Shakespeare's Julius Caesar Background

Julius CaesarJulius Caesar

William ShakespeareWilliam ShakespeareBirth celebrated as April 23, 1564Died April 23, 1616Married Anne Hathaway in 1582

– She was 8 years Bill’s seniorHad three children: Susanna,

Hamnet, JudithLapse from 1585-1592

Shakespeare’s CareerShakespeare’s CareerBy 1592- actor and playwright1594- charter member of Lord

Chamberlain's Men1603- Changed to King’s MenRetired in 1612Wrote 37 playsJulius Caesar written in 1599

Why is his work so popular?Why is his work so popular?

Shakespeare wrote about human nature and how people behave.

Although his words can be hard to understand, his ideas are as relevant now as they were four centuries ago.

Shakespeare’s WorksShakespeare’s Works

No one knows exactly when each of his works was written; there are approximate dates.

Some experts have even said that “Shakespeare’s” plays are really the work of other writers.This may be because some people cannot

believe that Shakespeare, who came from an ordinary background, could have written such great works of literature.

Elizabethan BeliefsElizabethan Beliefs Life in Elizabethan

England could be cruel and hard. The poor often went hungry, disease was widespread, medical remedies often felt more like tortures, and many women died in childbirth. But through their beliefs, people found ways of making sense of their existence.

Elizabethan Beliefs-ReligionElizabethan Beliefs-ReligionPeople were, in general, much more

religious than people today.Almost everyone believed in

God and expected to go to heaven or hell after death.

At this time, England was a Protestant country – it had broken away from the Catholic Church of Rome. This was part of the European movement called the Reformation, which began with attacks on corruption in the Catholic Church.

Elizabethan BeliefsElizabethan BeliefsThe Chain of Being

A concept inherited from the Middle AgesAn attempt to give order, or “degree”, to the

vastness of creation.God created everything in a strict hierarchy, or

chain, that stretched from God himself down to the lowest things in existence.

Humans occupied a place in the chain below the angels but above animals, plants and stones. Some humans were higher in the chain than others.

Elizabethan BeliefsElizabethan Beliefs

The Chain of Being, cont.The monarch was the highestNobles and churchmen belowGentlemenCommonersAll women were considered to be inferior

to men, with the obvious exception of Elizabeth I.

Elizabethan BeliefsElizabethan Beliefs Chain of Being, cont.

Accepting one’s place in the chain was a duty that would be rewarded by God in heaven.

Disrupting the chain was thought to lead to chaos, but of course many people still did challenge their position in society.

Elizabethan BeliefsElizabethan BeliefsMyths and Magic

Fairies, magic, witches, spells and prophecies all formed part of their view of life.

Folklore and superstition were often as important to people as the official religious beliefs taught by the Church.


Little and LargeThe human body was thought to be

a miniature representation of the universe as a whole – a microcosm.Various parts of the body were linked to the planets and signs of the zodiac


Little and Large, cont.The body was thought to contain four

“humours” or fluids – black bile, phlegm, blood and choler.A person’s temperament depended on the

way the humours were mixed.Most people were thought to have one

humour that was more dominant than the others.

Illnesses and mental disorders were blamed on an imbalance of the humours.

Elizabethan StageElizabethan StageThe Globe (“Wooden O”)- Jan. 20,

1599Caesar -Probably the first play to be

performed at The GlobeSets would primarily be imagined by

the audience (heaven, stage, hell)All actors male1613- Henry VIII, light fuse to

cannon, theatre burned down

The Globe TheatreThe Globe Theatre

• The theatre most associated with Shakespeare• Shakespeare owned it in joint with others—

unusual for a playwright• Thrust Stage, 3-sided, platform, tiers of seats,

groundlings• Rebuilt Globe, on the Thames, in recent years.

Elizabethan TheatreElizabethan TheatreThe audience

It was an entertainment for everyone, like movies today.

The cheapest tickets cost a penny, which most ordinary people could afford.

Because of the crowds, theatres were popular with thieves and pickpockets.

