Cultural depictions of Cleopatra VII

The life of Cleopatra was a unique one at best, commonly known for her beauty and lesser known for her strong leadership skills. One could argue that she was a strong female role model, but her actions contradict those arguments as she was quite the temptress when it came to powerful men. Cleopatra’s story starts when father Ptolemy XII Auletes who was given power over Egypt upon Alexander the Greats death. Oddly enough Cleopatra’s family wasn’t of Egyptian descent, they were of the Macedonian…

A Selfish Leader As famous author and speaker, John C. Maxwell once said, “A true leader is one who is humble enough to admit their mistakes.” This explains that a successful leader finds where he made a mistake and does what he can to fix it. Julius Caesar was not one of these leaders. He had let the power get to his head. He was arrogant, selfish, and a danger to Rome. Caesar thrived for power and this lead him to kill Pompey, whom he co-ruled Rome with. Julius Caesar was too ambitious, he…

Cleopatra VII, known by historians as just Cleopatra, is one of the most famous women in history. Everyone has heard her name, but there are a lot of facts about her that are not so well known. Here is part one of our list. Number Fifteen: She was not Egyptian Many people assume that the ruler was Egyptian, since that's where she ended up. It turns out that she actually came from Greek origins, though the exact details of this are less clear. Number Fourteen: Cleopatra Became Pharaoh at 18…

Cleopatra VII was the last ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty, ruling Egypt from 51 BC - 30 BC. She had a reputation for her beauty and her love affairs with the Roman politicians and generals of the late Roman republic - Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. Roman Historian Cassius Dio (164-c.235) depicts Cleopatra as strikingly beautiful and charismatic, with an aptitude for speaking…. “being brilliant to look upon and listen to, with the power to subjugate everyone, even a love- sated man” He speaks…

arms; but now, when the military power of Egypt would bring to the contest power of a wholly different kind-the power of a fascinating woman.” E.R. Bevan, The House of Ptolemy Foreword: Since there is no first-hand account of the history of Cleopatra VII, many of the details of her life remain a mystery. The lack of written evidence may be due in part to the fact that the Library of Alexandria in Egypt’s capital was burned down in 48 B.C.E. The stories surrounding Cleopatra’s exploits have…

Abstract: Cleopatra was a very smart and an intelligent commander. Despite her abilities and effort, she failed which made her life hopeless rather than glamourous. Cleopatra’s father Ptolemy XII died and in his will he left the kingdom to Cleopatra and her younger brother Ptolemy XIII. At the time, Cleopatra was 18 years old, while her brother was 10 years old. Ptolemy forces her to leave Alexandri and go to Syria. This is where Cleopatra goes and raises a Roman Military. She then goes to the…

Another stance often taken on this issue is that Cleopatra was plain in appearance until she opened her mouth and exhibited her charm, wit, and vast knowledge across many topics. Under this viewpoint, Cleopatra’s beauty did not lead to her success, but rather she achieved it through other means. A primary source, Plutarch, describes when Cleopatra first met Mark Antony. On her journey she took money, gifts, other objects of great wealth, as well as her most valuable trait: her charm. Plutarch…

“Betray a friend, and often find thyself ruined.” In the story “The Tragedy of Julius Caesar”, Caesar’s best friend Brutus, is fighting an internal conflict with himself because he has to pick a side of either his best friend Julius Caesar’s side or Rome’s side. Brutus picks Rome’s side and kills Caesar for the good of Rome, later on in the story Brutus “kills himself” because his life got harder once he killed Caesar and people didn’t handle it anymore. Betrayal from a friend is worse than…

Cleopatra v. Mansour: Permanent Beauty or Temporary Presidency Pope Shenouda II once said,”Egypt is not just a country we live in but a country that lives in us.” Cleopatra is the face of beauty and charm which she used to her advantage when ruling. Adly Mansour has his focus entirely on how Egypt is being ruled and the safety of the citizens. Although both Cleopatra and Adly Mansour are both very famous Egyptian rulers, Mansour focuses more on how his country is being ruled. Cleopatra, along…

Analyse the reasons behind Cleopatra’s title of ‘The Most Famous Woman of Classical Antiquity’ Introduction: Cleopatra grew up in the world of foreign and political struggles, allowing her to develop skills to rule Egypt independently. Cleopatra 's exile and Egypt 's foreign and political struggles lead her to meet two of the most powerful generals/leaders in her time - Julius Caesar and Marc Antony, resulting in her being the most famous woman of classical antiquity. This eventually…