Julius Caesar Character Analysis

Words: 836
Pages: 4

In Julius Caesar Shakespeare shows how being the one in power cannot always be the safest place for a person. Caesar has returned from a long expedition of war, but with his victorious return comes fear for some of the citizens of Rome. Caesar now stands alone from the triumvirate and there is a lot of talk that he will be crowned king. Caesar being crowned would go against all the traditions of the Roman Republic of having no singular monarch, but with Caesar’s reputation and popularity there is a stronger chance he could be the ruler Rome may need but never wanted. Cassius, one of the many citizens unwilling to accept Caesar as king, fears Caesar's ambition as a ruler and thinks something needs to be done about him. Shakespeare presents …show more content…
Knowing this Shakespeare has Cassius use Casca’s awe of the gods to his advantage by interpreting a storm that had struck Rome. Cassius tells Casca that the storm must be a sign of the gods that something bad has happened or is going to happen very soon. The only explanation could be Caesar potentially becoming the singular ruler of Rome. Casca instantly believes what Cassius is telling him to be the truth. Cassius even goes further to say that the storm is telling them that the only way to end stop the wrath of the gods is to take Caesar’s life. Cassius is able to manipulate another person to his cause simply by understanding what he fears. Shakespeare wants us to see the power Cassius possesses with his power to persuade and how he is probably even more dangerous than …show more content…
All the conspirators were to be killed which is valid, but because no one knew exactly who everyone was, innocent lives were killed just because they had the same name as a conspirator. Cassius is a prime example of how the powers of emotion, like fear and jealousy, can cause anyone to act rashly. By Cassius acting on these emotions he hurt everyone around him all by hiding behind the many other conspirators he convinced to do what only he really thought was needed. Shakespeare is able to create Cassius as a man who listened only to emotion and ruined the entire of his beloved city by killing the only person who could hold it