English II Grade 10
Friday, June 10, 2005
ENGLISH II (CP) GRADE 10 PERIODS 2, 4 & 5
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William Shakespeare’s
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READING
ASSIGNMENTS
Date Assigned | Reading Assignment | Completion Date |
Friday, | ACT | Monday, |
Monday, | ACT | Wednesday |
Wednesday June 8th | ACT III | Friday June 10th |
Friday | ACT | Monday, |
Monday, | ACT | Wednesday |
Below is a list of the characters of the play. Because
there are so many, you may want to use this page to jot down some notes to
remind you of each character's role in the play.
Flavius Marcellus Julius Casca Calpurnia Mark Soothsayer Brutus Cassius Cicero Cinna | Decius Metellus Trebonius Portia Ligarius Publius Artemidorus Papilius Octavius Lepidus Pindarus | Messala Varro Claudius Titinius Cato Clitus Dardanius Volumnius Strato - |
Shakespeare's
Characters
Like characters in stories, characters in drama can be flat or round.
Shakespeare is famous for creating his characters with complexity.
Understanding one of Shakespeare's major characters is a little like putting
together the piece of a jigsaw puzzle or mosaic. Among most important pieces
are characters' speeches. Each speech can reveal very different, very
contrasting, sides of characters.
ASSIGNMENTS
2005
I. Students need to choose two major characters from Julius
Caesar and compare and contrast them. They also need to identify
a number of points of comparison and contrast, and for each point explain how
the characters are different and similar. Due Wednesday,
June 8, 2005
personality traits of the characters selected.
| 1st Character | 2nd Character | Specific References from the Play |
Key Traits |
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Goals |
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Changes |
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Concepts to remember
i) To compare means to examine two or more
characters for the purpose of noting the similarities; to contrast means to
examine more than two characters for the purpose of noting the differences.
ii) A character can be flat or round. A flat
character's personality is controlled by very simple or one single trait, while
a round character has many different traits, some of which may seem even
contradictory.
iii) A character may be static or dynamic. A static
character does not change from the beginning of the work of literature to the
end, while dynamic character changes in some way during the course of the work.
This change may be a positive one or negative one.
II. Newspaper Writing
Brutus
·
1, Sc. 2, lines 169-171).
·
good of Rome ( Act 2, Sc. 1, lines 10-34); (Act 3, Sc. 1, lines 178-186).
·
·
1, lines 178-190); (Act 5, Sc. 5, lines 38-42).
·
Finally, his decisions--refusing to agree to the death of Marc Antony (Act 2,
scene 1, lines 161-197), allowing Marc Antony to speak at Caesar's funeral and
to speak last (Act 3, Sc. 1, lines 254-261), and deciding to risk all in one
battle at Philippi (Act 4, Sc. 3, lines 228-237)--prove disastrous to the
conspirators' cause.
Cassius
·
Sc. 2).
·
might become of Rome in such an instance.(Act 1, Sc. 2).
·
Caesar (Act 2, scene 1, lines 161-168). Understanding what can happen, he
advises Brutus not to allow Antony to speak at Caesar's funeral (Act 3, Sc. 1,
lines 250-253).
·
bribes (Act 4, Sc. 3, lines 9-12).
·
and based on sound military principles (Act 4, Sc. 3, lines 219-227).
Marc Antony
·
lines 209-225; 274-295; 302-305).
·
allowed to speak at Caesar's funeral (Act 3, Sc. 1, lines 198-247).
·
(Act 3, Sc. 2, lines 80-260).
·
hearted as he is passionate (Act 4, Sc. 1, lines 1-7).
·
against the legions of Brutus and Cassius (Act 4, Sc. 1, lines 43-50).
Julius Caesar
·
110-125; 225-226; 258-264).
·
293-295).
·
2, lines 6-7; 88-96).
·
2, Sc. 2, lines 11, 51, 60, and 112).
·
63-75).
Calphurnia
She is the wife of
Julius Caesar who fails to dissuade her husband from going to the Capitol on
the Ides of March. She foresees the death of Caesar in a dream, which shows
streams of blood flowing from his body.
Portia
She is the
daughter of Marcus Cato and wife of Brutus, and is a well-educated and
intuitive woman, who senses that her husband is involved in some sort of
conspiracy. When she realizes that her husband’s fortunes are doomed she
commits suicide by swallowing hot coals.
OctaviusCaesar
He is the adopted
son and heir of Julius Caesar and he forms part of the second Triumvirate with
Mark Antony and Lepidus. He does not have the military prowess of Julius Caesar
or Mark Antony and Brutus defeats his army at Philippi. He does not die
with his troops and joins Mark Antony in their victorious battle over Cassius
and Brutus.
