1. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
By William Shakespeare

2. William Shakespeare

3. Background on William Shakespeare
Shakespeare was born on April 23, 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon in England.
His parents were Mary Arden and John Shakespeare, a respected glove-maker.
He attended the local grammar school were he learned to read and write in English and Latin.

4. Shakespeare’s Birthplace
                                                            

6. King Edward VI Grammar School at Stratford-upon-Avon
                                                          

7. Shakespeare background cont.
When he was 18, he married a woman by the name of Anne Hathaway. She was 26 at the time of their marriage.
The relationship was solely based on convenience. It is unclear as to whether or not Shakespeare actually loved her, but when she became pregnant he felt that it was his duty to marry her.

8. Shakespeare background cont.
Shakespeare and Anne had three children together: Susanna and the twins Judith and Hamlet.
From , there are no official records of Shakespeare, thus the title “The Lost Years” is given to this period.
It is speculated that he worked numerous odd jobs to try and support his family.

9. Shakespeare background cont.
Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway did not have a loving marriage. As soon as Shakespeare had saved enough money, he moved to London to become an actor and left Anne and the kids in Stratford-upon-Avon.
In 1594, Shakespeare became a charter member of a theatrical group known as the Lord Chamberlain’s Men which became the King’s Men in (The name changed because King James I was the patron for this group).

10. King James I
          

11. Shakespeare background cont.
Shakespeare acted and wrote for this company until he retired in 1612.
By this time he had written thirty-seven plays-comedies, tragedies, histories, and romances.
Not a single original manuscript has survived due partly to the fact that they were written strictly for performance.

12. Shakespeare background cont.
Shakespeare is sometimes referred to as “The Bard.”
The word is very old and referred, originally, to a poet generally, especially one who wrote impassioned, lyrical, or epic verse. Bards were originally Celtic composers of eulogy and satire; the word came to mean more generally a tribal poet-singer gifted in composing and reciting verses on heroes and their deeds.

13. Shakespeare background cont.
In present-day usage the term ‘bard’ has become synonymous with a revered poet.

14. Shakespeare background cont.
There is much speculation as to whether or not there was an actual “Shakespeare.”
Many historians claim that “Shakespeare” is actually a collection of several poets and playwrights works, while others claim that it was a pseudonym for another writer.
The three men most associated with the “Shakespeare Debate” are Edward De Vere, Francis Bacon, and Christopher Marlow.

15. Shakespeare background cont.
The reasoning behind the controversy seems to lie in the fact that many people find it difficult to accept that a man of poor education and upbringing could write such eloquent masterpieces and have such a strong command of the English language. (examples: Iambic Pentameter, capture emotions, etc.)
The important thing is not to focus on whether he was real or not, but instead we should focus on the great pieces of literature that we have attributed to him.

16. Shakespeare background cont.
Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616, at the age of fifty-two.
He died on the same month and day he was born.
At the time of his death he was considered one of the greatest playwrights and actors to have ever graced the stage.

17. Shakespeare Background cont.
He wrote 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and 2 long poems.
His works were not published during his lifetime, but they appeared four years after his death in the “First Folio.”

18. The Elizabethan Stage
Queen Elizabeth ( ) was the ruling monarch in England during Shakespeare's day.
She was an avid fan and supporter of the arts.
At this time, London was the heart of England, reflecting all the vibrant qualities of the Elizabethan Age.

19. Queen Elizabeth
                         

20. Elizabethan Age cont.
London became a leading center for culture and commerce.
Its dramatists and poets were among the most revered and admired men during this time period.
There was no such thing as a theatre building during the first part of the Elizabethan Age.
It seems that traveling acting companies would come into England and set up their own stages.

21. Elizabethan Age cont.
These “stages” were actually more like platforms, and they were often set up in the courtyards of inns.
The audience would stand at the three sides of the stage, or if they paid more money, than they could sit in chairs on the balcony of the inn.

22. Elizabethan Age cont.
In 1576, James Burbage decided to build the first permanent theatre just outside the city of London.
Burbage called his new playhouse “The Theatre.”
In 1599, the owner of the land that The Theatre was built upon decided to raise the rent.

