Deception and Manipulation William Shakespeare’s play “Julius Caesar” illustrates many facts and characteristics of Ancient Rome, such as betrayal and confederacy. However, deception and manipulation are the most significant aspects of the play and played a huge role in the story, which eventually lead to the death of Julius Caesar. Examples of deception and manipulation in this play are the fake letters that sent to Brutus, Decius assured Caesar about Calpurnia’s dream, and Anthony’s speech against Brutus. One of the most significant deceptions in the play is when Cassius sent fake letters to Brutus to convince him to join the conspiracy. Cassius addressed the letters to make it seem that they were coming from the citizens. To begin, Cassius …show more content…
Calpurnia told Caesar that he was in danger and not to go to the senate. Decius then told Caesar that: “this dream is all amiss interpreted. It was a vision fair and fortunate. Your statue spouting blood in many pipes signifies that from you great Rome shall suck reviving blood, and that great men shall press for tinctures, stains, relics, and cognizance.”(II, sc. 2, 87-88). This consummate deceit is indispensable to the play, because it convinces Caesar to come to the place where his murder took place. Decius interpreted the blood as “reviving blood,” this means the great Roman will learn the resurrection of new blood from his body, which represents the power and strength that people believed in Julius Caesar, thus making Caesar believes that Calpurnia’s dream was nonsense and foolish. Because of the fact that Caesar is overly ambitious, easily flattered, and he wants the crown so badly, he went to the senate and was killed by his conspirators. Without deception, Caesar’s death could’ve easily been averted. However, not just the conspirators, Anthony also used manipulation to achieve his
By telling this story, Cassius makes a contrast between the towering, all-powerful figure Caesar claims himself to be and the reality: he is a mortal man with physical handicaps and sickness. By pointing out that he was stronger than Caesar, and yet has to worship him like a god, Cassius points out the unfairness by which Caesar came to power. and exposes the foolishness in Caesar's claims. By using pathos, Cassius also appeals to Brutus' dislike for a monarchy by pointing out that no man, especially Caesar, should have the power to rule all of Rome. Cassius expands on this point by telling another story about a time when Caesar was sick in bed, saying, "I did hear him groan.
Derry Pinkston mrs. Tamayo American Literature 2/28/2017 More Power than weapons! People use emotions and logical manipulation: which allows manipulators to use words as weapons.
After Cassius presents the idea of murdering Caesar to Brutus, he begins to take his manipulation a step further by sending Brutus forged letters from other senators. The letters leave Brutus to believe other senators
Most of this play centers around the conspirators in the plot to assassinate Julius Caesar, and the main conspirator was Cassius. During the first half of the play Cassius’ main goal was to convince Brutus to betray his best friend Caesar and join the conspiracy. Cassius’ best skill in speaking skill was manipulation; in order to get Brutus on his side Cassius lies and manipulates Brutus by telling stories about Caesars weaknesses and praising Brutus on his honor. Cassius boosts Brutus’ on many occasions, starting his story about Caesar stating, “I know that virtue to be in you, Brutus,/ As well as I do know your outward favor./ Well, honor is the subject of my story” (1.2.92-94).
Corruption is defined as dishonest or illegal behavior, especially by powerful people, and just like its definition, corruption and power go hand in hand. The more power a person has, generally, the easier it is for them to be corrupted. Just like in Julius Caesar where power and corruption are very prevalent, and most of the leaders in Julius Caesar became corrupted by their power, but in some rare cases leaders have avoided corruption, these people are very valuable in society, and must not be taken for granted. Just like many other leaders in Julius Caesar, Caesar was corrupted by his power. He wasn’t corrupt in the normal sense, he was socially corrupt in the fact that he didn’t stick to the social norms of respecting fellow senators in
Deception is an essential element in any tragedy. Its' affects on the lives of the characters could be destructive or benign. In William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark deceit proves to be the very foundation of the play. Shakespeare builds on this idea of deceit between the characters, from the very beginning. The deceit that is practiced is imposed on others as well as self inflicted ultimately leading to a tragic ending.