Lepidus
This is the third
member of the Triumvirate who is a wealthy banker, but politically weak, and
Antony uses him to run errands.
QUESTIONS – ACT II due
Wednesday June 8th
Act II
1. To
what decision does Brutus come in his orchard? Why?
2.
What does Lucius give to Brutus in Scene I?
3.
Why doesn't Brutus want to swear an oath with the conspirators?
4.
For what reason does Metellus Cimber want Cicero to join the conspiracy?
5.
Brutus is against including Cicero and against killing Mark Antony. Why?
6.
Why did Brutus say, "Render me worthy of this noble wife!"?
7. Of
what does Calpurnia try to convince Caesar?
8.
Caesar yields to Calpurnia's wishes at first. Why does he change his mind and
decide to go to the Senate meeting?
9.
What does the note Artemidorus wants to give to Caesar say?
Act III -
1.
What is ironic about the timing of Caesar's murder (in relation to the
preceding events)?
2. In the moments following Caesar's death, what do the
conspirators proclaim to justify their deed?
3.
Antony's servant brings a message to Brutus. What does he say?
4.
Antony wants to speak at Caesar's funeral. What reaction does Brutus have?
Cassius?
5.
Under what conditions will Antony speak at the funeral?
6.
What did Brutus say to the people at the funeral?
7.
What did Antony say to the people at the funeral in his now famous
"Friends, Romans,
countrymen,
lend me your ears" speech?
8.
Why did Brutus and Cassius flee Rome?
9.
What is the point of Act III Scene III?
Act IV
1.
What did Antony, Octavius, and Lepidus gather to discuss?
2. To
what does Antony compare Lepidus?
3.
What problem has developed between Cassius and Brutus? How is it resolved?
4.
What news did Messala bring Brutus?
5.
For what reasons does Brutus want to lead his armies to Philippi?
6.
What message did Caesar's ghost bring Brutus?
Act V
1.
Why did Pindarus stab Cassius?
2.
What causes Titinius to say, "The sun of Rome is set!"?
3.
Who do the soldiers believe they have captured in Scene IV? Who is it really?
4.
How does Brutus die?
5.
Why did Antony say Brutus was the "noblest Roman of them all"?
THEMES
Major Theme
The major theme of Julius Caesar is that misused power is a corruptive
force. This is seen in the fact that Caesar is a dictator suspected of being
tyrannous, that Cassius is so power hungry that he assassinates Caesar, hoping
to become more powerful himself, and that Antony, Octavius, and Lepidus become
a dictatorial and tyrannical Triumvirate, worse than Caesar ever hinted at
being.
Minor Themes
There are several minor themes that are developed throughout the entire
play. These include the themes of the goodness of loyalty, honor, and
friendship; the evil of pride, conspiracy, and anarchy; the logic of political
order; and the viability of republicanism as a form of government.
MOOD
The mood of Julius Caesar is one of impending doom and catastrophe. From the
beginning, danger lurks in every corner. Friends can no longer be trusted, as
they turn to manipulation and conspiracy and plot their next moves. Images of
violence, blood, and death dominate the visual texture of the play. The weighty
political intrigue is always present throughout the drama. The latter half of
the play even assumes an eerie mood with the appearance of Caesar's ghost,
returning to seek revenge. The closing phase of the play is dominated by the
sinister image of the sword as Cassius, Titinius, and Brutus all commit suicide
by it.
CONFLICT
There has been much critical discussion about who is the real protagonist of
the play. Most critics argue that Julius Caesar is the protagonist of the play,
pointing out that he is the title character and the cause of all the action in
the play. Even in scenes in which he is absent, he is the focus of the
discussion and the reason for the revenge. After his death, his ghost roams the
landscape of the play, further spurring the action. His character definitely
holds the dramatic structure of the play together. Other critics argue that
Caesar is a static character; undergoing no psychological change in the play;
they also point out that he is murdered halfway through the drama. These
critics believe that Marcus Brutus is the protagonist, claiming he is the
complex character of the play whose psyche is explored in depth. They argue
that his tragic flaw is very obvious; it is his immutable sense of principle
and nobility. Because of his flaw, he makes many mistakes and suffers for them;
as a result, he changes dramatically in the play. He first appears as Caesar's
faithful friend; he then becomes a member of a conspiracy; he next serves as
the misguided leader of a not-so-civil war; and finally he is seen as a man who
has lost everything he once held dear, including his principles. In this
analysis, Julius Caesar will be viewed as the protagonist of the main plot, and
Marcus Brutus will be considered as the protagonist of the very important
subplot.
