The Tragedy of Julius Caesar(First Folio title:The Tragedie of Ivlivs Cæsar), often shortened toJulius Caesar, is a historicaltragedy byWilliam Shakespeare, believed to have been written and first performed in 1599. The play portrays the political conspiracy that led to the assassination of the Roman dictatorJulius Caesar and Rome's subsequent civil war. Drawing primarily (with deviations in various aspects) from SirThomas North's 1579 translation ofParallel Lives byPlutarch, Shakespeare presents a dramatised account of Caesar's growing power, his murder by a group of senators led byCassius andBrutus, and the defeat of the conspirators by the forces ofMark Antony andOctavius at theBattle of Philippi.
Although named after Caesar, the play focuses largely on Brutus, whose moral and political dilemmas have often led critics to regard him as its tragic hero. Central themes include the tension between personal loyalty and public duty, the use of rhetoric in politics, and the fragility of republican governance in the face of ambition and power.Julius Caesar was among the first plays performed at theGlobe Theatre and has remained one of Shakespeare’s most frequently staged works. It has been adapted in numerous forms and interpreted in diverse political contexts, reflecting concerns from Elizabethan debates on succession to modern discussions of dictatorship and democracy. The play is widely studied for its exploration of character, persuasion, and political morality, and it continues to influence literature, theater, and political discourse.
The play opens with twotribunesFlavius andMarullus (appointed leaders/officials of Rome) discovering thecommoners of Rome celebratingJulius Caesar'striumphant return fromdefeating the sons of his military rival,Pompey. The tribunes, insulting the crowd for their change in loyalty from Pompey to Caesar, attempt to end the festivities and break up the commoners, who return the insults. During thefeast of Lupercal, Caesar holds a victory parade and asoothsayer warns him to "Bewarethe ides of March," which he ignores. Meanwhile,Cassius attempts to convinceBrutus to join hisconspiracy to kill Caesar. Although Brutus, friendly towards Caesar, is hesitant to kill him, he agrees that Caesar may be abusing his power. They then hear fromCasca thatMark Antony has offered Caesar the crown of Rome three times. Casca tells them that each time Caesar refused it with increasing reluctance, hoping that the crowd watching would insist that he accept the crown. He describes how the crowd applauded Caesar for denying the crown, and how this upset Caesar. On the eve of the ides of March, the conspirators meet and reveal that they have forged letters of support from the Roman people to tempt Brutus into joining. Brutus reads the letters and, after much moral debate, decides to join the conspiracy, thinking that Caesar should be killed toprevent him from doing anything against the people of Rome if he were ever to be crowned.
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After ignoring the soothsayer, as well as his wifeCalpurnia's own premonitions, Caesar goes to the Senate. The conspirators approach him with a fake petition pleading on behalf ofMetellus Cimber's banished brother. As Caesar predictably rejects the petition, Casca and the others suddenly stab him; Brutus is last. At this, Caesar asks "Et tu, Brute?"[1] ("You too, Brutus?"), concluding with "Then fall, Caesar!"
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The conspirators attempt to demonstrate that they killed Caesar for the good of Rome, to prevent an autocrat. They prove this by not attempting to flee the scene. Brutus delivers an oration defending his actions, and for the moment, the crowd is on his side. However, Antony makes a subtle and eloquent speech over Caesar's corpse, beginning "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!"[2] He deftly turnspublic opinion against the assassins by manipulating the emotions of thecommon people, in contrast to the rational tone of Brutus's speech, yet there is a method in his rhetorical speech and gestures. Antony reminds the crowd of the good Caesar had done for Rome, his sympathy with the poor, and his refusal of the crown at the Lupercal, thus questioning Brutus's claim of Caesar's ambition; he shows Caesar's bloody, lifeless body to the crowd to have them shed tears and gain sympathy for their fallen hero; and he reads Caesar's will, in which every Roman citizen would receive 75drachmas. Antony, even as he states his intentions against it, rouses the mob to drive the conspirators from Rome. The mob takes Caesar's body to the Forum, lights his funeral pyre, and uses the pyre to light up torches for burning down the homes of the conspirators. Amid the violence, an innocent poet,Cinna, is confused with the conspiratorLucius Cinna and is taken by the mob, which kills him for such "offences" as his bad verses.