23. Elizabethan Age cont.
Because the theatre was behind on its payments, the landlord threatened to take it over.
On the night of January 20, 1599, James Burbage’s son Cuthbert and others in the company stealthily took the theatre apart piece by piece and relocated across the river.
They reconstructed a new theatre and named it “The Globe.”

24. The Globe Theatre
                            

26. The stage at The Globe
                                                               

27. Side view of the stage
                                                                

28. The Gallery during performance
                                                                 

29.                                            
The Gallery

30. The Groundling Area
                                                                 

31. The Globe Theatre cont.
All of the plays were performed during the day.
The cost of admission was one penny.
All of the actors were young boys or men. (Women were not allowed to act until 1660).
Actors on stage dressed like Elizabethans, but their costumes were controversial just the same.

32. The Globe Theatre cont.
England had “Clothing Acts” which forbade certain classes of people from dressing like a higher class.
So, for an actor-a person of the lower classes- to dress like a nobleman or a king was something of a scandal.

33. The Globe Theatre Shakespeare was part owner of the Globe Theatre.
This was the theatre where Shakespeare’s greatest works were performed.
Among these works included: Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, and King Lear.
There were no elaborate stages, but instead Shakespeare relied on the imaginations of his audience.
There were, however, numerous special effects that Shakespeare employed into his works.

34. Shakespearean Actors and Accessories
                  

35. Shakespearean Actors and Accessories

36. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar

37. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
Most scholars agree that Shakespeare wrote The Tragedy of Julius Caesar in 1599.
The historical play is based upon the assassination of Julius Caesar by his close friends and confidants.
Shakespeare gained much of his knowledge about Caesar and Roman life from Plutarch’s The Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans.

38. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
Shakespeare’s contemporaries, well versed in ancient Greek and Roman history, would very likely have detected parallels between Julius Caesar’s portrayal of the shift from republican to imperial Rome and the Elizabethan era’s trend toward consolidated monarchal power.

39. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
In 1599, when the play was first performed, Queen Elizabeth I had sat on the throne for nearly forty years, enlarging her power at the expense of the aristocracy and the House of Commons. As she was then sixty-six years old, her reign seemed likely to end soon, yet she lacked any heirs (as did Julius Caesar).

40. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
Many feared that her death would plunge England into the kind of chaos that had plagued England during the fifteenth-century Wars of the Roses. In an age when censorship would have limited direct commentary on these worries, Shakespeare could nevertheless use the story of Caesar to comment on the political situation of his day.

41. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar takes place in ancient Rome in 44 b.c., when Rome was the center of an empire stretching from Britain to North Africa and from Persia to Spain.

42. Yet even as the empire grew stronger, so, too, did the force of the dangers threatening its existence: Rome suffered from constant infighting between ambitious military leaders and the far weaker senators to whom they supposedly owed allegiance.

43. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
The empire also suffered from a sharp division between citizens, who were represented in the senate, and the increasingly underrepresented plebeian masses.

44. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
To become a senator one must be a patrician (upper class) and a member of one of the powerful clans of Rome (example: Marc Antony was from the Antonii clan)

45. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
A succession of men aspired to become the absolute ruler of Rome, but only Julius Caesar seemed likely to achieve this status.

46. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
Those citizens who favored more democratic rule feared that Caesar’s power would lead to the enslavement of Roman citizens by one of their own. Therefore, a group of conspirators came together and assassinated Caesar. The assassination, however, failed to put an end to the power struggles dividing the empire, and civil war erupted shortly thereafter.

47. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
During Caesar’s time, Rome was constantly at war.
The ruling power of Rome was in the hands of its generals.
These generals would contract “private armies” and subdue other countries that were weaker than Rome.

48. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
After these “private armies” conquered a new area, a Roman governor was sent there to watch over the new land.
In many cases, the governor exacted cruel taxes on the conquered people.
Sometimes the generals themselves turned on one another, because they were strong men battling for power. This treachery is exactly what happened in Julius Caesar.