MAIN PLOT
Protagonist
Julius Caesar is an arrogant soldier and ambitious politician, who believes
that he is infallible. After his great victory over the sons of Pompey, he
believes that he is worthy of more power than just being the head of Rome; he
wants to be crowned the leader of the entire Roman Empire.
Antagonists
Caesar's antagonists are Brutus, Cassius, and the other conspirators who do
not want him to become the head of the Roman Empire. They plot to overthrow
Caesar and assassinate him outside the Capitol; he is an easy target because of
his fatal flaw - his extreme "hubris" or pride. Many times, Caesar is
nearly saved by omens and warnings, but he disregards them, thinking himself
infallible. He is so proud that he is easily flattered, leading him to think
less strategically and placing himself in grave danger.
Climax
The tragic plot rises to its climax in the third act when Caesar is
assassinated. It is an intensely dramatic scene in which Caesar's supposed
friends converge on him and jointly stab him. This act of sacrilegious murder
of the head of the state unleashes revolutionary forces headed by Brutus and
Cassius against Antony and Octavius, giving rise to the subplot that centers on
Brutus.
Outcome
The play clearly ends in tragedy. Caesar is overcome and assassinated by a
group of conspirators. His death, which was supposed to prevent tyranny and
dictatorship, gives rise to a massive and brutal civil war. Cassius, the key
conspirator, kills himself; and Brutus runs on his own sword to commit suicide.
A truly dictatorial triumvirate, composed of Antony, Octavius, and Lepidus,
becomes the new leadership for Rome; the new government probably inflicts more
harm than Julius Caesar would have done.
SUBPLOT
Protagonist
Marcus Brutus is the protagonist of the subplot of the play. He is a noble
man who believes in his principles above all else, even when they are
misguided. Believing that Rome will be better without Julius Caesar, he joins
in the conspiracy to assassinate the Roman leader. After Caesar is killed, he
is drawn into a bloody civil war in which he and Cassius must fight Antony and
Octavius.
Antagonist
The key antagonist for Brutus is his own misguided sense of principle. He is
certain that he is joining in the conspiracy to assassinate Caesar for the good
of Rome. His tragic flaw is his idealism. He makes the fatal mistake of acting
on his perceived public duty, to save Rome from Caesar, in direct conflict with
the direction of his heart. Brutus is easily goaded on by Cassius, a master
manipulator who is filled with envy and hungry for power. Brutus is so caught
up in fulfilling his public destiny that he does not realize he has been
manipulated into sacrificing his honor for a less-than-honorable cause.
During the civil war that follows Caesar's death, Brutus fools himself into
believing that that Rome will still be a better place without the leadership of
Caesar. When he realizes that the new Roman Triumvirate, composed of Antony,
Cassius, and Lepidus, will be more dictatorial and tyrannous than Caesar, he
realizes his own folly. He decides to end his own life by running on to his own
sword.
Climax
Brutus' climax occurs when he realizes the futility of his actions, caused
by his misguided principles. Personally shamed and defeated and horrified at
what has happened to Rome, he decides in the fifth act to commit suicide.
Outcome
The subplot ends as a tragedy, like the main plot. Brutus is defeated by his
own principles and takes his own life, ending the tragedy that began with the
death of Caesar.
Note: There is one small ray of hope in the tragic play. Despite all
the deaths and bloodshed, at least order has been restored to Rome by the end
of the play.
Motifs
Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary
devices that can help to develop and inform the text’s major themes.
Omens
and Portents
Throughout
the play, omens and portents manifest themselves, each serving to crystallize
the larger themes of fate and misinterpretation of signs. Until Caesar’s death,
each time an omen or nightmare is reported, the audience is reminded of
Caesar’s impending demise. The audience wonders whether these portents simply
announce what is fated to occur or whether they serve as warnings for what
might occur if the characters do not take active steps to change their
behavior. Whether or not individuals can affect their destinies, characters
repeatedly fail to interpret the omens correctly. In a larger sense, the omens
in Julius Caesar thus imply the dangers of
failing to perceive and analyze the details of one’s world.
Letters
The motif
of letters represents an interesting counterpart to the force of oral rhetoric
in the play. Oral rhetoric depends upon a direct, dialogic interaction between
speaker and audience: depending on how the listeners respond to a certain
statement, the orator can alter his or her speech and intonations accordingly.
