Shakespeare's Caesar in “The Tragedy of Julius Caesar” is often mistaken for a tyrant. This view comes from the characterization of Caesar through the eyes of Cassius and Brutus. The qualities of Caesar that make him a martyr rather than a tyrant are often overshadowed by the accusing finger of Cassius and the calculating eye of Brutus. In the play, Caesar is the kind of politician who puts on a show, hence the big party upon his return to Rome, parading like a celebrity. Throughout the play, it is difficult to discover who the real Caesar is. The parallels of Caesar's character do not, however, stop at the interpretation of the tyrant or the martyr. His journey and betrayal parallel the martyrdom of Jesus Christ. Caesar's death follows the three pillars of martyrdom presented by Christ; put to death, died because of his teachings and for refusing to apostatize, and the commemoration of his death by his disciples. A close analysis of the play will reveal that Caesar is not a bloodthirsty tyrant as Cassius describes him, but rather a martyr to his fellow Romans, just as Christ is to the Christian faith. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay It is easy to mistake Caesar for a tyrant because of his excessive ego and hubris. When Caesar first enters the scene in Act 1, he is revered by the Romans for his success in battle, even though the Populists oppose it. Caesar's arrival in Rome is not the ideal image for a humble martyr like Christ. When Jesus enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, he rides alone on a donkey, without being carried by crowds of admirers or by the leader of an army. In the aspect of war, Jesus seems to be the anti-Caesar. Jesus' nation was weak and he rejected violence, while Caesar's popularity and influence grew through the battles he fought. Even if Caesar's entrance does not match that of the Almighty, that does not mean that he is the Antichrist or that he is a tyrant demanding that he be worshipped. For the Romans, Caesar was their salvation. Time and again he had protected them from war. Without Caesar, the Romans would have been under tyranny. Just like the Christians, the Romans offer themselves and ultimately their free lives to the divinity they created. At times in the play it seems as if Caesar himself is unsure of who he is among the Roman population. Thanks to his military status and populist stance, he had become the most popular and powerful political leader of his time. He has created this turbulent God-like public persona, but on the other hand, he also has the fear of plotting against Cassius. In the scene of the first act, two lines 193 to 194, the human fear of Caesar's death and the "hungry look" of Cassisus. Although fear creeps into Caesar's intuition, the need to assert his own immortality forces him to ignore the prophecy. In the same scene, line 197, he insists: “But I do not fear it... Rather, I tell you what to fear. But who is this Caesar? Much of what the audience learns about Caesar in subsequent scenes is filtered through Cassius' point of view. While Cassius and Brutus depict him as a great tyrant, it is evident through his fear that Caesar is still human and has not completely transformed into a divinity Not to mention Caesar's own insecurities, when offered the crown, the fears of. Brutus's loss of power in the present republic is evident in the second act scene 1 Lines 12-15 and 33-36, Brutus compares Caesar to an "egg."snake” which should be eliminated before it hatches. The serpent symbol refers to the Garden of Eden and original sin instead of comparing Caesar to the Savior. , Brutus instead compares Caesar to sin itself. Caesar's fear of tyranny is not due to the fact that he is a tyrant but rather to the fear that he might become one. But is this fear misplaced for the tyrant? Rome's greater good, but Shakespeare portrays him as weak and sick. Early in the play, it is evident that the great Caesar even has a hearing impairment when he tells Antony to speak into his good ear: "Come to my right," he instructs Antony, "for this ear is deaf, and tell me truly what you think of him". Shakespeare portrays Caesar in this way as a representation of his refusal to heed the advice of others as well as his own intuitions. Unlike Caesar, the story shows that Jesus Christ actually followed the advice of his 12 disciples While both men sensed the imminent danger they found themselves in among their followers, neither of them paid attention to the intuitions and "soothsayers." Shakespeare's play, Act 1, Scene 3, it becomes evident that Caesar also suffers from epileptic fits "He fell in the market place, foamed at the mouth and was left speechless." , Caesar's epileptic shock was brought on by the crowd's cheers for him to become king. Cassius also complains about Caesar's epilepsy and, like Casca, with notes of disdain. Shakespeare may choose to present Caesar in this way to humanize him or to present the argument that he was never actually a threat to the Republic. It seems that both Cassius and Brutus are angry because Caesar seems so human, not at all like the deity that the populace made him out to be. The doubt of both men reflects the doubt Jesus faced from