March 15th is known as the “Ides of March”

Julius Caesar's bloody assassination on March 15, 44

BCE, forever marked March 15, or the Ides of March, as a day of

infamy. It has fascinated scholars and writers ever since.

For ancient Romans living before that event, however, an ides was merely one of several common calendar terms used to mark

monthly lunar events. The ides simply marked the appearance of

the full moon.

William Shakespearewrote a play

aboutJulius

Caesar

Information about the playWilliam Shakespeare never published any of his plays and therefore none of the original manuscripts have survived. Eighteen unauthorized versions of his plays were, however, published during his lifetime in quarto editions by unscrupulous publishers (there were no copyright laws protecting Shakespeare and his works during the Elizabethan era). A collection of his works did not appear until 1623 (a full seven years after Shakespeare's death on April 23, 1616) when two of his fellow actors, John Hemminges and Henry Condell, posthumously recorded his work and published 36 of William’s plays in the First Folio. Some dates are therefore approximate other dates are substantiated by historical events, records of performances and the dates plays appeared in print.

Date first performedIt is believed that Julius Caesar was first performed between 1600 and 1601. In the Elizabethan era there was a huge demand for new entertainment and Julius Caesar would have been produced immediately following the completion of the play.

The settings for the dramaThe settings for Julius Caesar are Verona and Mantua in Italy

The theme of the playThe play Julius Caesar is categorized as a Tragedy

Famous Quotes / Quotations

The quotes from Julius Caesar are amongst Shakespeare's most famous:

"Friends, Romans, countrymen lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him". - (Act III, Scene II).

"But, for my own part, it was Greek to me". - (Act I, Scene II).

"Cry "Havoc," and let slip the dogs of war". - (Act III, Scene I).

"Et tu, Brute!" - (Act III, Scene I).

"Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more". - (Act III, Scene II).

"Beware the Ides of March". - (Act I, Scene II).

"This was the noblest Roman of them all". - (Act V, Scene V).

History of the dramaJulius Caesar is a dramatization of actual events. He was assassinated in 44 B.C.It is believed that his mother endured agonizing surgery in order to extract him at birth. This belief gave rise to the term "Caesarean birth"

William Shakespeare's Main Source for the work

Shakespeare found the story in Caesar, Parallel Lives, by Plutarch. He may have also referred to Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (The Monk's Tale).

Tomorrow, to commemorate the Ides of March,

we will read a plot synopsisof William Shakespeare’s playJulius Caesar…and analyze its

most famous soliloquy.

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar is the tragic true story of the betrayal and assassination of Roman ruler Julius Caesar in 44 BCE. After successfully conquering much of the ancient world, Caesar is invited to lead the Roman Empire. Cassius and other members of the Roman senate fear that Caesar will become a power-hungry dictator. They decide that Caesar must be stopped. They enlist Caesar’s trusted friend, Brutus, to help murder the leader as a patriotic act for the good of Rome.

Brutus - A supporter of the republic who believes strongly in a government guided by the votes of senators. While Brutus loves Caesar as a friend, he opposes the ascension of any single man to the position of dictator, and he fears that Caesar aspires to such power. Brutus’s inflexible sense of honor makes it easy for Caesar’s enemies to manipulate him into believing that Caesar must die in order to preserve the republic. While the other conspirators act out of envy and rivalry, only Brutus truly believes that Caesar’s death will benefit Rome. Unlike Caesar, Brutus is able to separate completely his public life from his private life; by giving priority to matters of state, he epitomizes Roman virtue. Torn between his loyalty to Caesar and his allegiance to the state, Brutus becomes the tragic hero of the play.

Antony - A friend of Caesar. Antony claims allegiance to Brutus and the conspirators after Caesar’s death in order to save his own life. Later, however, when speaking a funeral oration over Caesar’s body, he spectacularly persuades the audience to withdraw its support of Brutus and instead condemn him as a traitor. With tears on his cheeks and Caesar’s will in his hand, Antony engages masterful rhetoric to stir the crowd to revolt against the conspirators. Antony’s desire to exclude Lepidus from the power that Antony and Octavius intend to share hints at his own ambitious nature.

Read and Reflect

• Read the text of this famous speech from Julius Caesar here

• And then, read a translated version for meaning here

• Now Read the Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare Plot Summary

Please answer these in your journal

Thinking Questions

Why is this speech so famous?What makes it an effective speech?

Be ready to discuss.

In your journal

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