In contrast, the power of a written letter depends more fully on the addressee;
whereas an orator must read the emotions of the crowd, the act of reading is
undertaken solely by the recipient of the letter. Thus, when Brutus receives
the forged letter from Cassius in Act II, scene i, the letter has an effect
because Brutus allows it to do so; it is he who grants it its full power. In
contrast, Caesar refuses to read the letter that Artemidorus tries to hand him
in Act III, scene i, as he is heading to the Senate. Predisposed to ignore
personal affairs, Caesar denies the letter any reading at all and thus negates
the potential power of the words written inside.
Symbols
Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to
represent abstract ideas or concepts.
Fire
References
to 'fire' indicate that there is an impending doom over Caesar, the
conspirators
and all that is Rome. This symbol is a foreshadowing and reminder of bad things
to come.
Women
and Wives
While one
could try to analyze Calpurnia and Portia as full characters in their own
right, they function primarily not as sympathetic personalities or sources of
insight or poetry but rather as symbols for the private, domestic realm. Both
women plead with their husbands to be more aware of their private needs and
feelings (Portia in Act II, scene i; Calpurnia in Act III, scene ii). Caesar
and Brutus rebuff the pleas of their respective wives, however; they not only
prioritize public matters but also actively disregard their private emotions
and intuitions. As such, Calpurnia and Portia are powerless figures, willing
though unable to help and comfort Caesar and Brutus.
NOTES
ACT I, SCENE I
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The opening scene (1) sets up the central conflict of the play, (2)
introduces Caesar, and (3) introduces the citizens of Rome.
(1) THE CENTRAL
CONFLICT
Something is amiss. The common people, who should be working, are in their
holiday clothes and honoring the man who slaughtered the sons of Pompey. Two
Roman officers, Flavius and Marullus, are rebelling against their ruler. Their
reasons may or may not be just, but one thing is certain: the natural laws that
bind a leader to his people have broken down. The order of the Roman state has
been shattered.
The problem is not just political. In Shakespeare's world, life moves
according to a divine plan; everyone has a set role to play, and a set
relationship to each other. When someone or something disrupts this order it
brings the whole structure down. Friend turns against friend. The very heavens
are offended, and show their displeasure.
Marullus tells the Commoners to pray to the gods not to send a plague on
them:
Pray to the gods to intermit the plague That needs must light on this
ingratitude.
Act I, Scene i, lines 57-58
Behind Marullus' words is the belief that supernatural forces watch over us
and pass judgment on our behavior. Throughout the play we'll see these forces
at work, and learn what happens to people who deny their power.
(2) CAESAR
Caesar must be judged not only by what he says and does but by what others
think of him. To the common people, he is a hero; to the two officers, he is a
traitor to Rome.
Can we trust the judgment of the people? They seem neither to know nor to
care about the man, and will accept anyone as their ruler, so long as he wins
battles and gives them a day off from work.
Marullus and Flavius accuse Caesar of seeking unlimited power, but it is the
power itself that seems to offend them rather than anything specific Caesar has
done with it. No mention is made of Caesar depriving citizens of their civil
liberties.
3) THE CITIZENS OF
ROME
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Is Rome better off with a representative form of government or with a king?
Is the assassination just or unjust? These are questions that cannot be
answered without studying the needs and wishes of the common people of Rome.
Collectively they are as important a "character" as Cassius, Brutus or
Caesar.
If we can judge from the Cobbler (shoemaker), the Commoners like to pun and
play. They are happy to have a holiday-whether to celebrate Caesar's return or
Pompey's doesn't seem to matter much to them. They seem wrapped up in their own
lives, less concerned with political issues than with having a day off from
work. What interests the Cobbler, for instance, is the fact that people will be
wearing out their shoes and bringing him business.
The people are easily manipulated. One moment they are gaily anticipating
the festivities; the next, they are slinking away with shame. Says Marullus:
See, whe'r their basest mettle be not moved; They vanish tongue-tied in
their guiltiness.
Act I, Scene i, lines 64-65
This is the first of many times during the play when people are manipulated
by the power of language-the power of words.
Do these people want or deserve a representative form of government? It
doesn't seem so, for they lack the intelligence or interest to select rulers to
represent them. What concerns them are the trappings of greatness-the pageantry
and the glory. They will have their Caesar-whoever he may be. Julius Caesar
will be murdered to give these people freedom; but from what we see of them in
Scene i, it's questionable whether freedom is what they want or need.
ACT I, SCENE II
LINES 1-24
In the first scene we saw Caesar through the eyes of others. Now we see the
man himself, and can judge him by his own words and actions.
Caesar orders his wife about, as a king orders his subjects:
Caesar. Calpurnia!
Calpurnia. Here, my lord.
Caesar. Stand you directly in Antonius' way.
