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Caesar Intro

The document provides background information on William Shakespeare's play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. It includes a timeline of key events in Caesar's life and Roman history in 44 BC. It then summarizes important details about the plot, characters, historical sources, themes, and dramatic structure of the play. The document aims to provide readers with essential context and terminology to understand Shakespeare's portrayal of the conspiracy against Julius Caesar and its aftermath.

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Leon Guinto
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187 views

Caesar Intro

The document provides background information on William Shakespeare's play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. It includes a timeline of key events in Caesar's life and Roman history in 44 BC. It then summarizes important details about the plot, characters, historical sources, themes, and dramatic structure of the play. The document aims to provide readers with essential context and terminology to understand Shakespeare's portrayal of the conspiracy against Julius Caesar and its aftermath.

Uploaded by

Leon Guinto
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Tragedy of Julius

Caesar

by
William Shakespeare
Caesar Timeline
 Caesar (102-44 B.C.); Son-in-Law, Pompey
 Civil Wars 49 B.C. : Caesar vs. Pompey
 Pompey flees to Egypt, and is murdered.
 Caesar is victorious
 Caesar elected consul (ruling magistrate of
Republic)
 Named dictator for 10 years by Senate
 Bio and play begin w/ Caesar’s victorious return
after defeating Pompey’s son in Spain
 Conspiracy already under way
Roman Empire 44 B.C.
Europe Today
Important Facts

 Type of Plot: Tragedy


 Time of Plot: 44 B.C.
 Locale: Rome
 First Performed: 1599-1600
 First Published: 1601
Principal Characters
 Julius Caesar, dictator of Rome
 Mark Antony, his friend
 Marcus Brutus, a conspirator against
Caesar
 Caius Cassius, another conspirator
 Portia, wife of Brutus and Cassius’ wife
 Calpurnia, Caesar’s wife
Important Points
 Based on Plutarch’s Lives of the Noble
Grecians and Romans.
 Shakespeare had to work his dramatic art
within the restrictions of known history.
 We know that the play is not just about plot;
they are more about explorations into
human nature, about language, and about
the ambiguity that much of the lang.
presents.
Important Points Cont.
 The historical events associated with
the death of Caesar and defeat of the
conspirators took 3 years; not 3 days.
 Prose used in the play by comic and
less important characters.
 This play is very political; monarchy
vs. democracy.
Important Points Cont.
 Despite the title, Brutus, not Caesar, is
the hero of this play.
 We often forget that these plays were
created to be heard and seen.
 When we read a play, we miss some
of what we call the performance
language of the play.
Format of the Play: 5 Part
Dramatic Structure
 Exposition: to Act I, scene ii
 Complication: Act I, scene ii; to Act II,
scene iv
 Climax: Act III, scene i
 Consequence: Act III, scene ii; to Act
V, scene ii
 Denouement: Act V, scenes iii to v
Key Terms
 Dramatic Irony: when readers or audience know
info that a character does not know.
 Blank Verse: unrhymed poetry written in iambic
pentameter.
 Iambic Pentameter: has five pairs of syllables
(10 in all) with each pair following the pattern
unstressed/stressed.
 Soliloquy: an act of speaking one's thoughts
aloud when alone or regardless of hearers.
 Aside: an actor's remark addressed to the
audience rather than the other characters.
Key Terms Cont.
 Monologue: a long “speech” by one
character to another character.
 Tragic Flaw: a personality trait of the tragic
hero which leads to his downfall.
 Anachronism: the placing of something in
the wrong historical period.
 Tragedy: a play in which events turn out
disastrously for the main character or
characters.
Works Cited
Bloom, Harold, ed. William Shakespeare’s “Julius
Caesar.” New York: Chelsea House, 1988.

O’ Brien, Peggy, ed. Shakespeare Set Free. New


York: Washington Square Press, 1993.

Rosenblum, Joseph, ed. A Reader’s Guide to


Shakespeare. New York: Salem Press, Inc.,
1999.

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