Literary Devices In Julius Caesar

Improved Essays
In the play, Julius Caesar, Shakespeare demonstrates the behind the scenes of Julius Caesar’s assassination. Caesar’s assassination was planned by many people, as they all were fearful of Caesar’s great power. Brutus was one of the most important conspirators of the assassination as he was the one who stabbed Caesar last and took Caesar’s reign as the ruler of Rome. Shakespeare emphasizes Brutus’ skillful manipulation of the Roman plebeians to believe that he had good and noble reasons to assassinated Caesar by using persuasive appeals such as the Ethos, Pathos, and Logos.
Brutus precisely crafted his speech using a plethora amount of literary devices such as parallelism and rhetorical questions in order to reinforce his credibility in front
…show more content…
When Brutus states, “With this I depart: that, as I slew my best lover for the good of Rome, I have the same dagger for myself when it shall please my country to need my death” (III. ii. 43-46) he is claiming that he is willing to kill himself for the sake of Rome, if that’s what the people want. When Brutus says this, it makes the plebeians feel loved and grateful that he cares about them. The use of foreshadowing in this phrase gives adds suspense into the story, as many began to feel hinted about the coming events in the story. By saying this Brutus claims that he won’t be the same leader as Caesar and that the people of Rome mean more to him than his own life. This is an emotional approach in order to convince the plebeians to believe that assassinating Caesar was a good thing. Another approach Brutus took to appeal to plebeians’ emotions was when he said, “There is tears for his love; joy for his fortune; honour for his valour; and death for his ambition,” (III. ii. 26-28). Brutus made this claim to discuss his emotions about Julius Caesar and how he respected the dictator, as well as, how he had to kill him because of his selfish ambition for more power. Brutus demonstrated repetition in his statement by saying “for his” 4 times. This figurative language was used to …show more content…
Brutus claims to have loved Caesar but recognizes the public will clearly “demand why Brutus rose against Caesar” if this were really true (III. ii. 19-20). This employment of syllogism implies that the public believes someone who loves Caesar would not oppose him, but Brutus opposed him, therefore Brutus did not love Caesar. Brutus’s shrewd use of syllogism illuminates his acknowledgement of the thoughts the plebeians harbor is regards to the atrocity he committed. The Romans then consider giving Brutus the time of day, as this statement demonstrates his thorough knowledge of the topic. In an attempt to convince the audience he has committed no wrong, Brutus notes that he has “done no more to Caesar than you shall do to Brutus” when in a similar situation (III. ii 33-34). Brutus uses an analogy at this juncture to compare his method in handling Caesar to what the infuriated plebeians would do in his shoes. This analogy aids Brutus in relating to the Romans that it is hypocritical and illogical to be angered about something they themselves would have undoubtedly done. Brutus slyly plants uncertainty in the plebeians, as they no longer strongly believe Brutus is guilty of a

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    In the play, Julius Caesar, a man named Brutus is a military officer, respected by many. He is pulled back and forth to pick which side he will fight for in the plotting against Caesar. Brutus has a few friends who will help him along the way, but for the most part, his personality will drive him the most. Brutus cares most about others, his reputation, and his honor.…

    • 438 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Brutus Hero Quotes

    • 1031 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Brutus Essay I think Brutus is a hero because he didn’t do wrong for himself , he thought about others before he even hesitated of thinking of himself. Brutus was Caesar 's best friend and was loyal to him. Caesar was becoming too powerful and Brutus had to side with someone.…

    • 1031 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    He reminded the people that Caesar would have ruined Rome, become a tyrant and would have enslaved everyone, he said "had you rather Caesar were living, and die all slaves, than that Caesar were dead?". He says this as a rhetorical question: it has quite an obvious answer but probably would have been false anyway. Brutus says that last quote like it is fact and that it will happen. The fact makes it seem more real.…

    • 1412 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Clever, Clever Brutus Politicians twist the truth. Most of the time, what they say is accurate but the techniques they use have a way of manipulating listeners. All politicians do this, in fictional stories, throughout history, and even to this present day. In William Shakespeare’s play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Brutus uses manipulative devices in order to appeal to, pathos in which he evokes the feeling of being loved from the plebeians, logos in order to convince Cassius of his superior military plan, and ethos to establish trust with the commoners. Brutus’s appeal to pathos was intended to extract, from the audience, the most powerful feeling in the world, which is: love.…

    • 562 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Shakespeare’s political play Julius Caesar is one in which its namesake, Caesar, is murdered by a group of conspirators. Following this, Brutus attempts to persuade the audience that he acted for the best interest of Rome, claiming that Caesar would have become a dictator. However, the commoners of Rome were never satisfied with the reasoning for Caesar’s death. This was caused due to multiple reasons, mainly which they had already established their support for Caesar and Brutus’ inadequate speech which fails to justify his actions.…