Act I, Scene ii, lines 1-3
Is Caesar wearing a public mask, or does he always greet his wife in such a
cold and formal way?
Caesar tells Antony to touch his wife during the race, so that she can
"shake off" the "curse" of sterility. The public Caesar may
consider himself a god, but the private man is superstitious. And how tactless,
announcing before the world that your wife is sterile! Calpurnia doesn't
respond-but one wonders what she's thinking.
What is Antony's response to Caesar's request?
When Caesar says "Do this," it is performed.
Act I, Scene ii, line 10
Anthony is either a flatterer, telling Caesar what he wants to hear, or he
is genuinely devoted to Caesar, as a dog is to his master. In either case,
Caesar clearly likes to give orders, and to be obeyed.
The Soothsayer now appears and warns Caesar to "Beware the ides of
March." Caesar the private individual is obviously concerned, for he asks
to see the man's face and have him repeat his message. But Caesar the public
figure-in full view of his audience-refuses to acknowledge his fear, and
dismisses the Soothsayer as a dreamer. There are thus two sides to Caesar-the
private self and the legendary self he would like to become.
LINES 25-47
Brutus tells his friends that he will not go to the races. A man of
conscience, he cannot play games while the Roman state is in turmoil. A man of
principle, he values people for their inner worth, not for their physical
strength. Life to him is not a competition with prizes to the swiftest.
Cassius complains like a child that Brutus doesn't love him anymore. Brutus
reassures him. I neglect you, he says, only because I'm at war with myself.
LINES 48-89
Cassius now asks:
Tell me, good Brutus, can you see your face?
And Brutus replies:
No, Cassius; for the eye sees not itself But by reflection, by some other
things.
Act I, Scene ii, lines
51-53
Because Brutus does not know himself, he must see himself reflected in
others. His blindness to his own feelings is a tragic flaw that will eventually
prove fatal. Like Caesar, he lets himself be mirrored in the eyes of others,
and thus brings about his own destruction.
Cassius now goes to work on Brutus the way the serpent played on Eve. He
calls Brutus good, noble, and gentle. He does not appeal to Brutus' ambition
(Brutus has none), but points out that the most respected Romans are
"groaning underneath this age's yoke."
Brutus now asks:
Into what dangers would you lead me, Cassius, That you would have me seek
into myself For that which is not in me?
Act I, Scene ii, lines
63-65
Is Brutus deceiving himself to keep his hands clean? Does he really not know
what Cassius has in mind? Is it true that conspiracy is not in his nature, or
is he only trying to convince himself?
The crowds shout and Brutus admits his fear that "the people / Choose
Caesar for their king." He is impatient with Cassius for keeping him so
long, and for avoiding the issue. If what you have in mind is for the good of
the people, he says, I will face death, if necessary, for
I love The name of honor more than I fear death.
Act I, Scene ii, lines
88-89
Brutus obviously means what he says, but isn't there something a bit suspect
about someone who tells the world how virtuous he is?
Brutus is about to join a conspiracy and may simply want to reassure himself
about the purity of his motives. Someone who knew himself, of course, would act
from conviction, and not depend on the strength of his own words.
LINES 90-177
Cassius says that "Honor is the subject of my story," and then
appeals to everything but honor. Carried away by jealousy and spite, he forgets
that he is talking to Brutus, and uses arguments that would work only on
himself. We were born free as Caesar, he says; "We both have fed as well,
and we can both / Endure the winter's cold as well as he." Such
distinctions can mean nothing to a man as principled as Brutus.
Cassius discusses how he saved Caesar from drowning, and how Caesar once
groaned and shook with fever. Brutus would never rate a person by his physical
strength, but Cassius is too wrapped up in his private sense of injustice to
notice or care.
Cassius' efforts to belittle Caesar say more about his own jealousy than
about Caesar's right to rule. Cassius speaks of Caesar's "coward
lips," but it is Caesar, not Cassius, who dared his friend to plunge into
the Tiber on "a raw and gusty day." All Caesar can be accused of is a
lack of physical stamina-which really has nothing to do with his strength as a
ruler.
Like a child, Cassius cannot bear the injustice of a world in which he loses
to his rival:
And this man Is now become a god, and Cassius is A wretched creature, and
must bend his body If Caesar carelessly but nod at him.
Act I, Scene ii, lines
115-118
NOTE: ON WOMANLY
BEHAVIOR
Cassius accuses Caesar of behaving like "a sick girl," as if womanly
behavior were an unpardonable sin. Yet in Shakespeare's world, men who deny
their own feminine qualities-gentleness, mercy, and so onare out of harmony
with themselves and with the world.
