Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar, penned by English playwright William Shakespeare, hooked my attention and presented a controversial issue in a different way.

When this play was handed out to my English class, I was a bit wary because I didn't think it would be good at all. We started reading, and to my surprise, I actually liked it. Though in my opinion Romeo and Juliet was better, I still enjoyed Julius Caesar, and part of that was probably because it was easier to understand than Romeo and Juliet was.

The main characters of the play such as Caesar, Antony, and Brutus were actual people. The reason that I liked this play could have very possibly been because the story involves real people and actual historical events. It was really cool to see how Shakespeare interpreted these events and to see how he thought the characters would have reacted in certain situations.

The tragedy of Julius Caesar tells the story of the murder of Julius Caesar and the repercussions that his killers faced after his death. Marcus Brutus, along with a group of patricians, plotted to kill Caesar. Though most of the group aided only because of their jealousy, Brutus helped because he feared that Caesar would claim absolute power and become a tyrant. Their plan, which at the time seemed brilliant, ended up hurting them because Mark Antony, who dearly loved Caesar, turned the people of Rome against Brutus and civil war was brought upon the empire.

A theme of the play was that all acts bring about consequences and if you are prepared to commit the act, you better be prepared to deal with the consequences. After the conspirators kill Caesar, Antony turns many of the Romans against the conspirators and war breaks out.

I generally like Shakespeare's style and way of writing. He usually writes in poetry using iambic pentameter. Iambic pentameter can be recognized by ten syllables in each line, usually with every other syllable being stressed. In his plays, a lot of older language is used because of the time he grew up in. Because people in today's era aren't used to this way of writing, it can sometimes be very difficult to understand, but I think that the language aided to the historical aspect of Julius Caesar.

Though some of the play didn't interest me, all in all I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys plays or an unusual read.

209 pages