his disciples. Every man expected the Savior to be a great being, but he was greeted by a simple man. When the Savior's prophecy was announced, many expected a great hero to appear, but it was a little child who was to take over all the lands and lead a great army for the Christian people. Jesus, like Caesar, seemed weak and harmless, but yet King Herod, similar to Cassius, ordered Christ's death because he posed a threat to the future of Herod's free will. What the conspirators fail to realize is that Jesus and Caesar exerted their influence over the people, not because they were tyrants, but because they were "flesh and blood." Although Caesar is not a true deity, he gives a speech similar to the "I am" speeches given by Jesus Christ. In Act 3, Scene 1, lines 64-79, Caesar gives his famous speech "I am the brightest star in the sky." Caesar claims to be the most "constant" man in the universe because he has risen above flesh and blood, above the apprehensions of man. He claims that man's personal appeals and temptations no longer influence his will. Caesar's ability to resist the appeals of men is similar to Christ's ability to resist the temptation of the sins of the world. When Caesar aligns himself with the “north star,” he attempts to rise above all other men. This elevation is representative of Christ's closeness to God. In John chapter 8 verse 12, Jesus said, “I am the light of the world; whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. Along with Caesar's claims, Christ says he is the guiding star. The elevation of Christ to the Father gives Jesus the power to act in a world hungry for some kind of guide and truth. Due to thiselevation that Caesar obtained, he claims to be the only man in all of Rome capable of ruling Rome, just as Christ became the only man free from sin, which resulted in his worship. This elevation of Caesar speaks volumes not only about the equality with which Caesar treats the population, but also about his character. Regardless of their action among the population and their rise to justice, both men are betrayed by their supporters, which arguably constitutes the greatest defense to support the martyrdom of Caesar and Christ. The betrayals of Christ and Caesar failed in that they were meant to hinder each man's free will, but instead granted true immortality through their deaths. Caesar turns out to be the victim of manipulation rather than its master among his followers. He commits no sin of tyranny, just a strong sense of selfishness. It is his popularity among the common wealth that gives him a certain freedom to act even throughout his death. When Caesar is betrayed by Brutus, he is surprised, not because he thought Brutus must adore him, but because they were true friends. Brutus betrays Caesar in the same way that Judas betrays Christ; It's all about greed. Brutus may claim that he wants Caesar gone because he fears the Republic will fall to tyranny, but in reality he is only entertaining the thoughts of his own agency that Cassius plants in his brain. Brutus is the most realistic character in the play. When he doubts Caesar's speech, we are confronted with the inner turmoil that Brutus faces when he contemplates Caesar's murder. If Caesar had truly been a dictator, Brutus would have no inner conflict about ousting him or being involved in the assassination. Although tyranny seems to be the main affliction, it is the traitor's lawless behavior that spurs the tyranny created by Caesar's death. Just like Caesar's betrayal, Christ also loses his beloved friends to greed. For just thirty pieces of silver, Judas is willing to break his connection with Christ in order to improve himself. Cassius and Brutus did the same thing for much less money. In the betrayal of Christ, Cassius can be seen as the representative of Judas while Brutus can be seen as the representative of Peter. Peter only begins to question Christ's free will when the calculating greed of Judas seeps into the disciples. Faced with this hint of doubt, Peter denied Christ three times on the night of the Last Supper. It is these betrayals by close friends that force the hand of martyrdom regarding the deaths of Caesar and Jesus Christ. Caesar's murder occurs "about the ninth hour" just as Christ finally dies on the Cross at "the ninth hour" (Luke 23:44-45; Matthew 27:26; Mark 15:34). Caesar's death was supposed to free the Romans from his "tyrannical" powers, but instead it created anarchy within the city. Caesar seems all-powerful at first, but he is not actually divine. Caesar's greatness is punctuated. He appears unbreakable but turns out to be only “flesh and blood”. He transforms into the savior of Rome, but when he is killed, he becomes the aggressor of Rome. Caesar, whom Cassius mocks with envy for having established himself as "one man", "one man" ends up as a "bleeding piece of earth". Caesar may be pierced by knives while Christ is pierced by nails and a spear, but the result is always the same. As presented in the Gospels, Christ's death on the Cross is the story of the voluntary suffering of the "one man", "one man", who is in fact divine. This man, Jesus, seems weak at first, regardless of his divine status. It is called to, 2014.