    • 1172 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Noble Brutus Marcus Brutus is the tragic hero in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by Julius Caesar. A tragic hero is defined as someone of noble birth with heroic characteristics. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Brutus faces a very difficult decision. He must choose between the good of the people in Rome, and the life of his best friend.…

    • 1235 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Having the views of the common people almost always results in your favor. It gives the conspirators strength in numbers to overcome their opposition. In Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, the Plebeians are easily manipulable and change their opinion three major times. The Plebeians are not deep thinkers about these decisions like Brutus had been with Cassius’ persuasiveness to murder Caesar, they simply make their decisions on their feet. The Plebeians support one side of a story and then completely change their opinions to support the opposite side.…

    • 1120 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In William Shakespeare’s play “Julius Caesar” Mark Antony unleashes a powerful speech during Caesar’s funeral, aiming to persuade the people of Rome that Brutus was fallacious to kill Caesar and that they should avenge his death. In Antony’s oration, he argues his case against Brutus by using the rhetorical strategies of Ethos, Pathos and Logos to manipulate his audience to be on his side, rather than Brutus’s side. These three persuasion tools allow his audience to connect with him and he is able to effectively argue his case against than Brutus. Antony’s first priority is to establish ethos in his speech. Since Brutus is a friend of the powerful Caesar, Antony must transcend his credibility and prove to the Romans…

    • 1389 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Julius Caesar, Brutus is revealed through what he says, what he does, and what others say about him. Brutus is often revealed through what he says by how he says he wants what is the best for Rome. He is revealed through what he does by how he is easily manipulated. Brutus is also seen as honorable and noble because others say that about him. Therefore, Brutus is revealed through the things he says, his actions, and what people say about him.…

    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Rylee Sellitto Ms. Heaton RL 1 English 10 November 4th, 2015 Effectiveness From Logical and Emotional Appeal Have you ever noticed the differences between two speeches by listening to how each persuades the audience with their words? In the tragedy Julius Caesar, written by William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar gets stabbed in the back by the conspirators and dies. After his death, both Brutus and Antony give a speech to the people of Rome, expressing their logic and emotion behind Caesar’s assassination. Antony’s use of logical and emotional appeals swayed the Romans and proved his speech more effective than Brutus’s.…

    • 753 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Emotions are what drive us, for one cannot be persuaded without understanding emotions. Learning new words might help us when feeling emotions because we can identify them. Words are the most powerful force available to humanity because we can choose what words to say depending on the situation. Antony’s speech at Caesar’s funeral was more effective than Brutus’ because Antony used genuine emotion to sway the crowd.…

    • 863 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Although people generally believe they are persuaded by ideas that they have discovered, William Shakespeare’s historic tragedy, Julius Caesar illustrates that an individual’s thoughts are inevitably shaped by external factors. Persuasion and suggestion are rhetorical skills that play central roles in Julius Caesar, but they also demonstrates how individuals bend towards words they want to hear when faced with a difficult situation. The play cautions the dangers and powers of rhetoric as a tool for manipulation and reminds us how easily and completely an audience can be both won and lost in terms of persuasion. In the few early scenes we are able to see Cassius promoting his own views upon Brutus.…

    • 1114 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Often times, individuals will find themselves in a position where a difficult decision must be made. This common occurrence is used by authors to develop plots as well as characters. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar is gaining power among the Romans after defeating the previous leader, Pompey. Some Senators are taking note of this, and believe that they need to end this accelerated growth in power by assassinating Caesar. Marcus Brutus, one of Caesar’s dearest friends, must make a decision whether to remain in his friendship, or accept his invitation to the conspiracy in the name of his country.…

    • 1403 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar written by William Shakespeare, there are two speeches regarding the same topic that are presented to the public. Both Mark Antony and Brutus delivered speeches after the death of Julius Caesar, consisting of their opinion and explanation of what has happened and why, for the needs of the Roman people. Both of the speeches have a very distinct and different purpose, and appealed to different mental senses of the crowd (Ethos, Logos, and Pathos). As Mark Antony 's words were favored and followed, riots broke out and Rome was indescribably angry and upset upon the tragedy of Julius Caesar. This event foreshadowed the conclusion of the story, and set the scene for the following conflicts that reeked havoc upon Rome…

    • 1074 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The acclaimed play written by William Shakespeare,The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, should go by another name, The Tragedy of Brutus. Brutus is the main character and hidden protagonist, he is a senate member scarred by Ceaser rising so quickly to kingdom. After being mislead by many friends he decides to assist in the murder of Julius Caesar. The noble Brutus is truly the only protagonist in the play, he should be the center of the play in the stead of the short lived and arrogant Julius Caesar.…

    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays