Critically analyse the powerplay evident in Julius Caesar and in two other related texts.

Critically analyse the powerplay evident in Julius Caesar and in two other related texts A.I. Solzhenitsyn once said, "You can have power over people as long as you don't take everything away from them. But when you've robbed a man of everything, he's no longer in your power." This statement alerts us that to possess power, we must not act in favour of ourselves, but for others. Power is a very complex theme that is present in history as well as the present. For people who assume power who do not understand the full implications of it, power will corrupt to the point of destruction. This can be seen evidently in Julius Caesar, The Wyrd Sisters and the collapse of Enron. Power is dealt with by several major characters throughout Julius Caesar. It can be clearly seen to shift through the hands of the protagonists in a variety of forms. The diagram below illustrates the shift of power: Ceasar v Conspirators v Brutus v Antony v Octavius At the commencement of the play, Caesar is the most powerful man in Rome. This is shown to us through his confidence in speaking to a fiscal audience. He had clearly been in such a high position of power for some time. However, as the play carries on, we can see that he has started to become affected by his power. Minute signs of arrogance are apparent through the use of the third person singular "Caesar" instead of the 1st person

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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In which way does Marc Antony’s speech sway the crowd?

Essay on Julius Caesar In which way does Marc Antony's speech sway the crowd? In Shakespeare's plays we can see how useful is the utilization of words. Certainly it was and it is very important to have this "gift" because this was the only mean to make people believe in you. In the play Julius Caesar, we could indicate that Antony carries one and he makes use of it to apply them within a large number of people. Sometimes we can have different opinions about how people thought and they way their characters were to be persuade by a man. But it is a fact that when you are in the middle of a crowd and the majority of them agree what the man is saying, you are carried by this emotion and agree too. An example of this is when Brutus comes out and gives a speech to the people to convince them that the killing of Caesar had to be done. With the words, the people are convinced that although Caesar was valiant, fortunate and many other things, he was ambitious; therefore he had to be assassinated. Until that point, Brutus controlled the mob but as soon Antony comes out and gives his speech, things go wrong for Brutus. Marc Antony a very close friend of Caesar, makes the people realize that these "honourable men" as he says, are not a thing what Caesar was. They only were ambitious of power and did want get to the throne and rule Rome. But we can also appreciate how Brutus with

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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In the literary pieces To Kill a Mocking bird , An Enemy of the People, and Julius Caesar the authors use crowds to develop their themes. The townspeople, majority, and the mobs represented

To kill a mokingbird In the literary pieces To Kill a Mocking bird , An Enemy of the People, and Julius Caesar the authors use crowds to develop their themes. The townspeople, majority, and the mobs represented how people go in favor of the more popular side. Most people will go on this side because the benefits will go to the people. They can also fear that having a different opinion will make a bad impression of themselves. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the townspeople's narrow-mindedness didn't allow them to think like " free-thinkers". They never went outside the boundaries of Maycomb County, which limited their knowledge to that which they already knew. The townspeople were all brought up under the same beliefs. Since the town is in the middle of nowhere, they receive no new ideas or information. All this is accountable for the narrow-mindedness of the town.. Harper Lee uses the townspeople to show how narrow-mindedness leads to uniform thinking. This way of thinking leads to the majority always going on the same side. Anyone with a different opinion cannot speak up because nobody else will support him. All of the other people believe him wrong because they grew up thinking that their ways are correct. Thus, the majority in To Kill a Mockingbird always beat the minority because the majority's facts are based on ideas that everyone