Brutus then attacks Cassius for supposedly soiling the noble act ofregicide by having accepted bribes. ("Did not great Julius bleed for justice' sake? / What villain touched his body, that did stab, / And not for justice?"[3]) The two are reconciled, especially after Brutus reveals that hisbeloved wife committed suicide under the stress of his absence from Rome; they prepare for acivil war against Antony, Caesar's adopted sonOctavius, andLepidus who have formed a triumvirate in Rome. That night, Caesar's ghost appears to Brutus with a warning of defeat. (He informs Brutus, "Thou shalt see me at Philippi."[4])
At theBattle of Philippi, Cassius and Brutus, knowing that they will probably both die, smile their last smiles to each other and hold hands. During the battle, Cassius has his servant kill him after hearing of the capture of his best friend,Titinius. After Titinius, who was not captured, sees Cassius's corpse, he commits suicide. However, Brutus wins that stage of the battle, but his victory is not conclusive. With a heavy heart, Brutus battles again the next day. He asks his friends to kill him, but the friends refuse. He loses and commits suicide by running on his sword, held for him by a loyal soldier.
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The play ends with a tribute to Brutus by Antony, who proclaims that Brutus has remained "the noblest Roman of them all"[5] because he was the only conspirator who acted, in his mind, for the good of Rome. There is then a small hint at the friction between Antony and Octavius which characterizes another of Shakespeare's Roman plays,Antony and Cleopatra.
Triumvirs after Caesar's death
Conspirators against Caesar
Tribunes
Roman Senate Senators
Citizens
Loyal to Brutus and Cassius
Other
The main source of the play isThomas North's translation ofPlutarch'sLives.[7][8]
Shakespeare deviated from these historical facts to curtail time and compress the facts so that the play could be staged more easily. The tragic force is condensed into a few scenes for heightened effect.
Julius Caesar was originally published in theFirst Folio of 1623, but a performance was mentioned byThomas Platter the Younger in his diary in September 1599. The play is not mentioned in the list of Shakespeare's plays published byFrancis Meres in 1598. Based on these two points, as well as several contemporary allusions, and the belief that the play is similar toHamlet in vocabulary, and toHenry V andAs You Like It in metre,[12] scholars have suggested 1599 as a probable date.[13]
The text ofJulius Caesar in the First Folio is the onlyauthoritative text for the play. The Folio text is notable for its quality and consistency; scholars judge it to have been set into type from a theatrical prompt-book.[14]
The play contains manyanachronistic elements from theElizabethan era. The characters mention objects such asdoublets (large, heavy jackets) – which did not exist in ancient Rome. Caesar is mentioned to be wearing an Elizabethan doublet instead of a Roman toga. At one point a clock is heard to strike and Brutus notes it with "Count the clock".
Julius Caesar was written around 1599, during the reign ofElizabeth I, a period marked by political uncertainty regarding the succession to the English throne. Although England was at peace, Elizabeth had refused to name her successor, which raised concerns about potential instability, rebellion, or the possibility of a civil war similar to that of Rome unfolding after her death. Maria Wyke has written that the play reflects this general anxiety over the royal succession.[15] Shakespeare’s dramatisation of Caesar’s assassination and the subsequent civil war would have resonated with Elizabethan audiences aware of these anxieties.