Cassius blames himself for bowing to Caesar's will:
The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are
underlings.
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Act I, Scene ii, lines
140-141
This is the sin of pride. Even Caesar knows at times that he is not the
measure of all things, and bows to fate.
Just when we think we understand Cassius, he turns from spite to principle:
Age, thou are shamed! Rome, thou hast lost the breed of noble bloods! When
went there by an age, since the great flood, But it was famed with more than
one man?
Act I, Scene ii, lines
150-153
It is a noble argument, but Cassius may just be trying to manipulate
Brutus-playing on his friend's sense of family pride as the descendant of
Lucius Julius Brutus, one of the founders of the Republic more than 400 years
before.
There is no way of knowing what effect this appeal to family pride has on
Brutus. True to his nature, he refuses to act impulsively, and keeps his
feelings to himself. What we do know is family pride should not influence
him-not if he is true to his principles.
As his talk with Brutus ends, Cassius says how glad he is to "have
struck but thus much show / Of fire from Brutus" (lines 176-177).
NOTE: ON FIRE IMAGERY
"Fire" is an image you should follow closely throughout the play, for
it represents the destructive powers of the universe, unleashed by the actions
of Caesar, the common people, or the conspirators. Jump ahead for a moment to
Casca's description of the storm in the opening lines of Act I, Scene iii:
But never till tonight, never till now, Did I go through a tempest dropping
fire. Either there is a civil strife in heaven, Or else the world, too saucy
with the gods, Incenses them to send destruction.
Act I, Scene iii, 9-13
Keep in mind this image of fire when you learn of Portia's unhappy fate,
later in the play.
LINES 178-214src="./JULIUS%20CAESAR_files/image008.jpg" v:shapes="_x0000_i1029">
Caesar returns and describes Cassius as a dangerous man with "a lean
and hungry look." This is such a delicious description that we're tempted
to take it as the final word on Cassius. But Cassius has other, more admirable
traits, which will become more evident after the assassination.
When Caesar speaks about Cassius (lines 198-214), notice the funny, almost
pathetic way he switches roles from a private individual to a public figure:
The private Caesar is suspicious and fearful of Cassius. "Yond Cassius
has a lean and hungry look," he says.
The public Caesar, of course, has to be above such human emotions as fear,
and therefore announces for all the world to hear: "But I fear him
not."
"Yet," says the private Caesar, "if my name were liable to
fear, / I do not know the man I should avoid / So soon as that spare
Cassius."
It is unthinkable for the great Caesar to be afraid, and so he puts his
political mask back on and assures his audience: "I rather tell thee what
is to be feared / Than what I fear; for always I am Caesar."
If only he could be this legendary figure! But once again the mask slips,
revealing an ordinary human being who is physically handicapped ("Come on
my right hand, for this ear is deaf") and in need of reassurance
("And tell me truly what thou think'st of him.). Is Caesar aware of the
difference between the man and the mask? Does he deliberately fool his public
to gain power (as any clever politician would do), or does he fool himself,
too? There are no easy answers to these questions, but you will need to
consider them before you can decide on Caesar's right to rule.
Antony tries to allay Caesar's fears about Cassius, and says:
Fear him not, Caesar, he's not dangerous;
Act I, Scene ii, line 196
Could he be more wrong?
LINES 215-294
Caesar leaves with his followers, and Casca describes the events of the
day-how Caesar three times refused the crown.
Was this a cynical gesture to manipulate the feelings of the public? It was
Caesar's loyal follower Antony who offered the crown-perhaps the two
politicians worked out their "act" beforehand. Casca thinks so, but
Casca is one of the conspirators and would interpret events in a way that was
unflattering to Caesar.
Casca is as cynical about the crowds as he is about Caesar, and describes
how
the rabblement hooted, and clapped their chopt hands, and threw up their
sweaty nightcaps, and uttered such a deal of stinking breath... that it had,
almost, choked Caesar.
Act I, Scene ii, lines
243-247
If Caesar "had stabbed their mothers," says Casca, they still
would have loved him (lines 274-275).
NOTE: ON THE COMMON
PEOPLE
If we can believe Casca, the common people behaved collectively like a blind
beast, incapable of ruling itself or of knowing what is in its own best
interests.
Power in a republic comes ultimately from the people, who are supposed to
have the wisdom to select responsible leaders. The people of Rome seem to lack
this wisdom. Are they the true villains in Julius Caesar? Is Shakespeare
pointing out what happens to a country when the people ignore their
responsibilities? Perhaps he is not passing judgment, but merely exploring the
historical reasons why Rome was transformed from a republic into a monarchy.
