Republican Virtue in Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar"

In the traditional RomanRepublic a truly impressive individual leads a public and political life, and defines republican virtue through their actions. Virtuous men are honorable and noble, and more importantly, virtue to the Romans means a love and responsibility for their nation that overshadows all other aspects of their lives. In Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" he points to the character of Brutus as the exemplar of republican virtue. Constantly referenced as the most noble of men in Rome, he possesses a rigid set of republican principles. He struggles throughout the play to live by his idealism for a perfect RomanRepublic, and is consistently plagued by an inner struggle as to what is the most virtuous course of action. Putting aside personal emotions and reason, his decisions are based purely on his ideas of what is the best for his nation. In an ironic twist of fate though, most every time he follows what he believes to be the most virtuous path, he ends up hurting the very cause he seeks to protectThus, Shakespeare begs the question as to why such true virtue can go so wrong. Brutus embodies perfect republican virtue with too much constancy, and his stubborn refusal to accept change ultimately becomes his demise.

Renown for his remarkably noble and idealistic nature, Brutus thus becomes the target for much manipulation and deceit. His principles are much too idealistic for their present world, and the republican virtues that he so exemplifies are quickly becoming obsolete in a nation ready for change. He is first duped by Cassius who convinces him that Caesar is a great threat to their traditional Republic and must be killed. Though he enters into a great internal debate as to the nobility of this act, and eventually comes to a conclusion that fits into his principles, there is no doubt that Cassius has pushed him in that direction. Cassius know that his "honorable mettle may be wrought From that it is disposed" (I.ii.309-310), carefully planting the ideas of tyranny and ambition in his mind and cultivating these with a forged letter from the Roman people to Brutus complaining of Caesar. His naivety prevents him from seeing the true nature of Cassius and the conspirators to the very end, despite signs of their true nature. When he discovers that Cassius and the others have been gaining funds through wrongful means, he asks "What villain touched [Caesar's] body, that did stab, And not for justice?" (IV.ii.72-73). He still cannot comprehend the idea of murder for a non-virtuous reason and continues to believe that the conspirators committed the act with the same noble motive as he. In actuality, Brutus is the only truly noble and virtuous character in the entire play.

Unlike the other conspirators, Brutus' participation in the plot to murder Caesar is derived not from selfish desires or envy. Even Antony states that "He only in a general honest thought And common good to all made one of them" (V.v.70-71), separating Brutus from the others as the only noble one. Brutus joins Cassius and the others, believing it to be a preemptive strike against the dangers of a single authoritarian. Admitting that at the present, Caesar has not yet become dictatorial nor displayed poor characteristics of a ruler, Brutus emphasizes what may happen if Caesar is crowned. His entire idea is based on possibilities, and he must decide if Caesar is indeed too great of a liability. As he struggles with his own mind, he dubs Caesar "a serpent's egg, Which, hatched, would as his kind grow mischievous, And kill him in the shell" (II.i.32-34). He attempts to settle his doubts with the assurance that it is inevitable that Caesar's nature would change to that of a tyrannical ruler once he is handed the crown. Despite the fact Caesar does not have a history of tyranny, Brutus claims that it is "But... a common proof That lowliness is young ambition's ladder" (II.i.21-22) and that "when [man] attains the upmost round, He then unto the ladder turns his back... scorning the base degrees By which he did descend" (II.i.24-27). Brutus believes that ambition has a tendency to overtake a person, allowing them to forget the true reasons for ascent upon that ladder. Hence, he fears the great ambition in Caesar, witnessing its rapid growth.

Ambition has no place in Brutus' republican virtues, and this is what he claims to be Caesar's downfall. To Brutus, a person should never seek to reach such a pinnacle of glory that Caesar has ascended upon, or else they run the risk of tainting their power with their own needs or desires, as opposed to those of the republic. The nation must place limits on their leaders, so that they can be great only to a certain extent. Caesar begins to display many signs of increasing arrogance and ambition. He believes that there are none equal to his abilities and intends to stay in power, stating that he is "constant as the Northern Star, Of whose true fixed and resting quality There is no fellow in the firmament" (III.i.60-62). Brutus acknowledges that with such great ambition comes a heavy price in the Roman Republic, and as Caesar falls dead, he cries out that "Ambition's debt is paid" (III.i.82). He then proceeds to tell the plebes "But as [Caesar] was ambitious, I slew him" (III.ii.26), claiming that the only means to deal with such ambition is by death. Only with an absolute end to Caesar's life can he prevent the ambition from having any possibility of growing into tyranny, and thereby destroy the Republic of Rome.

The threat of Caesar's tyranny is essentially a threat to the traditional RomanRepublic. Cassius speaks to Brutus' love for the traditional Rome, asking him "Now is it Rome indeed, and room enough When there is in it but one only man?" (I.ii.157-158). To Brutus, there is nothing as important as the preservation of the Republic, and the Republic as he knows it is based on the rule by the people. Hence, the idea of a king does not fit into his views of Roman government. To the conspirators he references precedence in their nation, saying that his "ancestors did from the streets of Rome The Tarquin drive when he was called a king" (II.ii.53-54). Yet, Brutus is too pure in his ideals, absolutely refusing to concede to change. In his chain of virtuous logic, justifying his participation in the death of Caesar, he refuses to comprehend the end of the traditional Republic as he knows it. This naive obstinacy becomes his tragic flaw, leading to the first of many errors that actually aid in the rapid destruction of the Republic.

