A common topic within the works of Shakespeare is the role that humanity plays in the creation of, and assignment of, virtue. Within Julius Caesar especially, the virtue of honor and allegiance to virtue is called into question. Had Brutus adapted his idea of honor, he would not have lost so much at the end of the play, but because he clung to his ideals, like Caesar, he too fell. To better understand the faults of Brutus’ honor code, one must understand the fall of Caesar. When Caesar looks about Rome as he returns from defeating Pompey, he sees the people “make holiday to see/ Caesar in his triumph” alone, turning his attention away from dissenters like Marullus and Flavius (I.i.30-31). Caesar believes this fanfare exists in all of Rome.
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After his suicide, Antony calls Brutus “the noblest Roman of them all” because “[a]ll the conspirators save only he/ Did that they did in envy of great Caesar; / He, only in a general honest thought/ And common good to all” which illustrates that the honor lay not in the conquest of the deed, as Caesar’s did, but in the motivation behind it (V.v.68-72). Here again, Antony represents the voice of Rome as he laments the dead. He acknowledges that everything Brutus did was for the benefit of Rome. This was the only way that Brutus could envision living his life. As Brutus fights alongside other Romans that he thought held that same belief, he does not see them turn back in cowardice and only sees the battle ahead. Still he pushes forth. While pusillanimity was one element leading to the loss of battle, another was a lack of funding, which Cassius tried to resolve by taking bribes. But in the eyes of Brutus “[t]he name of Cassius honors this corruption,/ And chastisement doth therefore hide his head” (IV.iii.15-16). Cassius disgusts Brutus when he adapts to the situation with bribes while everyone looks on because he still sees bribery as a deed that is not honorable. What Brutus does not recognize are the differences in standards during times of war compared to times of peace. He would not sacrifice his ethics even in a situation calling for unique ethics. Brutus believes
After his suicide, Antony calls Brutus “the noblest Roman of them all” because “[a]ll the conspirators save only he/ Did that they did in envy of great Caesar; / He, only in a general honest thought/ And common good to all” which illustrates that the honor lay not in the conquest of the deed, as Caesar’s did, but in the motivation behind it (V.v.68-72). Here again, Antony represents the voice of Rome as he laments the dead. He acknowledges that everything Brutus did was for the benefit of Rome. This was the only way that Brutus could envision living his life. As Brutus fights alongside other Romans that he thought held that same belief, he does not see them turn back in cowardice and only sees the battle ahead. Still he pushes forth. While pusillanimity was one element leading to the loss of battle, another was a lack of funding, which Cassius tried to resolve by taking bribes. But in the eyes of Brutus “[t]he name of Cassius honors this corruption,/ And chastisement doth therefore hide his head” (IV.iii.15-16). Cassius disgusts Brutus when he adapts to the situation with bribes while everyone looks on because he still sees bribery as a deed that is not honorable. What Brutus does not recognize are the differences in standards during times of war compared to times of peace. He would not sacrifice his ethics even in a situation calling for unique ethics. Brutus believes