Though Shakespeare may lack a democratic faith in the common man, and be
skeptical of the rabble's right to self-rule, he is not necessarily as
uncharitable as Casca. Casca's harsh words remind us that most of the
conspirators are really fighting to retain their privileges, not to defend the
rights of the people. On several occasions Caesar acts and speaks on behalf of
his public-something that cannot be said of his assassins.
Observe (line 233) that Brutus calls Casca "gentle." Throughout
the play characters greet each other with similar terms of endearment which are
either inappropriate or unfelt.
Observe, too, (lines 284-286) that Marullus and Flavius have been exiled or
put to death. This is the only time in the play that Caesar deprives anyone of
his civil liberties. Is this the act of a tyrant? Or is it the just verdict of
a strong leader who refuses to tolerate treason?
LINES 295-322
Brutus calls Casca a dull-witted fellow. Cassius explains that Casca only
pretends to be coarse and stupid so that people will listen to him. Cassius,
the "great observer," understands such men, who use words to
manipulate feelings, and pretend to be what they are not. Brutus, on the other
hand, sees language as a way of expressing and communicating the truth, and is
therefore easily fooled by people who use words as political weapons. How can
he recognize irony when he is incapable of it himself? How can he recognize and
deal with evil when he himself (some say) is such a noble man?
Cassius recognizes Brutus' dilemma:
Well, Brutus, thou are noble; yet I see Thy honorable mettle may be wrought
From that it is disposed; therefore it is meet That noble minds keep ever with
their likes; For who so firm that cannot be seduced?
Act I, Scene ii, lines
308-312
It is difficult to tell whether Cassius is delighted or saddened by his
ability to "seduce" his noble friend-read the lines aloud and decide
which interpretation seems more natural to you. In either case, Cassius comes
across as a serpent seducing Innocence. If lie succeeds, Innocence will be
cursed for succumbing to an evil it does not understand. That may very well be
the tragedy of Shakespeare's play.
ACT I, SCENE III
LINES 1-40
Casca describes some of the dreadful omens he has seen: the stormy seas; a
lion (symbol of Caesar?) walking the streets; men on fire. The earth itself
"Shakes like a thing unfirm" (line 4).
Who is responsible for these strange happenings?
Caesar-for overstepping the limits of his power? The conspirators-for plotting
against him? The people-for allowing themselves to be manipulated against the
best interests of the state?
All we know for certain is that evil has been set loose, and that it is
affecting not just Rome but the entire universe. The disorder is like a
sickness that started with a few individuals and now begins to spread until it
infects everyone. Caesar, Brutus, and the other characters are not isolated
human beings, acting in a vacuum; what each one does affects everyone else.
Cicero does not deny the importance of the omens, but points out that each
person interprets them in his own way:
Indeed, it is a strange-disposed time: But men may construe things after
their fashion, Clean from the purpose of the things themselves.
Act I, Scene iii, lines
33-35
LINES 41-88
Other men are frightened by these supernatural happenings, but not Cassius.
It has been "A very pleasing night to honest men," he says. Not only
was he not afraid, he walked with his jacket unbuttoned, daring the heavens to
strike him. Cassius shares Cicero's belief that the heavens are sending fearful
warnings, but presumes to know that they are meant for Caesar, not for him. His
cause, he feels, is noble-why should the gods punish him?
As arrogant as Caesar, Cassius forgets there may be forces in the world he
can neither understand nor control. By opposing Caesar, whom he compares to the
storm, Cassius feels he is opposing history, fate, the gods themselves. They,
of course, will humble him in time.
Cassius, speaking to Casca, calls Caesar "A man no mightier than
thyself, or me / In personal action" (lines 76-77). Cassius thus weighs
his worth against another man's-unlike Brutus, who weighs each person alone
against absolute standards of right and wrong. Physical strength is what
Cassius respectsunlike Brutus, who values people for their principles.
Cassius mourns the times he's living in, when Romans behave like women and
meekly accept Caesar's rule:
But woe the while! Our fathers' minds are dead And we are governed with our
mothers' spirits; Our yoke and sufferance show us womanish.
Act I, Scene iii, lines
82-84
Soft, feminine qualities frighten Cassius; he likes to see himself as the
masculine ideal, who wins races and depends on nothing but his own courage and
strength. Beneath this mask, however, lies the heart of a lost boy craving
affection.
NOTE: ON CASSIUS'
MOTHER
Cassius' mother, we discover later (Act IV, Scene iii, lines 118- 122), lacked
the same feminine qualities that Cassius fears to discover in himself. Did he
have to prove his worth even to her? If so, that might explain his competitive
nature, and his basic lack of confidence in his own powers of judgment.
