The Virtue Of Brutus In Shakespeare's Julius Caesar

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In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Brutus is delivering a monologue intended for Mark Antony. There are many purposes of this monologue. Firstly, the conspirators are trying to convince Mark Antony not to be angry with them. The second reason is to be sure Mark Antony understands the reasoning behind the killing. Another one of Brutus’ intentions is to make sure that Mark Antony knows that they will not be coming after him. The last and most important reason for this monologue is so Brutus knows that without Mark Antony no one will be able to convince Rome that their acts were justified. Right before this event occurred, Brutus and the other conspirators killed Caesar. Brutus has convinced all of them to do this for the good of Rome, but that was not their actual intention. At this moment of the play Mark Antony is very nervous because he knows that he could be next for the conspirators to kill because he was a close friend of Caesar. …show more content…

When Brutus says “Our hearts you see not; they are pitiful;/ And pity to the general wrong of Rome/ (As fire drives out fire, so pity pity).” (Shakespeare 3.1.185-189). In this, Brutus is saying that they had pity for the citizens of Rome and that is what lead them to the killing of Caesar. He is playing off of Mark Antony’s emotions. When he says that he has pity, he is trying to convince Mark Antony that he feels bad about killing Caesar and that he had to do it and was forced by his heart. By Brutus saying, “Our arms in strength of malice, and our hearts/ Of brothers’ temper, do receive you in/ With all kind love, good thoughts, and reverence,” (3.1.190-192) he is playing off of Mark Antony’s emotions. This is showed by saying that they are forgiving to brothers, but sometimes they need to be harsh and cruel. He is saying that he only has good thoughts for brothers like Mark

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