the goal is ultiamtely won, success is at hand, but the fallout means sectarianism, opportunism, clashing egos turning to clashing swords turning to mingled pools of blood and friend's corpses littering the smoking ground.

I don't think J.C is ultimately a reactionary text at all- it's quite interesting and important to see that evne though Brutus' forces are thwarted on the battlefield, and he's met a sad death by his own hand, hoisted on the petard as it were, the finale is one of legitimate grievance (from Octavius and Antony, his fresh enemies, no less!) for one who (in his way) loved not wisely but too well....(less)

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About William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "The Bard"). His surviving works consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. Hi...moreWilliam Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "The Bard"). His surviving works consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language, and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon. At the age of 18 he married Anne Hathaway, who bore him three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith. Between 1585 and 1592 he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part owner of the playing company the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men. He appears to have retired to Stratford around 1613, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive, and there has been considerable speculation about such matters as his sexuality, religious beliefs, and whether the works attributed to him were written by others.

Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1590 and 1613. His early plays were mainly comedies and histories, genres he raised to the peak of sophistication and artistry by the end of the sixteenth century. Next he wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608, including Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth, considered some of the finest examples in the English language. In his last phase, he wrote tragicomedies, also known as romances, and collaborated with other playwrights. Many of his plays were published in editions of varying quality and accuracy during his lifetime, and in 1623, two of his former theatrical colleagues published the First Folio, a collected edition of his dramatic works that included all but two of the plays now recognised as Shakespeare's.

Shakespeare was a respected poet and playwright in his own day, but his reputation did not rise to its present heights until the nineteenth century. The Romantics, in particular, acclaimed Shakespeare's genius, and the Victorians hero-worshipped Shakespeare with a reverence that George Bernard Shaw called "bardolatry". In the twentieth century, his work was repeatedly adopted and rediscovered by new movements in scholarship and performance. His plays remain highly popular today and are consistently performed and reinterpreted in diverse cultural and political contexts throughout the world.
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Quotes from Julius Caesar

“Cowards die many times before their deaths;
The valiant never taste of death but once.
Of all the wonders that I yet have heard,
It seems to me most strange that men should fear;
Seeing that death, a necessary end,
Will come when it will come.” — 1,429 people liked it

“Et tu, Brute?” — 129 people liked it

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