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Who is the Protagonist

English Essay- Who is the Protagonist In the play, "Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, there are two main characters, Brutus and Caesar. One of these two characters is more important than the other and therefore the protagonist in the play. This essay will show that Brutus is the most important character in the play, and give numerous reasons why, such as; that he is considered the noblest and most honourable of Romans by numerous people, he is the only conspirator that has no selfish intentions, he is a leader to many, and that he is a great friend, but it will also show his many faults and wrongly made choices throughout the play. In various parts of this play, Brutus is proclaimed the most honourable and noblest man of Rome. Brutus' nobility is shown throughout the play, right from the first time he appears to the last few lines. When we first see Brutus, Cassius is already all over him. We see them talk in the backstreets while the games are going on in the background. As they speak shouts and trumpets are heard and here we see Brutus' fear for the good of Rome come out already, "What means this shouting? I do fear the people choose Caesar for their King." He shows early on in the play that he fears for Tyranny in Rome and that Caesar may be changed by the power of the crown. Brutus' nobility is also expressed by the conspirators before he joins them, "If you could

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Discuss the main Characteristics of Julius Caesar, from Shakespeares play Julius Caesar.

Discuss the main Characteristics of Julius Caesar, from Shakespeares play Julius Caesar. In Shakespeare's play "Julius Caesar", the first impression we get of Caesar is that he is a man with absolute power. Throughout the play Caesar speaks to himself using a third person perspective. An example of this is when the soothsayer calls to Caesar during the opening of the play and Caesar says, "Caesar is turn'd to hear". This comment also shows that Caesar had a physical weakness, deafness, and was very aware of his public image. In the opening scenes it is made clear the Caesar seems to be very arrogant and this is his greatest weakness. Caesars arrogance allows for him to be easily manipulated by the 'conspirators' around him, such as Brutus. This shows that his own arrogance leads to his supposed "good" judge of character being clouded by compliments and an inflated ego. It is Caesars arrogance and ego that ultimately lives to his death. Caesar thought of himself as more than just an average person, he felt that he was almost 'superhuman', free from any weakness. The public or common people in the play are portrayed as foolish an easily led people. The common people have a great deal of respect for Caesar and most likely believe that he would be a good, powerful leader who would be able to solve Rome's problems. Caesar probably believes those things as well but he

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Compareing Mark Antony and Brutus's speech

Comparing Mark Antony and Brutus's speech Section one In the play 'Julius Caesar' the Roman emperor has large ambitions as he wanted to be the ultimate ruler or king. This is the point where twelve conspirators plot to put an end to these mighty ambitions; however, in amongst these conspirators one of his closest friends, Brutus. Brutus agreed with the eradication of Caesar completely, however they all feared Mark Antony, because they knew that he was a true friend of Caesar; therefore Mark feared for his life due to the conspirators. But if he tries to prevent the assassination of Caesar then he knew that he would also 'disappear'. When everything had taken place i.e. the assassination Caesar, and Rome found out about this, the two closest to Caesar give speeches to calm them down, Mark Antony and Brutus. I will analyse the way in which they conduct their speeches and then finally compare them. Mark Antony's speech The very fist thing that we notice about this speech is that he opens with a triple of "Friends, Romans, countrymen" this is effective because it gives the crowd an extra boost of wanting to hear his speech, also it not only does this but also it flatters the audience by relating them to people of Marks friend and companion. Then directly after this he uses metaphoric questioning of "lend me your ears", this is good from him because although the people respect

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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The Cop and the Anthem Critique

The Cop and the Anthem Critique The main character soapy is homeless and trying to get thrown in jail for the winter so he will have a warm place to stay and food to eat. Colloquialism is used in this story when Soapy refers to jail as the island. This Colloquialism reflects the culture of Soapy. The author does this to show the setting of the story, which is New York. The "Island" symbolizes a refuge, a place distanced from crowds and noisy civilization. And a place where soapy can be comfortable. This is used by the author to show Soapy's situation as a homeless person and the importance of Soapy's need to survive the winter. Allusions are used several times in this story. The first allusion is to the government. In the story it says Soapy has to become a Committee of Ways and Means. I didn't notice this at first but when I re-read it I thought this had to serve a specific purpose. The Committee of Ways and Means is a part of the government that makes decisions on matters such as the how the budget is spent. Therefore, Soapy has to become a Committee of Ways and Means because he has to decide where to spend the winter. The author uses this allusion to show sopay's dilema and the decision he must make. The second allusion comes when the author is discussing why soapy doesn't accept charity. An allusion to William Shakespeare's The tragedy of Julius Caesar is made. He

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Say why Anthony,cassius and ceasar are not noble.

