The Power Of Words In Julius Caesar

993 Words4 Pages

Do you know the saying “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me?” This wildly popular saying, simply put, means that while physical attacks may injure me, words can’t ever cause me physical harm. This may be true, but how powerful can our words be? There are many points in the play Julius Caesar, as well as in real life, that go to show that words can truly be impactful. Because of this, they can be used in a good way or a bad way. Words are more powerful than weapons because they can be very influential, it can be easy to twist the truth, and they can cause really strong emotions in people. First, words can be very influential. In the play Julius Caesar, a perfect example of this is when Cassius is talking to Casca …show more content…

This is something that weapons can’t necessarily do. Weapons cause minimal emotions like fear, and sometimes anger. Words, however, can touch so many more emotions like joy, sadness, confusion, fear, disappointment, hopefulness. In the play Julius Caesar, a good example of this is when Cassius and Brutus are fighting near the end. “You wronged yourself to write in such a case.”(4.3.6) At this point, Brutus is calling Cassius dishonorable for thinking that they should let bribery slide. This argument was sparked from a previous issue they had. After Brutus called Cassius dishonorable, Cassius and Brutus continued to argue. Brutus told Cassius “Go to! You are not, Cassius.”(4.3.35) Basically, he was asking to leave because they were both saying disrespectful things about one another. By the end of the argument, Cassius pulled out a knife and stated that Brutus killed Caesar out of love, and that Cassius is not receiving love from Brutus right now, basically suggesting murder. This snapped them both into reality, and they understood that they were being dramatic and that what they were saying was absurd and they should calm down a resolve their issues. This shows us two great things. First, words can escalate situations very quickly if they are used in a way that is intended to hurt others. Secondly, simply by using our words in a more respectful manner, we can solve those same issues. This provides two really great examples of the power that words can have, whether positive or

Open Document