The [I]real[/I] hero of the play Julius Caesar

[vani]

i really like the play julius caesar and i'm doing a project on it for school - who's the real hero of the play Julius Caesar. and i'm tornbetween julius and brutus - both are vital characters and have many plus and minus points as well. i was just wondering who people were generally in favour of ;)

[Aramis]

Welcome to the forums, vani! :) Just to let you know, there's a similar thread here (http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7607). You might be interested in reading that and possibly joining in the conversation. Hope to see you around. :nod:

[eacar]

hello everbody. i need your help about julius caesar's name. why he is called julius (july) caesar (to cut the womb to take the baby) ?
altough critics state that brutus is the protagonist, why this tragedy is called julius caesar?

[Erika_Drake]

Actually, the words July and Caesarean section are taken from Julius Caesar's name.

The Romans named to month of July after Julius Caesar. Likewise, August comes from Augustus Caesar, Julius' nephew, who was originally known as Octavian (he shows up towards the end of the play).

According to one story, Julius was born through a caesarean operation and for some reason this procedure got named after him. Some historians doubt that this story is true because Julius Caesar's mother survived the operation, which would have been quite unlikely back then.
Wikipedia explains it better:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caesarian#Etymology

As for Brutus or Caesar being the protagonist, its your own opinion. Although, a Caesar is dead by act three and there is very little character development up to the point where his friends kill him, I'm thinking Brutus makes the better protagonist. Perhaps the reason Shakespeare named the play Julius Caesar was because Caesar's name was known better. Also, Caesar probably had the better reputation at the time. If you read Dante's Inferno, Brutus is being punished for his betrayal in the very depths of Hell, his deed judged as being as evil as Judas' betrayal of Jesus according to Christian beliefs.

And on that note, have fun reading the rest of the play!


Qui est en droit de vous rendre absurde est en droit de vous rendre injuste.
Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities. - Voltaire

[Sankar Sarma]

even i hav been told to write an essay like it