1. Introduction to Julius Caesar

2. History Until 509 B.C. Rome was a monarchy
The Brutus family evicted the monarch
Rome was established as a republic
100 B.C. Rome was a moderate democracy (rule by the people)
The Senate was actually ruling Rome

3. Roman Government
For centuries, Romans debated & even fought civil wars over the best kind of government
Monarchy
Ruled by one
Republic
Ruled by a representative group chosen by the people
Dictatorship
Ruled by one who wields ultimate power by force

4. 60 B.C. A triumvirate (3-man rule) was formed to govern Rome
Caesar
Crassus
Pompey
58 B.C. Caesar was made governor of part of Gaul
Age 44: began his military career
He conquered all of Gaul (France) in the next 10 years

6. After Crassus was killed in battle, trouble developed between Caesar & Pompey
Pompey was jealous of Caesar’s popularity
He persuaded the Senate to order Caesar to disband his army & return to Rome
Caesar invaded Rome and made himself absolute ruler of Rome

7. Caesar & Pompey

8. Pompey fled to Greece
Caesar defeated Pompey’s army and Pompey fled to Egypt (murdered)
3 years after Caesar defeated Pompey’s army, he defeated Pompey’s 2 sons
He was made dictator for life

9. Shakespeare begins his play as Caesar returning from victory in Spain
Caesar was the undisputed leader and master of the entire Roman world

10. Ancient Rome

11. Hero Julius Caesar is a tragedy like Romeo & Juliet
In Romeo & Juliet, the title characters were the heroes of the play
In Julius Caesar, Caesar is not the hero
The hero in this play is Brutus
A noble man who truly believes his actions are for the good of his country

12. Tragic Hero Main character who comes to an unhappy end
A person of importance in society
Has many extraordinary abilities
Possesses a tragic flaw
A fatal error in judgment that leads directly to his or her downfall

13. The Plot
Involves a conflict between the hero and a person or force called an antagonist, which the hero must battle
This conflict contributes to the hero’s downfall
It is built on a series of casually related events which lead to the catastrophe, or tragic resolution
The final stage of he plot usually involves the death of the hero
It is resolved when the hero meets his/her doom with courage & dignity

14. Setting
Rome, Italy
Along the Tiber River

15. Life in Rome Two classes of people Patricians (rich people)
Plebeians (poor people)

16. Politics Julius Caesar is a political play
It is about a general who would be king, but because of ambition & pride meets an untimely death
Shakespeare seems be saying that good government must be based on morality
In this respect the play has relevance to the politics of the modern world

17. The Focus of the Play
This play focuses on those men who were responsible for the assassination of Caesar and their ill-fated attempt to control Rome

18. Timeline
Shakespeare compresses the actual historical time of 3 years into a period of 6 days

19. Shakespeare’s Conventions of Drama
Play is divided into acts
Acts are divided into scenes
Often marking a change in setting
Dialogue spoken by the characters is labeled to show who is speaking
Stage directions are written in italics and in parentheses and shows characters what to do while on stage

20. Soliloquy and Aside Soliloquy Aside
A speech that a character makes while alone on stage, to reveal his or her thoughts to the audience
Aside
A remark that a character makes in an undertone to the audience or another character but that others on stage are not supposed to hear