49. Julius Caesar
                                         
                      

50. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
Julius Caesar was born in 100 B.C. in Rome.
Julius Caesar rises to power through the use of his oratory skill.
He was always a member of the democratic or popular party.
He married Cornelia, the wealthy daughter of Lucius Cornelius Cinna.
Caesar’s uncle arranged the marriage.

51. Roman Toga
             

52. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
When Caesar was given orders by Sulla to divorce Cornelia, he fled Rome in 81 B.C. for fear of his life because he refused to obey Sulla.
After Sulla’s death, Caesar returned to Rome and began to climb his way through the political arena.
Caesar soon began to back Pompey, the head of the popular party.
Caesar helped him gain both military and political advantages.

53. Pompey the Great
                 

54. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
Caesar and Pompey agreed that one would leave to fight for the good of Rome every three years, and then return to Rome so that the other person could leave and have his turn at conquest.
During this time Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus form the First Triumvirate, which means “three men” or “rule by three.”
They took over the Senate and the rulings of Rome for a while. The idea was that Caesar had the backing of the Legions (army).

55. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
Pompey had the political power, and Crassus had the financial backing.
Pompey was even married to Caesar’s daughter Julia at this time.
The First Triumvirate would not last long due to the jealousy that erupted between Caesar and Pompey.

56. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
Pompey returned early from his sieges and told Caesar that it was his turn to leave again. While Caesar was gone, Pompey used this opportunity to rally people behind him by claiming that Caesar had become too powerful and was only interested in benefitting himself and not the Roman Empire.

57. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
By making these allegations, Pompey declared a war with Caesar.
The problem was that Caesar had the backings of the Legions, and Pompey only had the backing of the Senate.
While Caesar was conquering new territory for Rome, he got word of Pompey’s plan. Caesar decided to quit his campaigns and return to Rome to face Pompey and the charges against him.

58. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
When Caesar returned to Italy, Pompey warned him that if he crossed the Rubicon River, he was declaring a civil war on Rome.
Caesar responded with Alea Iacta Est, which translates to “the die is cast.”

59. Roman Legionaire
          

60. Roman Helmets
      
                          

61. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
Caesar’s crossing of the Rubicon was a symbolic acceptance of Pompey’s challenge.
During this time the other member of the First Triumvirate, Crassus, took his money and fled.
Caesar easily made his way into Rome and forced Pompey to flee.
Caesar was now in total control of Rome.

62. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
During this time Caesar proclaimed himself Senator for Life.
Caesar eventually tried to go after Pompey, who fled to Egypt, but he never caught him.
Servants of Cleopatra later killed Pompey while he was in Egypt, and his sons tried to avenge the death of their father by declaring war on Caesar.
Shakespeare’s play begins after Caesar defeats Pompey’s sons.

63. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
Contrary to popular belief, Caesar was not an actual Emperor of Rome. In fact, Rome had no actual emperors until about twenty years after Caesar’s death.
While Caesar was living, Rome was a Republic ruled by a Senate.
The name “Caesar” eventually became not a name, but a word meaning “ruler” or “chief” in Latin.

64. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
The word “Caesar” evolved into different languages such as German which took the name and turned it into Kaiser. The Russian word Czar as well traces its roots back to “Caesar.”
The term “caesarian sections,” or “C-sections” can trace its origins back to Julius Caesar because the popular belief was that Caesar did have not a natural childbirth, but instead was “cut from the womb.”

66. Outside the Roman Coliseum

67. Inside the Roman Coliseum

68. The Pantheon

69. The Forum of Julius Caesar

70. Goals for this Unit Shakespeare Acquainted with writing
Appreciation of his craft
Verbiage
Allusions from pieces of his work

71. Goals for this Unit Julius Caesar History/Allusion Themes
Strategy/Decision Making
Friendship & Loyalty vs. “Doing the Right Thing”
Speeches
Persuasive Techniques
Fallacies of Argument
Culture
Social
Economic
Political

72. Goals for this Unit Cleopatra’s Daughter Roman vs. Greek/Egyptian
Their Culture vs. Our Culture
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