Themes

• Appearances
• Fate
• Power
• Honor

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A Poison Tree

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"This dream is all amiss interpreted;
It was a vision fair and fortunate:
Your statue spouting blood in many pipes,
In which so many smiling Romans bathed,
Signifies that from you great Rome shall suck
Reviving blood, and that great men shall press
For tinctures, stains, relics and cognizance
(2.2, 86-92)."

Not realizing the superficial attitude of Decius Brutus, Caesar follows the conspirators to the Senate thinking he will be crowned king. Being deceived he is stabbed to death by the conspiracy organized by Cassius.

Marcus Antonious is another character who is deceiving, but this time it is not towards Caesar. During Antonious' servant's speech Brutus, he makes the conspirators believe that he will ally with them and that he will not become angry when the conspirators kill Caesar.

"Thus did Mark Antony bid me fall down;
And, being prostrate, thus he bade me say:
Brutus is noble, wise, valiant and honest; Caesar was mighty, bold, royal and loving:
Say I love Brutus and I honour him;
Say I fear'd Caesar, honour'd him and loved him.
If Brutus will vouchsafe that Antony
May safely come to him and be resolved
How Caesar hath deserved to lie in death,
Mark Antony shall not love Caesar dead
So well as Brutus living, but will follow
The fortunes and Affairs of noble Brutus
Thorough the hazards of this untrod state
With all true faith. So says my master Antony
(3.1, 130-44)."

Brutus realized the sincerity of Antonious and knew that he has always been wise and brave. Trusting Antonious, the Conspirators did not think Antonious would turn against them when they killed Caesar. Antonious had gathered his forces with Octavious Caesar and together they avenged Caesar's death by going into battle with Brutus and Cassius and had made sure both of them had died. Although, Antonious had given credit to Brutus saying that he is the noblest Roman of them all, for he had killed Caesar for the common good to all.

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Man Cannot Alter Fate

In Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, the theme that man cannot alter his fate is shown by the fact that no matter what Calpurnia or Caesar do, they cannot alter fate. For example, in Act I the soothsayer warns Caesar to "beware the ides of March" (1.2, 21)." As it turns out, the fifteenth of March turns out to be deadly for Caesar, as the soothsayer warns. This shows that Caesar, or his wife, Calpurnia, who tries to keep him home because she senses evil in the air, was unable to alter Caesar's fate. Artemidorus warns Caesar that if he doesn't read the note he has sent Caesar, then "the fates with traitors do contrive (2.3, 16)." This suggests that Caesar's fate is another person's hand, meaning he cannot alter his own fate, it is predetermined. Brutus says "Fates, we will know your pleasures. That we shall die we know (3.1, 109-111)." This shows that Brutus, perhaps the one who fears he will change Caesar's fate, believes that his fate cannot be changed. In the beginning of the play Caesar's fate was in the hands of the conspirators, however now, the conspirators' fates are in the hands of the Plebeians in Act III, showing that no one can alter their fate. A sense of fate hangs over the events in Julius Caesar, a sense that the assassination is inevitable and that the fortunes of the characters have been determined in advance. The characters are foolish to ignore prophecies and omens, which always come true, as is the case with Caesar when he hears the prophecy that March fifteenth will be a bad day, and it does, no matter what Calpurnia does to stop it.

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Abuse of Power is a Corruptive Force

A major theme in Julius Caesar is that abuse of power is a corruptive force. All of the conspirator plot to murder Caesar, because he is a dictator suspected of being tyrannous. They feel that nothing Caesar does is for the good of the Republic. "For we shall shake him, or worse days endure (1.2, 319)." Cassius is searching for power, so he kills Caesar out of Jealousy, hoping to become more powerful himself. Talking about Cassius, Caesar tell Antony, "Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look; He thinks too much: such men are dangerous (1.2, 194-5)."

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One's Personal Code of Honor has an Impact on his Actions

In Julius Caesar, all of the main characters have a different interpretation of what honor is, and each one tries to follow through with what is honorable, while at the same time maintaining a strong sense of his integrity. This varying interpretation leads them to execute different actions and also face different consequences. Brutus is one of the people whom this themes is represented through. Brutus only does what he feels is honorable, and he feels that killing Caesar would only be honorable by convincing himself that it would be for the good of the people. "Therefore think him as a serpent egg, Which hatch'd would, as his kind, grow mischievous, and kill him in the shell (2.1, 32-34)." Cassius thinks of Brutus as an honorable man and says of him "And no man but honors you (2.1, 91)." He felt that what was right was killing Caesar so that he would not abuse his power and become a tyrant. Brutus wound up committing suicide to avoid being captured, which he felt was more honorable of a choice. He said "I shall have glory by this losing day more than Octavious and Mark Antony by this vile conquest shall attain unto (5.5, 36-38)." Octavius notes upon seeing him dead "Within my tent his bones tonight shall lie, most like a soldier, order'd honorably (5.5, 78-79)." He was noting how honorable Brutus was, and that he died a noble death. Cassius is also an example of a different interpretation of honor, for he has more selfish motives for killing Caesar. He used deceit to lure Brutus into the conspiracy against Caesar, for his thoughts of how honorable killing Caesar would be caused him to act in stupid ways that would all somehow accomplish his goal. He considers himself honorable, yet lacks a strong sense of integrity and winds up killing himself after fearing that the battle will be lost following his inaccurate information that Brutus has been killed. His suicide was not committed out of honor, but of the fear that his side would lose. Antony also has a different idea of honor, and that is to remain loyal to Julius after his death. After Caesar's death, Antony tells Brutus "No place could please me so much, no way to die, as here by Caesar, and by you stuck down the finest and topmost men of spirit of our times (3.1, 161-163)." He commands forces against those who have killed his ruler, and is victorious. He had a strong sense of integrity, and demonstrated it by remaining loyal to a leader who was not, nor ever would have been a tyrant. His honor was avenging the death of this great ruler, and his consequence for pursuing this was to be the victor in a battle against those he was so angry at. Thus in Julius Caesar, there is a theme of the different interpretations of honor and its leading to different actions and different consequences that reflect the varying definitions of what honor is.

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