Julius Caesar Shakespeare

William Shakespeare 1564-1616 Raised by a merchant family in Stratford-on-Avon 1582: married Anne Hathaway 1592: became an actor and playwright Actors and playwrights were not reputable citizens at the time

William Shakespeare Gained the patronage of Lord Chamberlain and then King James Great plays include Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616 Buried at the Holy Trinity Church at Stratford

Elizabethan Theatre Thrust stage, entrances from two sides of the stage, curtain in the back, “heavens” above the stage Imagination was the most important prop All actors were male, female roles were played by young boys

Elements of Drama Foreshadowing: dreams and omens that allude to future events Soliloquies: dramatic speech in which a character reveals his/her innermost thoughts by speaking alone on stage (Brutus- a. II, sc. I) Asides: a brief remark made by a character that the other characters cannot hear (Trebonius & Brutus- a. II, sc. II) Monologues: a long speech made by a character while alone or in the company of other characters (Antony & Brutus’s funeral orations- a. III, sc. II)

Julius Caesar Julius Caesar written 1598-1599 Based on Plutarch’s Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans Emphasis on leadership, ambition, and honor in drama reflects questions in Elizabethan England

Julius Caesar Queen Elizabeth was in poor health with no heir Elizabethans questioned what would happen to their peaceful country of 40 years after her death The play taps into Elizabethan desire for a stable government and fear of continued civil wars

Rome and Caesar During Caesar’s time (~60 B.C.) Roman empire was in continuous wars of conquest Independent armies lead by powerful generals conquered land, governs then ruled and extracted taxes Commonly generals would turn on one another and fight- power was short lived in the Roman Empire

Caesar and Pompey Julius Caesar begins after Caesar has defeated Pompey and established himself as leader (~49 B.C.) Caesar and Pompey were friends, formed the First Triumvirate (3-man gov’t) Caesar leaves Rome to fight the Gallic Wars around Europe

Caesar and Pompey As Caesar gains power, he gains favor with the Roman people and loses favor with Pompey and the Roman Senate Caesar refuses the Senate’s order to give up his command and return to Rome as a private citizen Instead he takes over Rome and runs Pompey out, eventually defeating the armies of Pompey’s 3 sons

Rome and Caesar Around March 15, 44 B.C., Caesar had won the favor of the citizens and sought ultimate power “Free Romans” such as the senators refused to have the Roman Republic ruled by a king Julius Caesar examines the plot of certain senators to assassinate Caesar

Major Themes Leadership (qualities) Superstition/ Divine Fate Ambition Honor Politics

Class Activities Soliloquy buster Bring in magazine/newspaper articles focused on current leaders. Vote to decide if Caesar should be assassinated end of speech a. III, sc. I, ln. 58-73 In groups rewrite scene/section of play as modern version