Essays on Plays

1787

Reading King Lear Through The Prism of Jacobean Context

3 pages / 1330 words

If you used the word faggot in Shakespeare’s time; you wouldn’t be called a homophobe, you’d simply be referring to a bundle of sticks. If you considered women less capable than men; you wouldn’t be called a misogynist, you’d be a Jacobean realist. If you...

King Lear

1788

Parallels Between The Death of The Christ and Julius Caesar

5 pages / 2223 words

Shakespeare’s Caesar in “The Tragedy of Julius Caesar” is often mistaken as being a tyrant. This view comes from the characterization of Caesar through Cassius and Brutus’ eyes. Caesar’s qualities that make him a martyr instead of a tyrant are often overshadowed by Cassius’ accusing...

Jesus Christ The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1789

A Comparative Analysis of The Prince and Julius Caesar: Pragmatism Over Morality

2 pages / 1015 words

A comparative study of two texts reveals context as the primary influence upon the interplay between pragmatism and personality morality in an individual’s pursuit and consolidation of power. Driven by an overarching contextual desire for stable government, Niccolò Machiavelli’s The Prince (1513) and William Shakespeare’s...

The Prince The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1790

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar: Building Tension in Play's Turning Act

2 pages / 889 words

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar: Building Tension in Play’s Turning Act Act 2, Scene 1 of Julius Caesar, from lines 1-69, is critically important as it marks a turning point in the play. The two characters appearing are Brutus and his servant, Lucius. Brutus, having...

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1791

Mark Antony's Dualistic Character in Julius Caesar

8 pages / 3891 words

We meet the character of Mark Antony three times before Julius Caesar’s death, though he speaks little and we do not get much of an indication of his character. Antony fully enters the play exactly halfway through, when he makes a gripping speech, and his...

Character The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1792

Dynamics Between Characters as Major Mean of Plot Construction

3 pages / 1328 words

Although the characters of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar can not be easily classified because of their emotional depth and mental complexity, one can draw certain conclusions about them based on the attributes that they possess. Shakespeare uses the intricacy of the characters’ personalities to...

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1793

Analysis of Self-deluded Characters in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar

2 pages / 949 words

The main characters in Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Julius Caesar have distorted self-perception, showing throughout the play that they see themselves as actors in a great historical play rather than actual people (Van Laan 139). Brutus, Antony, Cassius, and Caesar all overact in a sense and...

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1794

Cassius: The Master of Persuasion

3 pages / 1425 words

“For who so firm that cannot be seduced?” (1.2.312). Cassius’ muttered soliloquy in William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Julius Caesar immediately calls attention to his goal of manipulating people. A man well versed in rhetoric, he puts to good use his knowledge of persuading and...

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1795

Brutus as a Tragic Hero in Julius Caesar

3 pages / 1637 words

The title of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar is often criticized, argued that it should be titled Brutus, as Marcus Brutus is the tragic hero. However, the title is appropriate, as Julius Caesar, though insignificant as an actor in the play since he dies in Act 3...

Character The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1796

Gender Roles' Dynamics in Julius Caesar

3 pages / 1678 words

Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar opens with the concurrent celebrations of Caesar’s defeat of Pompey and the annual fertility festival of Lupercal. The coupling of the two historically separate events each celebrating distinct gender roles dramatically highlights the importance of gender characterization. Rome’s patriarchal society demands a...

Gender Roles The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1797

A Comparison of Brutus's and Antony's Speeches: Why Antony's Speech Was More Effective

3 pages / 1540 words

Introduction In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar speech plays an important role in the plot. The people in play are easily persuaded into opposing viewpoints though both Anthony’s and Brutus’s speeches. In Brutus’s speech he says “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I...

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1798

Brutus Character: Becoming a Hero Through Changes

2 pages / 883 words

In Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Caesar is a soon-to-be monarch who is murdered by a group called the Conspirators whose justification for their actions may be debated. Throughout the story, Brutus switches sides several times, starting as Caesar’s best friend, then going on to kill Caesar,...

Character The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1799

Controversial and Powerful Character of Portia in Julius Caesar

3 pages / 1409 words

After a close look at today’s society, an observer will find that within all healthy relationships, both people are equal partners. Today, this equality is something we believe to be a result of our basic human rights. However, in Shakespearean times, women were considered to...

Character The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1800

Rhetorical Figures and Means of Expression in Julius Caesar

3 pages / 1386 words

In William Shakespeare’s tragic play Julius Caesar, the contrast between honor and power in a leadership position is presented as many individuals work to better Rome with their own ideals of national glory. Brutus and his followers pursue the idea that Julius Caesar was not...

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1801

The Power of Argumentation in Julius Caesar

1 page / 794 words

Arguments are the pinnacle of progress, development and change. People with conflicting ideas and beliefs engage in this activity constantly. However, did you know that arguments actually come down to a science? In 4th century B.C.E, Aristotle theorized that a well formed argument must include...

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar William Shakespeare

1802

Escaping Through Manipulations in "Hedda Gabler"

2 pages / 1242 words

Introduction In Henrik Ibsen’s acclaimed play Hedda Gabler, the main female character, Hedda Gabler, is a modern woman striving to attain her desires through manipulation. She persistently endeavors to create a world that matches her masculine character by exploiting the people around her. Gabler also...

Hedda Gabler

1803

Sociatal Expectations and Suicide in Hedda Gabler and Hamlet

6 pages / 2938 words

Both William Shakespeare, likely the greatest English playwright of all time, and Henrik Ibsen, arguably one of the most brilliant and influential modern dramatists, are known not only for the power of their tragedies but also for their memorable female characters. Among the most famous...

Hedda Gabler

1804

Hedda Gabler's Beautiful Illusion in Ibsen's Play

2 pages / 1017 words

Introduction Henrik Ibsen depicts Hedda Gabler as a woman who is trapped in her own life. Hedda has a thirst for life which she has not satisfied. She prefers a life filled with excitement, thrills, and courageous situations: “There was something really beautiful and fascinating...

Hedda Gabler

1805

Male Characters with The Constraint and Illusions in The "Hedda Gabler"

3 pages / 1451 words

Introduction For centuries, authors have strived to use their literary texts as a medium for social change and justice – conveying their thoughts and ideas on a variety of key issues and themes. In Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen and Master Harold and the Boys...

Hedda Gabler