Check tenses Say why Anthony,cassius and ceasar are not noble Check flow +250 words Julius Caesar Question: Is Brutus the Noblest Roman of them all? Throughout the play "Julius Caesar" it could be argued that many characters show signs of being noble. Brutus however, the dramatic focus of the play is described by Anthony as "the noblest roman of them all." Why does Anthony say this and is this true? From Act 1 scenes 2 and 3 we learn most about the character of Brutus "I love... the name of honour more than I fear death." Cassius then responds with "I know that virtue to be in you Brutus" this emphasises to the reader from the start that Brutus is perceived to be honourable. Brutus is portrayed as a man who is widely respected in society with a social conscience. From the start of the play we see Brutus set aside from the rest of the conspirators, he is at an objective viewer unlike the other conspirators like Cassius who is motivated by envy, revenge and self interest. " And Cassius is a wretched creature, and must bend his body if Caesar carelessly but nod on him". It was because Brutus was so loved throughout Rome that he was vital to the plot to kill Caesar "Win the Noble Brutus to our Party" Brutus was manipulated and he joined the conspiracy to assassinate Caesar after much careful thought and manipulative flattery by Cassius. " I know the virtue in you

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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In your opinion who was the noblest Roman of them all? Examine the ways treachery and deceit are shown in Julius Caesar.

Rough Essay. In your opinion who was the noblest Roman of them all? Examine the ways treachery and deceit are shown in Julius Caesar. In this essay I am going to examine how each of the characters in Julius Caesar were noble or not noble in the things they did and decide who is the most noble as well as examining the ways treachery and deceit are shown in the play. Firstly Julius Caesar. We know Caesar is a good leader and fighter in battle because everybody comes out to see his return at the start of the play and they say "What conquest brings him home" that quote suggests he has made many conquests which was considered noble in Roman times. Also near the start of the play Caesar is offered the crown three times but each time he refuses to take it "And then he offered it the third time; he put it the third time by: and still as he refused it" this shows that Caesar was offered the chance to become king of Rome but declined because he thought it was better for Rome to be a republic like it already was, so that was very noble. Secondly Brutus. W e know that Brutus and Caesars were great friends but he joined the conspirators and helped murder Caesar "seeing Brutus about to strike also" that wouldn't be

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Compare the speeches of Mark Antony and Brutus in 'Julius Caesar'.

Sean Martin Compare the speeches of Mark Antony and Brutus in 'Julius Caesar' The play 'Julius Caesar' was first performed in 1599 at the Globe theatre in London. The Globe theatre was built earlier that year and 'Julius Caesar' was one of the first plays performed there. This gives us reason to believe that the play was written towards the end of 1598 and beginning of 1599. William Shakespeare wrote the play 'Julius Caesar' because 'Plutarchs Lives', William Shakespeare's source of history, allowed him to use his imagination and create a sell out play. In the history book of most of the facts are the same as William Shakespeare's however he had to change some of the events in order to make it into a play and not just a documentary. In order to make 'Julius Caesar' more effective he had to shorten the time span of the play, in reality the whole scenario took months but William Shakespeare shortened the play to just a matter of days. Another reason for William Shakespeare writing the play was his interest in political assassination and the miseries of rebellion and civil war. The Queen at the time's reign was almost up, and a subtle way of informing the public that they needed an heir was through his play. Brutus was born into a noble family and from an early age was a close friend to Julius Caesar. Brutus was not a selfish man and he wanted the best for Rome, he shows

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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