The play of Julius Caesar, written by the famous playwright William Shakespeare, begins with the celebration of Caesar’s arrival after defeating Pompey in battle. In attempts to preserve Rome as a republic, rather than an empire, Brutus along with Cassius and other conspirators murder Caesar. Ironically, Antony and Octavius go to war against Brutus and Cassius over the matter later on in the play. In the end, the conspirator’s efforts were merely attempts and the inevitable Roman Empire was built. This story is mostly seen through Brutus’ view; the audience the most compassion for Brutus, since the audience can see how conflicted he truly was throughout the whole account.
According to Aristotle, tragic heroes are characters that are often noble or great and appear perfect, but have flaw(s) which lead him or her to their unavoidable downfall. The tragic hero’s defeat is partly, if not entirely, the character’s own fault, though the downfall usually is worse than the character deserves. If the tragic hero survives, he or she usually becomes conscious of what caused their collapse. They learn and grow as to why such a thing happened.
Tragic heroes are typically the protagonist. They are observed over closer than the other characters. Their flaw and foreseeable end usually makes the audience feel pity, empathy, sympathy, and/or compassion for the character. Although sometimes the story told through the character; giving the story an unreliable viewpoint. Watching the events, the audience can easily see where everything has gone wrong, though it might not be so easily seen by the characters.
The Essay on Tragic Hero Brutus Caesar Cassius Shakespeare
Noble yet troubled. Intent on achieving righteousness yet committing immoral acts. Admirable yet ruined. Honorable intentions lead to downfall. These seemingly contradicting qualities are all present in all tragic heroes. In Julius Caesar written by William Shakespeare displays Brutus, a tragic hero, who's blinded loyalty and devotion lead to his destruction. Brutus's heroic belief of honor and ...
Brutus can easily be as one of the tragic heroes in the play Julius Caesar. Although Brutus was not only once a loyal friend of Caesar’s, but he was also one of the conspirators that murdered him. A large portion of the story was contributed to illustrating how conflicted Brutus was in making his decision to join the conspirators in their plot to murder Caesar or not. If Brutus was not for Brutus, they may have not been able to follow out their plan. This example is one of many in which Brutus is shown to take the side pressuring him most.
Brutus’s tragic flaw is most likely his naiveté. He easily trusts Cassius and the other conspirators. Brutus agrees to join the fight against the building of a Roman Empire, believing they are doing so for the good of Rome and to keep it a republic. But truly Cassius and the others are basically just jealous of Caesar. They are afraid of being ruled by Caesar and that he will have too much power.
Naive as Brutus’s decision was to believe them, he kept on doing so. It was not until closer to the end of the play did he start making the decisions for himself. By this time, it was already too late for Brutus. He started arguing back with Cassius for his motives when preparing for war. By that time, Octavius and Antony were building up their forces on their home territory. Also once Cassius gave up after being falsely reported to, Brutus had no had no choice but to take the honorable way out.
Brutus should have thought more about what his partners’ motivations were and less on whether his own were right. His inabilities to notice other’s intentions and just simply follow what they want him to do lead him straight to his death. Blindly following Cassius, who manipulated Brutus and made him feel as if he were making the decisions, left many dead and the fate of Rome unchanged.