Unfortunately, Cassius uses Brutus’ altruistic characteristic and devout loyalty against him by sending fake letters with concerns regarding the crowning of Caesar for Brutus to read and be persuaded to join the conspirators. Cassius’ manipulation of Brutus serves as an example of how Shakespeare
In William Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, Marc Antony appears to be a strong advocate for Julius Caesar’s triumphs and increasing power. However, like Caesar, Antony is extremely manipulative and powerful. After Caesar’s death, Antony manipulated the conspirators into believing he was on their side before requesting to speak at Caesar’s funeral. While Brutus and the conspirators remained fooled by Antony’s innocence, Antony took the initiative to inform the Roman citizens of the conspirator’s horrendous actions towards their beloved leader, Julius Caesar. Caesar’s funeral was a time of reflection for the citizens of Rome, as Marc Antony caused them to question their allegiance to Brutus.
Is it justified to kill someone because they have gained too much power and are going to use it for the worse? Brutus has a very bad circumstance on his hands, he can kill Caesar and possibly be executed for his actions or he can let Caesar become king and watch Rome fall. There are many reasons why Brutus should and should not join the conspiracy. Brutus says, “I know no personal reason to spurn at him But for the general.” (II,i,11).
Cassius wants Brutus to think that if Throughout the play Julius Caesar, written by William shakespeare, Cassius uses manipulation to form his group of conspirators and make them perform his biddings. Most importantly, Cassius turns Brutus, one of Caesar’s greatest friends, to his side through various creative tactics. Body 1: During the Feast of Lupercal, Cassius pulls Brutus aside to begin his manipulative plan. Cassius explains to Brutus that “Men are sometimes masters of their fates”. They have the potential to change their future.
Cassius influenced Brutus to conspire against Caesar by stating, Caesar “is now become a god… and his name has been sounded more than [Brutus’s]” (Act 1, Scene 2, Line 118-145-6). Cassius’s arguments convinced Brutus in proving Caesar's murder would be just, but Caesar’s death is unjust because he is being murdered out of Brutus and Cassius’s jealousy. Both of the individuals are envious of the power that Caesar is being given by the people of Rome and want to end his life before they will lose their own power in the senate after Caesar becomes king. Brutus’ naive mind was easily convinced by Cassius that Caesar was not the best choice to assume the Roman throne because he would not listen to their political thoughts.
The scene plays out with the conspirators kneeling at the feet of Caesar and flattered him, so he would get closer to his murderers. In the story Shakespeare writes” Cinna-(kneeling) oh, Caesar. Caesar-Enough! Would you try to lift Mount Olympus? Decius-
Julius Caesar Essay Betrayal can be defined as breaking the bond of trust in any type of relationship, and deceiving others. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, betrayal can be seen throughout the play, done to and by many of the characters. Many of the reasons why betrayal is shown in the play are all for a similar reasons- Ambition / greed. The theme of Julius Caesar is that people betray others because of ambition and greed.
The play begins with Julius Caesar returning from a victory over Pompey to a cheering crowd of Romans. He is an ambitious leader who wants Rome to prosper and looks out for his countrymen over himself, though he has his own, darker, flaws. This selflessness is explicitly demonstrated by him saying “What touches us shall be last served” (III.I.9) when he is told to deal with a letter because it most directly related to him. His goal is to further Rome and gain the approval of his people, which he does very well.
The true nature of Julius Caesar has always been a topic of great debate. The painting called Caesar Victorious and Shakespeare's representation of Caesar represent two different points of view when talking about Caesar. One image sees Caesar as pure and above all and the other sees Caesar as hungry for power and desperate for any social mobility. Shakespeare clearly portrays Caesar as hungry for power. When offered the crown to become the leader, Caesar refused it without hesitation.