Julius Caesar

A Roman tragedy of political idealism and its consequences, Julius Caesar portrays the assassination of Caesar by conspirators who believe they are saving the Roman Republic — and the disastrous aftermath when Antony turns the crowd against them.

At a Glance

Dramatis Personæ

Character Description
JULIUS CAESAR Roman general and dictator; proud; deaf in one ear; killed Act III
MARCUS BRUTUS Noble Roman; Caesar's friend; joins the conspiracy from principle
CASSIUS Lean and hungry; envious; organizes the conspiracy; Brutus's brother-in-law
CASCA First to strike Caesar; sardonic
TREBONIUS Conspirator; delays Antony during the assassination
LIGARIUS Ailing but loyal conspirator
DECIUS BRUTUS Flatters Caesar into attending the Senate
METELLUS CIMBER Presents the petition that provides cover for the attack
CINNA Conspirator
MARK ANTONY Caesar's loyal friend; brilliant orator; turns the populace
OCTAVIUS CAESAR Caesar's great-nephew; joins Antony against Brutus
M. AEMILIUS LEPIDUS Third triumvir; weak
CICERO, PUBLIUS, POPILIUS LENA Senators
FLAVIUS and MURELLUS Tribunes; removed from office
ARTEMIDORUS Delivers a warning to Caesar
A SOOTHSAYER "Beware the Ides of March"
CINNA THE POET Mistaken for Cinna the conspirator; killed by the mob
LUCILIUS Captured at Philippi; impersonates Brutus
TITINIUS Brutus's and Cassius's officer
MESSALA Brutus's officer
YOUNG CATO
VOLUMNIUS
STRATO Holds Brutus's sword
VARRO, CLITUS, CLAUDIUS, DARDANIUS Servants/soldiers
PINDARUS Cassius's servant; holds sword for Cassius's suicide
PORTIA Brutus's wife; stabs herself in the thigh
CALPURNIA Caesar's wife; dreams of his death
GHOST OF CAESAR Appears to Brutus before Philippi

Plot Summary

Act I: Caesar returns triumphant from Spain. Cassius envies his power and works to persuade Brutus that Caesar plans to become king. A soothsayer warns Caesar: "Beware the Ides of March." Caesar refuses the crown three times before the crowd — but Casca says he was performing. Cassius forges letters in citizens' names to convince Brutus.

Act II: Brutus, alone in his garden, decides to join the conspiracy — not from personal malice to Caesar, but for the public good. Portia pleads with Brutus to share his secret. The conspirators meet; Brutus overrules proposals to kill Antony as well. Caesar's wife Calpurnia begs him not to go to the Senate (she has dreamed of his murder); Caesar is persuaded — until Decius flatters him into attending.

Act III (The Assassination and Its Aftermath): Caesar is struck twenty-three times on the Senate steps. Brutus speaks to the crowd and is applauded. Antony is permitted to speak at the funeral ("Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears..."). His oration, with Caesar's bloody cloak and will, turns the mob against Brutus. Cinna the Poet is murdered by the mob who confuse him with Cinna the conspirator.

Act IV: The triumvirate (Antony, Octavius, Lepidus) cold-bloodedly marks men for death, including their own relatives. Brutus and Cassius quarrel bitterly in Brutus's tent; they reconcile. Portia has died. Caesar's ghost appears to Brutus, promising to see him at Philippi.

Act V (Philippi): Cassius misreads the battle situation and kills himself (Pindarus holds his sword). Brutus, defeated, asks his servants one by one to kill him; Strato finally holds the sword for him. Antony speaks the famous final lines: "This was the noblest Roman of them all."

Key Themes

Notable Quotations

"Beware the Ides of March." *(Soothsayer, I.ii)*

"Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears; / I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him." *(Antony, III.ii)*

"Et tu, Brute? Then fall, Caesar." *(III.i)*

"This was the noblest Roman of them all." *(Antony, V.v)*

"The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, / But in ourselves, that we are underlings." *(Cassius, I.ii)*

LibriVox Recording

Julius Caesar audiobook on LibriVox — Free public domain recording. (Multiple versions available)

Cross-references