Critics of Shakespeare's playJulius Caesar differ greatly in their views of Caesar and Brutus. Many[who?] have debated whether Caesar or Brutus is the protagonist of the play. Intertwined in this debate is a smattering of philosophical and psychological ideologies onrepublicanism andmonarchism. One author, Robert C. Reynolds, devotes attention to the names or epithets given to both Brutus and Caesar in his essay "Ironic Epithet inJulius Caesar". He points out that Casca praises Brutus at face value, but then inadvertently compares him to a disreputable joke of a man by calling him analchemist, "Oh, he sits high in all the people's hearts,/And that which would appear offense in us/ His countenance, like richest alchemy,/ Will change to virtue and worthiness" (I.iii.158–160). Reynolds also talks about Caesar and his "Colossus" epithet, which he points out has obvious connotations of power and manliness, but also lesser-known connotations of an outward glorious front and inward chaos.[16]
Myron Taylor, in his essay "Shakespeare'sJulius Caesar and the Irony of History", compares the logic and philosophies of Caesar and Brutus. Caesar is deemed an intuitive philosopher who is always right when he goes with his instinct; for instance, when he says he fears Cassius as a threat to him before he is killed, his intuition is correct. Brutus is portrayed as a man similar to Caesar, but whose passions lead him to the wrong reasoning, which he realizes in the end when he says in V.v.50–51, "Caesar, now be still:/ I killed not thee with half so good a will".[17]
Joseph W. Houppert acknowledges that some critics have tried to cast Caesar as the protagonist, but that ultimately Brutus is the driving force in the play and is, therefore, the tragic hero. Brutus attempts to put the republic over his relationship with Caesar and kills him. Brutus makes the political mistakes that bring down the republic that his ancestors created. He acts on his passions, does not gather enough evidence to make reasonable decisions, and is manipulated by Cassius and the other conspirators.[18]
Traditional readings of the play may maintain that Cassius and the other conspirators are motivated largely byenvy and ambition, whereas Brutus is motivated by the demands ofhonor andpatriotism. Certainly, this is the view that Antony expresses in the final scene. But one of the central strengths of the play is that it resists categorising its characters as either simple heroes or villains. Thepolitical journalist and classicistGarry Wills maintains that "This play is distinctive because it has no villains".[19]
It is a drama famous for the difficulty of deciding which role to emphasise. The characters rotate around each other like the plates of aCalder mobile. Touch one and it affects the position of all the others. Raise one, and another sinks. But they keep coming back into a precarious balance.[20]
The play was probably one of Shakespeare's first to be performed at theGlobe Theatre.[21]Thomas Platter the Younger, aSwiss traveler, saw a tragedy aboutJulius Caesar at aBankside theatre on 21 September 1599, and this was most likely Shakespeare's play, as there is no obvious alternative candidate. (While the story of Julius Caesar was dramatized repeatedly in the Elizabethan/Jacobean period, none of the other plays known is as good a match with Platter's description as Shakespeare's play.)[22]
After the theatres re-opened at the start of theRestoration era, the play was revived byThomas Killigrew'sKing's Company in 1672.Charles Hart initially played Brutus, as didThomas Betterton in later productions.Julius Caesar was one of the very few Shakespeare plays that was not adapted during the Restoration period or the eighteenth century.[23]
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One of the earliest cultural references to the play came in Shakespeare's ownHamlet.Prince Hamlet asksPolonius about his career as a thespian at university, and Polonius replies: "I did enact Julius Caesar. I was killed in the Capitol. Brutus killed me." This is a likelymeta-reference, asRichard Burbage is generally accepted to have played leading men Brutus and Hamlet, and the olderJohn Heminges to have played Caesar and Polonius.
In 1851, the German composerRobert Schumann wrote aconcert overtureJulius Caesar, inspired by Shakespeare's play. Other musical settings include those byGiovanni Bononcini,Hans von Bülow,Felix Draeseke,Josef Bohuslav Foerster,John Ireland,John Foulds,Gian Francesco Malipiero,Manfred Gurlitt,Darius Milhaud, andMario Castelnuovo-Tedesco.[32]
The Canadian comedy duoWayne and Shuster parodiedJulius Caesar in their 1958 sketchRinse the Blood off My Toga. Flavius Maximus, Private Roman Eye, is hired by Brutus to investigate the death of Caesar. The police procedural combines Shakespeare,Dragnet, and vaudeville jokes and was first broadcast onThe Ed Sullivan Show.[33]
In 1984, theRiverside Shakespeare Company of New York City produced a modern dressJulius Caesar set in contemporary Washington, called simplyCAESAR!, starringHarold Scott as Brutus, Herman Petras as Caesar, Marya Lowry as Portia, Robert Walsh as Antony, and Michael Cook as Cassius, directed by W. Stuart McDowell atThe Shakespeare Center.[34]
In 2006,Chris Taylor from the Australian comedy teamThe Chaser wrote a comedy musical calledDead Caesar which was shown at the Sydney Theatre Company in Sydney.[35]
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The line "The Evil That Men Do", from the speech made by Mark Antony following Caesar's death ("The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones.") has had many references in media, including the titles of:
The 2008 movieMe and Orson Welles, based on a book of the same name byRobert Kaplow, is a fictional story centered aroundOrson Welles' famous 1937 production ofJulius Caesar at theMercury Theatre. British actorChristian McKay is cast as Welles, and co-stars withZac Efron andClaire Danes.
