Julius Caesar: Act IV Notes English 10 Greater Atlanta Christian School

Opening of Act 4: The act opens with Antony in conference with Octavius and Lepidus. It seems that little time has elapsed, but actually it has been more than a year and a half. There has been a lot of political jockeying since the funeral and much is still uncertain

Opening of Act 4: Antony had discovered that he really wasn’t the leader that Caesar was. He also found Octavius to be a rather challenging enemy. Cicero had also been gaining power and popularity with his speeches. They were wrecking Antony like Antony had wrecked Brutus earlier.

Opening of Act 4: Antony believed that the best way to gain back lost ground politically was to have a military victory. He knew that Decius (the closest of the conspirators to Rome at the time) was in charge of a nearby province, so he attacked and started a civil war. This backfired on Antony very quickly.

Opening of Act 4: As soon as Antony had led his troops out of Rome, Octavius entered the scene and convinced the Senate to declare Antony a “public enemy.” This cut off any Senatorial support for Antony and led to a miserable military failure on the battlefields.

Opening of Act 4: Octavius now assumes the position as master of Rome. He convinces the Senate to finally recognize him as the true heir to Caesar. To prove his worth, he himself led an attack on Decius. Octavius was no fighter, but the name of Caesar had the opposition fleeing.

Opening of Act 4: Even Decius himself chose to flee instead of facing the new Roman master. Octavius pursued him, captured him and had him executed. The result was skyrocketing reputation and popularity. All seemed well for Octavius.

Opening of Act 4: Brutus & Cassius had finally finished consolidating their power over the eastern section of the Empire. They foresaw a future where Octavius and Antony would continue to battle each other and they would both lose. That would allow the conspiracy to take charge of Rome.

Opening of Act 4: Lepidus knew this to be true so he worked to bring Antony and Octavius together. He succeeded and 20 months after the assassination of Caesar, the triumvirate was established. The fourth act opens after this triumvirate had been formed.

A New Power is Born: Shakespeare gives us the first look at the Triumvirate in a very gruesome way. The group needs money, and the best way to get it quickly was to declare certain wealthy citizens guilty of treason, execute them and take their money. It would be a great way to get rid of personal enemies at the same time.

A New Power is Born: These staged deaths have to be chosen carefully, though. One leader’s enemy might be a friend or relative of one of the other two leaders. If that friend is to be sacrificed then the one arranging the execution was expected to sacrifice someone close to them.

A New Power is Born: One of the gruesome side deals involved Antony demanding that Octavius kill Cicero because Octavius had demanded the death of a close friend of Antony. Octavius hated to do it, but kept his end of the bargain. It is the darkest act of his entire reign.

A New Power is Born: Now the Triumvirate can turn to military matters as their next area of concern. It was going to be time for a showdown between those on the side of Octavius and Antony and those with the conspirators. Brutus & Cassius were smart to join forces as they saw this battle becoming inevitable

Checking in With Brutus’ Camp: For the 1 st time in the play, the action shifts to outside of Rome. The scene is in Brutus’ camp outside of the city of Sardis. One of Brutus’ aides informs him of the approach of Cassius and his forces. When he arrives in the camp, all is not well

Checking in With Brutus’ Camp: Because they had been separated by distance, Brutus & Cassius had developed a lot of grievances toward each other. Brutus scolds Cassius because of his greed Cassius had sold appointments to high offices as a way of raising funds needed for his reign. He had also robbed villages and citizens.

Checking in With Brutus’ Camp: Brutus is one to be talking here! He had done the same in the past year or so also! He just needs a reason to be upset with Cassius! If Brutus robs, it is noble. If Cassius does, it is a crime! It sounds like the SAME OLD BRUTUS!! He’s scolding Cassius for robbing, but it’s okay for him to share in the spoils of it.

Checking in With Brutus’ Camp: For a change, it is Cassius who backs away from this barrage of attacks. The scene ends with some reconciliation between the two. Brutus is quick to praise himself as being slow to anger and quick to forgive. HE JUST DOES NOT GET IT!!

Checking in With Brutus’ Camp: Brutus explains to Cassius that the reason for his momentary burst of anger was that his wife, Portia, is dead. He says that she died from swallowing hot coals. It seems so unbelievable that you wonder if he is covering up some other kind of death.

Checking in With Brutus’ Camp: Maybe she did something foolish like leaving a fire unventilated and died from carbon monoxide poisoning?? He could be distorting the events to add a degree of the “fantastic” to his wife’s situation. It would not be hard to imagine him exaggerating.

Checking in With Brutus’ Camp: A very odd scene happens next. A messenger from Rome arrives and Brutus maneuvers him into revealing that Portia is dead (even though he already knows that). Why all of this????

What Really Happened Here?? One theory is that Shakespeare wanted to show Brutus as a Stoic. This is someone who looks to remain calm in dark times and face difficulty with little emotion. However, it is possible that Shakespeare might have thought the English audiences would not go for Brutus’ “calm” reaction too well. After all, death is always tragic!

What Really Happened Here?? This would lead to Shakespeare writing the scene where Brutus reveals the death to Cassius and gets very worked up over it. That reaction would play better with English play-goers. To bring this theory to a close, though, means that both scenes appeared as a mistake in printing or copying of the script.

What Really Happened Here?? I’m not so sure that is the case. As the messenger was in the process of entering, Cassius says something about Portia being gone and Brutus scolds him for bringing up in front of the messenger. It’s as if Brutus wants to face the news from the messenger and not have Cassius tell him.

What Really Happened Here?? If this is true, it is another example of Brutus being vain and seeking praise. If he appears to take such tragic news (supposedly for the first time) and remain calm, he will (and does) get praised for his self-control by the messenger and the messenger will tell others how well Brutus handled such a tough piece of news.

Back to the story… Before the messenger is forced into the news of Portia, he tells of the mass killings going on in Rome at the hands of the Triumvirate. He informs Brutus of the death of Cicero. Brutus then tells the messenger that he has received letters detailing Antony and Octavius’ advance on Brutus’ positions.

Back to the story… The news tells of Antony and Octavius moving eastward toward the city of Phillipi to begin their assault on Brutus and Cassius and their forces. The key here for Brutus is how to respond to such a tactic. Cassius takes the conservative route and advises remaining on the defensive.

Back to the story… Of course, Brutus disagrees with that approach. He points out that the provinces between where they are now and where Antony’s forces are now are angry from being looted by Brutus and Cassius and will join quickly with Antony.

Back to the story… Right now, Brutus and Cassius have a rather large army and if they wait, it is likely to start declining in numbers. So…once again Brutus has contradicted Cassius. So…once again will Brutus’ judgment be proven wrong!

A Visitor for Brutus: After ending his discussion with Cassius, Brutus retires to his tent. He actually seems noble here as he checks on his servants and makes sure they are in good shape. He then settles down to read a book when he has a flurry of emotion and cries out…

A Visitor for Brutus: The ghost of Caesar has come to visit Brutus. Brutus boldly faces him at first. The only thing the ghost tells him is that they will meet again at Phillipi. The act ends with this ominous and rather scary scene.