Eager to remain the most virtuous and noble man, Brutus does not heed warning or reason. Easily able to prevent severe repercussions with the death of Antony, he vehemently opposes the idea. Claiming that to kill Antony would be "Like wrath in death and envy afterwards" (II.ii.164), he desires to separate the death of Caesar from a violent deed. In his mind, to kill Antony would be blood shed for no apparent noble cause, and he says to the conspirators "Let's be sacrificers, but not butchers" (II.ii.166). Brutus desires to maintain the appearance of virtue for the people, and for this, he spares the life of Antony, whom he considers "but a limb of Caesar" (II.ii.165). Cassius protests this decision, a foreshadowing of the deep mistake that has been made by Brutus. Even after the death of Caesar, Brutus continues to be blinded by his naive idealism, believing that Antony would understand their motives, as Brutus felt them to be entirely noble in nature. It is here that he makes another mistake.

Despite a failure to prevent Antony from his actions by sparing his life, Brutus does not yet see his mistake in the aftermath of Caesar's death. He makes yet another error in allowing Antony to speak at his funeral, believing still in the honor and justice behind his actions. Citing the importance of maintaining the image of virtue, Brutus claims that "It shall advantage more than do us wrong" (III.i.244). Again, he ignores the warnings of Cassius and allows Antony to prepare the body. Brutus' speech is in prose, and rather difficult for the people to really comprehend. Though he wins the people to his side, the true meaning behind his actions, a noble deed to preserve the traditional RomanRepublic, is completely lost. The plebes respond to his speech by crying "Caesar's better parts Shall be crowned in Brutus" (III.ii.51-52), clamoring for Brutus to now take the very crown whose existence for which he had slain Caesar. Antony is easily able to win the crowd to his side from Brutus' and turn them against the conspirators, being a master of rhetoric. He lets loose a riotous crowd, and thus divides the nation, preparing it for revolution. Speaking over Caesar's dead body before he addressed the crowd, he says that "Domestic fury ad fierce civil strife Shall cumber all parts of Italy" (III.i.266-267). He makes official what is inevitable, and begins a rapid destruction of traditional Rome. Brutus' attempts to live virtuously backfire as the Republican principles he so seeks to defend fall quickly into ruin with the aid of Antony and Octavius' armies.

Brutus is the quintessential virtuous man of the traditional RomanRepublic, struggling to adhere strictly to every aspect of republican principles even as that Republic is crumbling around him. He views the most important part of his life as that public and political part, and strives to obtain always what is for the good of the people. His love for Caesar is genuine, and the fact that he murders a friend plagues him to the end. Right before the conspirators stab Caesar, Brutus mumbles "That every like is not the same, O Caesar, The heart of Brutus ernes to think upon" (II.ii.128-129), grieving for the facade of geniality he must continue before betraying a friend. Later, in his speech to the plebes, he says that he "slew [his] best lover for the good of Rome, [he has] the same dagger for [himself] when it shall please [his] country to need [his] death" (III.ii.43-36), claiming that he too will give up his life if it is in the best interest of Rome. It is almost too soon, when Brutus' words come to pass, as his defeat by Antony and Octavius is unavoidable. The internal struggles to live by the principles reigns in him until the very end, as he says "Caesar, now be still, I killed not thee with half so good a will" (V.v.50-51). He acknowledges that he has seen the ghost of Caesar, and that the indecision surrounding the death of his friend does not exist at his own suicide. The death of Brutus symbolizes an end to traditional Rome, and the destruction of republican virtue as it was known in the past.

As it becomes evident that Antony and Octavius will be the victors in their struggle for Rome, Brutus emerges as the tragic hero. Cassius' death marks the end of an era, and Titinius exclaims "The sun of Rome is set. Our day is gone" (V.iii.62), recognizing the end to the traditional Republic. The "vile conquest" (V.v.38), as dubbed by Brutus, by Antony and Octavius has won, and yet despite his acceptance that the old Rome has fallen, Brutus refuses to become a part of their new government. He tells Cassius earlier "Think not... That ever Brutus will go bound to Rome. He bears too great a mind" (V.i.112-113). To the end he mourns the death of the Republic, not for the implications it will have on his own standing in the government, but for the loss of meaning in his life. In the last moments before his death, he is honored as a "noble vessel" (V.v.13), the completely noble man. Even in their victory, Antony and Octavius honor his true virtue and nobility, claim that "the elements So mixed in [Brutus] that nature might stand up And say to all the world 'This was a man' " (V.v.72-74). Brutus lives and dies by his republican virtues, and in this becomes the champion of a deteriorated Republic, the ideal man of traditional nobility.

Brutus is doomed from the very start to die according to his principles, as the RomanRepublic as he knows it is already headed towards its collapse. He is indeed the perfect exemplar of republican virtue in Rome, as he makes every decision in his life based upon the republican principles of the traditional RomanRepublic. Sacrificing desires and overcoming personal emotions, Brutus strives to be noble in his every act. Yet, as with every Shakespearean tragic hero, he possesses a flaw that becomes his demise. His inability to cope with change and to adapt essentially turns the results of his virtuous acts against him. In a bitter act of irony, the very Republic he was trying so hard to protect deteriorates that much quicker as a result of his actions. Brutus is hailed as essentially the perfect Roman citizen, but he is too idealistic and obstinate in his virtues to survive in a real and changing Rome. Though Brutus embodies the republican virtues of traditional Rome, he can not comprehend the idea of cultural relativism. Principles that define the nobility and virtues of a man must change according to the changing governments. Brutus' tragic death states that ultimately, there exists no timeless standard of republican virtue.