The 2012 Italiandrama filmCaesar Must Die (Italian:Cesare deve morire), directed byPaolo and Vittorio Taviani, follows convicts in their rehearsals ahead of a prison performance ofJulius Caesar.
In theRay Bradbury bookFahrenheit 451, some of the character Beatty's last words are "There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats, for I am armed so strong in honesty that they pass me as an idle wind, which I respect not!"
The play's line "the fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves", spoken by Cassius in Act I, scene 2, is often referenced in popular culture. The line gave its name to theJ.M. Barrie playDear Brutus, and also gave its name to the best-selling young adult novelThe Fault in Our Stars byJohn Green and itsfilm adaptation. The same line was quoted inEdward R. Murrow's epilogue of his famous 1954See It Now documentary broadcast concerning SenatorJoseph R. McCarthy. This speech and the line were recreated in the 2005 filmGood Night, and Good Luck. It was also quoted byGeorge Clooney's character in theCoen brothers filmIntolerable Cruelty.
The line "And therefore think him as a serpent's egg / Which hatched, would, as his kind grow mischievous; And kill him in the shell" spoken by Brutus in Act II, Scene 1, is referenced in theDead Kennedys song "California über alles".
The title ofAgatha Christie's novelTaken at the Flood, titledThere Is a Tide in its American edition, refers to an iconic line of Brutus: "There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune." (Act IV, Scene III).
The line "There is a tide in the affairs of men, which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune. Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries. On such a full sea are we now afloat. And we must take the current when it serves, or lose our ventures" is recited byJean-Luc Picard at the end of theStar Trek: Picard series finale, "The Last Generation." The play was previously discussed in a conversation betweenJulian Bashir andElim Garak in theStar Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Improbable Cause".
Julius Caesar has beenadapted to a number of film productions, including:
Modern adaptions of the play have often made contemporary political references,[48] with Caesar depicted as resembling a variety of political leaders, includingHuey Long,Margaret Thatcher, andTony Blair,[49] as well asFidel Castro andOliver North.[50][51] ScholarA. J. Hartley stated that this is a fairly "common trope" ofJulius Caesar performances: "Throughout the 20th century and into the 21st, the rule has been to create a recognizable political world within the production. And often people in the title role itself look like or feel like somebody either in recent or current politics."[49] A 2012 production ofJulius Caesar by theGuthrie Theater andThe Acting Company "presented Caesar in the guise of a black actor who was meant to suggestPresident Obama."[48] This production was not particularly controversial.[48]
In 2017, however, a modern adaptation of the play atNew York's Shakespeare in the Park (performed byThe Public Theater) depicted Caesar with the likeness of then-presidentDonald Trump and thereby aroused ferocious controversy, drawing criticism by media outlets such asThe Daily Caller andBreitbart and prompting corporate sponsorsBank of America andDelta Air Lines to pull their financial support.[48][52][53][54] The Public Theater stated that the message of the play is not pro-assassination and that the point is that "those who attempt to defend democracy by undemocratic means pay a terrible price and destroy the very thing they are fighting to save." Shakespeare scholarsStephen Greenblatt[55] and Peter Holland agreed with this statement.[49] Pallotta stated that "I have never read anyone suggesting that 'Julius Caesar' is a play that recommends assassination. Look what happens: Caesar is assassinated to stop him from becoming a dictator. Result: civil war, massive slaughter, creation of an emperor, execution of many who sympathized with the conspiracy. Doesn't look much like a successful result for the conspirators to me."[49] The play was interrupted several times byright-wing protesters, who accused the play of "violence against the right", and actors and members of theatres with Shakespeare in the name were harassed and receiveddeath threats, including the wife of the play's directorOskar Eustis.[56][57][58][59] The protests were praised byAmerican Family Association director Sandy Rios who compared the play with theexecution of Christians by damnatio ad bestias.[60]
The 2018Bridge Theatre production also incorporates modern political imagery. The commoners in the first scene sing modern punk music and Caesar distributes red hats to the audience that are remarkably similar toDonald Trump's campaign merchandise.[61] The conspirators also use modern firearms during the assassination and theBattle of Phillipi.[61]
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