People jeered at the actors and shouted out rude remarks

Some even climbed onto the stage and joined in with swordfights.

People also brought food with them to eat during the performance, or to throw at bad actors.

The Globe TheatreThe Globe Theatre

From 1599 onwards, Shakespeare’s plays were usually performed at the Globe, a huge, open-air, circular theatre.

It could hold 3000 people, and there were two performances a day.

Along with other members of his theatre company, Chamberlain’s Men, Shakespeare owned a share in the Globe and made a lot of money from it.

Shakespeare’s writing may sometimes reflect the design of the theatre. Some of the lines in his plays have three parts, or a word repeated three times. At the Globe, this allowed an actor to address the audience on all three sides of the thrust stage.

Julius Caesar Quick FactsJulius Caesar Quick Facts60 B.C.- First Triumvirate (Crassus,

Pompey, Caesar)Caesar crosses RubiconMarch 15, 44 B.C.- Caesar assasinated

– ‘Ides of March’43 B.C.- Second Triumvirate (Antony,

Lepidus, Octavian)

Background of Background of CaesarCaesar

Opens in 44 BC – when Rome had made conquests that allowed it to have an empire in N. Africa, Britain, Persia, and Spain.


City itself collapsing despite conquests

Military endeavors more ambitious generals stronger while senators weaker and factionalizedSharp class divisions


City itself collapsing despite conquests

Majority of population not interested in maintaining “republic”


Caesar emerged as most likely to succeed

Remarkable general

Popular among lower classes at home



AbilityCharismaAmbitionGood luck



Extremely valuable and extremely dangerous to the state


Caesar caused conflictLegal and military attempts to curb his power failedGroup of conspirators assassinated him, causing civil war


New regimeCaesar’s friend Mark Antony and his heir, Octavius, defeated the conspirators


New regimeOctavius was installed as emperor Augustus, and senate reduced to ceremonial role

The Importance of The Importance of CaesarCaesar

Caesar’s assassination and death affected Rome and its territories for centuries

Story is simultaneously personal and political

Differing views– Assassination as act of heroism, expediency, or villainy – celebrate, excuse, or denounce its perpetrators?

Differing views– Michelangelo, Milton idealize

Brutus as selfless defender of human liberty

– Dante sends Brutus and Cassius into the deepest pit of hell

Shakespeare’s historical Shakespeare’s historical referencereferenceShakespeare's main

source in writing the play was Thomas North's

English translation of Plutarch's Lives of the

Noble Greeks and Romans.

WHO CARES?WHO CARES?

So why did Shakespeare feel that Renaissance England would

respond to Julius Caesar?

Shakespeare saw Caesar and Roman civilization not just as one that precedes the future, but as one that sets the pattern for future civilizations.

Shakespeare's England faced concerns of a country about to change leadership and centuries.

The Play---The Play---

In 1599 the play would have served as a timely reminder of the enormous upheaval that would follow an attempt to seize power through violent means.

Is there a single figure upon whom the label of “usuper” can fall? (one who seizes without right.)

JC's current relevance:JC's current relevance:Themes in Julius Caesar have an equal

relevance for politics now, 400 years later. In the rivalry between political intimates, Cassius and Brutus, the somewhat shady financial dealings of the central characters, and the concerns about Caesar's style of leadership, there are undoubted parallels with societies today.

JC's current relevance:JC's current relevance: It is this issue of leadership and,

in particular, the question of when effective leadership becomes a tyranny, that has most relevance.

Consider the role of President, Prime Ministers, Senates, etc.

JC's current relevance:JC's current relevance:

But the play is also about more ageless issues, such as the corrupting effect of power. "People are rightly nervous about placing trust in politicians," says Rylance. "I believe that the vast majority of politicians are genuinely trying to do some good. But there is always the danger, when in a position of power, that means and ends can become blurred."

