Brutus As A Tragic Hero Essay

In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, the plot revolves around the protagonist, Marcus Brutus, and his actions. Brutus was not only a protagonist; he was also a tragic hero. A tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction. Brutus was characterized as a noble, honorable Roman throughout the entire play. But what did it really mean when his friends, allies, and even enemies described him as this virtuous character when an error in judgment would ultimately lead to his death? Brutus was a tragic hero, because he was not only noble, but his own death was intended to help the greater good, and his dreams, goals, and his ways of obtaining them were not for personal gain, but also for the …show more content…
This contributes to the claim that he is a tragic hero in the fact that his judgment and decisions were based on logic, and what would be best for Rome as a whole. Brutus even killed Caesar, his friend, for the good of Rome. He also did not want to join the conspiracy to kill Caesar until he received the fake letters from Cassius. These letters were important because it shows that Brutus listened to the public and wanted to do what appeared to be the right thing. Brutus said, “Set honour in one eye and death i ' the other/ And I will look on both indifferently/ For let the gods so speed me as I love/ The name of honour more than I fear death.” (I.ii.86-89). This means that Brutus would rather kill himself than live a life without honor. With his moral uprightness, it was expected that he would still feel guilty for Caesar’s death even if he had good intentions for killing him. He is the only conspirator to stab Caesar not out of envy, anger, or for personal gain, and he still felt at fault. A tragic hero must have some positive qualities in order to be called a hero, and Brutus’s nobility definitely fits the …show more content…
For example, he was not easily convinced to join the conspiracy. As a senator, his goal was to make Rome the best it could be. For him to take such trouble in deciding whether to kill Caesar or not, it shows that Brutus only wanted the best for his country and his people. Brutus says, “It must be by his death: and for my part/ I know no personal cause to spurn at him/ But for the general good.” (II.i.10-12). His goal was not to receive any personal gain from Caesar’s death; he would rather be at fault for murder than have his people live under tyranny. Brutus was also the last of the conspirators to stab Caesar. Even though he felt guilt for killing his friend, he would not let the means of reaching of his goals override his desire to help