Julius Caesar - Tragic Hero Essay - 1028 Words

Julius Caesar as a Tragic Hero amp;#9;Julius Caesar is a play written by William Shakespeare during the year 1597. Julius Caesar’s story involves a conspiracy against Julius Caesar, a powerful senator. The play involves a highly respected senator, Brutus, who decides to join the conspiracy to kill Julius Caesar, in the effort to keep democracy intact. Brutus believes that if Julius Caesar is allowed to live, Caesar will take a kingship and turn the government into a monarchy. Brutus, Cassius, and the other conspirators kill Julius Caesar, yet they find Antony, a loyalist of Caesar, seeks revenge on them. Plato set out rules on the traits a tragic hero must possess. A tragic hero must neither be an evil villain nor a great hero,†¦show more content†¦Caesar’s pride is shown by his response, amp;quot;Caesar. †¦Danger knows full well that Caesar is more dangerous than he. We are two lions littered in one day, And I the elder and more terrible, And Caesar shall go forth.amp;quot;(2,2,44-47) Caesar shows that his pride overrules any advice given by others. If not for Julius Caesar’s pride, he may have avoided the assassination and had more time for the conspir acy to be uncovered. This clearly shows that Caesar’s pride is a hamartia that leads to his downfall. amp;#9;Julius Caesar vacillates, or changes, his mind throughout the play and this downfall is shown to be one of Caesar’s hamartias. On the day Caesar is to go to the Capitol, he changes his decisions frequently. Caesar defies the warnings of Calpurnia and the priests and Caesar says that she, Caesar, shall go forth to the Capitol this day. amp;quot;Caesar. Caesar shall forth. The things that threatened me Ne’er looked but on my back. When they shall see The face of Caesar, they are vanished.amp;quot; Through this quotation, it seems Caesar has made his mind to go forth to the Capitol. Calpurnia, though, is able to persuade him to stay home and send word that he is sick. Caesar replies, amp;quot;Caesar. Mark Antony shall say I am not well, And for thy humour I will stay at home.amp;quot;(2,2,55-56) Decius then flatters Caesar and is able to persuade him that Calpurnia’s nightmare is misinterpreted and that heShow MoreRelatedJulius Caesar : A Tragic Hero934 Words   |  4 PagesJulius Caesar is a work of art by William Shakespeare in 1599. Within this play Julius Caesar is portrayed as a tragic hero. A tragic hero is defined as â€Å"the main character of a tragedy [who is] usually dignified, courageous, and high ranking† (novel study guide). Also vital to defining a tragic hero is that, â€Å"the hero’s downfall is caused by a tragic flaw† ( novel study guide). 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