What kind of plays?What kind of plays?During Shakespeare’s career,

fashions and tastes in drama changed.He wrote mostly comedies and

history plays during the Elizabethan period – 1558-1603

Tragedies and tragicomedies during the reign of King James – 1603-1625

What Kind of Plays?What Kind of Plays?Tragedy

Ends in the death of one or more of the main characters.

Most of his tragedies involve historical individuals and events

TragediesTragedies

Shakespeare’s most famous and popular playsRomeo and Juliet; Macbeth; Hamlet; Othello; King Lear; Julius Caesar

Tragic HeroTragic HeroOften a man of high rank, such as a

king or princeCreates, or is put into, a difficult

situation which he must try to resolve.A combination of bad luck and bad

decisions lead to his death.Often a relatively sympathetic figure.

His soliloquies show his feelings and motives, and show the audience how easy it would be to make similar mistakes.

Doom and DestinyDoom and Destiny

Many people believed in fate, or destiny, and in the power of the stars to foretell the future.

Shakespeare uses the idea of fate or destiny to add excitement and anticipation to the tragediesUses a prophecy as a way of holding the

audience’s interest, because everyone wants to see if it will be fulfilled.

Tragic EndingsTragic Endings

Tragedies give a very bleak view of the world. At the end, the hero, and usually several other

characters, are dead, and the survivors are left to start again without them.

Although most tragic heroes are partly to blame for their own fates, death can be a very high price to pay for what may have seemed initially like a small failing.

In most tragedies, there is also a feeling that some good may have come out of the terrible suffering.At the end of Romeo and Juliet, because the

families’ fighting has partly caused the tragedy, they finally resolve to end their feud.

The Roman TragediesThe Roman Tragedies Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra and

Coriolanus: deal with political powerThe hero is a state leader who has a responsibility

to the people.Tragedy results when he fails to meet his

responsibilities.These plays are not just about politics. They

are full of personal emotions, dramatic power struggles, and brilliant writing, including some of the most famous writing in Shakespeare’s plays.

The Roman TragediesThe Roman TragediesTwo Themes

Politics and Power – shows how hard it is to be a political leader. The hero has power, but has a weakness which makes him vulnerable to being attacked or overthrown

Love and Duty – people often have to make difficult choices between their emotions and their responsibilities

Key ThemesKey Themes

HonorAmbitionAmbitionEnvyPower

Look for RhetoricLook for Rhetoric

“The art or study of using language effectively and persuasively”

Make sure to look for persuasion and the use of language throughout the play (note the characters techniques to win public and political support)

Language of ShakespeareLanguage of Shakespeare• Early Modern

English (NOT Middle English, like Chaucer)

• Lack of standardized spelling

• Puns and references to current events of his time make it difficult

• You know more than you think you do!

• Poetry of the sonnets and plays:

• Iambic Pentameter (lines of five metrical feet, each one an iamb)

• Not perfect, or it would be sing-songy

• Blank Verse (unrhymed Iambic Pentameter)

• Lower Classes’ speech, or that of characters in emotional extremis, is in prose

Cast of Major CharactersCast of Major CharactersJulius Caesar—Dictator

of RomeMarcus Antonius

(Mark Antony)—Friend of Caesar and future leaders of Rome

Marcus Brutus—Friend of Caesar who always considers choices “for the good of Rome”

Cassius—Leader of the conspiracy against Caesar and brother-in-law of Brutus

Casca - A public figure opposed to Caesar’s rise to power.

Trebonius—Member of the conspiracy against Caesar

Cast of Major CharactersCast of Major CharactersDecius Brutus—

Conspirator who uses flattery to get Caesar to the Senate House

Calpurnia - Caesar’s wife. Calpurnia invests great authority in omens and portents.

Portia - Brutus’s wife; the daughter of a noble Roman who took sides against Caesar.

Flavius - A tribune (an official elected by the people to protect their rights).

Murellus -a tribune-condemns the plebeians for their fickleness in cheering Caesar (they once cheered for Caesar’s enemy Pompey.

Cicero - A Roman senator renowned for his oratorical skill.

Documents

Shakespeare's Julius Caesar Background