LINES 89-102
Cassius tells Casca he would rather kill himself than live to see Caesar
crowned. The human spirit can never be willingly enslaved, he says, because
people are always free to take our own lives. Cassius shows a certain spirit of
his own here, which makes it difficult for us to dismiss him as a mere villain.
Clearly, he believes in the rightness of his cause, and is willing to die for
it. He may be foolish to ignore the gods, but who is to say such foolishness is
not the most noble act of all?
LINES 103-164
Cassius believes the common people are as much to blame as Caesar for
turning him into a god: Poor man, I know he would not be a wolf But that he
sees the Romans are but sheep;
Act I, Scene iii, lines
104-105
Cassius may simply wish to deny Caesar the credit for his rise to power. But
he is also pointing out what we noted before, that the common people may be the
real villains for ignoring their responsibilities to the Republic, and allowing
it to fall.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Act I, scene i
Quick Summary
Two
tribunes,
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Flavius and
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Murellus, enter a Roman
street, along with various commoners. Flavius and Murellus derisively order the
commoners to return home and get back to work: “What, know you not, / Being
mechanical, you ought not walk / Upon a labouring day without the sign / Of
your profession?” (I.i.2–5).
Murellus engages a cobbler in a lengthy inquiry about his profession;
misinterpreting the cobbler’s punning replies, Murellus quickly grows angry
with him. Flavius interjects to ask why the cobbler is not in his shop working.
The cobbler explains that he is taking a holiday from work in order to observe
the triumph (a lavish parade celebrating military victory)—he wants to watch
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Caesar’s procession through
the city, which will include the captives won in a recent battle against his
archrival Pompey.
Murellus
scolds the cobbler and attempts to diminish the significance of Caesar’s victory
over Pompey and his consequent triumph. “What conquest brings he home? / What
tributaries follow him [Caesar] to Rome / To grace in captive bonds his chariot
wheels?” Murellus asks, suggesting that Caesar’s victory does not merit a
triumph since it involves no conquering of a foreign foe to the greater glory
of Rome (I.i.31–33).
Murellus reminds the commoners of the days when they used to gather to watch
and cheer for Pompey’s triumphant returns from battle. Now, however, due to a
mere twist of fate, they rush out to celebrate his downfall. Murellus scolds
them further for their disloyalty, ordering them to “pray to the gods to
intermit the plague / That needs must light on this ingratitude” (I.i.
The
commoners leave, and Flavius instructs Murellus to go to the Capitol, a hill on
which rests a temple on whose altars victorious generals offer sacrifice, and
remove any crowns placed on statues of Caesar. Flavius adds that he will thin
the crowds of commoners observing the triumph and directs Murellus to do
likewise, for if they can regulate Caesar’s popular support, they will be able
to regulate his power (“These growing feathers plucked from Caesar’s wing /
Will make him fly an ordinary pitch” [I.i.71–72]).
Act I, scene i
Quick Analysis
Although
the play opens with Flavius and Murellus noting the fickle nature of the
public’s devotion—the crowd now celebrates Caesar’s defeat of Pompey when once
it celebrated Pompey’s victories—loyalty to Caesar nonetheless appears to be
growing with exceptional force. Caesar’s power and influence are likewise
strong: Flavius and Murellus are later punished for removing the decorations
from Caesar’s statues.
It is
interesting to note the difference between the manner in which Flavius and
Murellus conceive of the cobbler and that in which Shakespeare has created him.
The cobbler is a typically Shakespearean character—a host of puns and bawdy
references reveal his dexterity with language (“all that I live by is with the
awl. I meddle / with no tradesman’s matters, nor women’s matters” [I.i.
however, preoccupied with class distinctions, view the cobbler as nothing more
than a plebeian ruffian. Flavius’s reproach of the cobbler for not having his
tools about him on a workday reveals his belief that a laborer can be good for
one thing and one thing only: laboring. Murellus similarly assumes the cobbler
is stupid, although, ironically, it is Murellus himself who misunderstands the
cobbler’s answers to his questions. Murellus is unwilling to interpret the
cobbler’s shift in allegiance from Pompey to Caesar as anything but a
manifestation of dim-witted forgetfulness.
Flavius
and Murellus’s concern about Caesar’s meteoric rise to power reflects English
sentiment during the Elizabethan age about the consolidation of power in other
parts of Europe. The strengthening of the absolutist monarchies in such
sovereignties as France and Spain during the sixteenth century threatened the
stability of the somewhat more balanced English political system, which, though
it was hardly democratic in the modern sense of the word, at least provided
nobles and elected representatives with some means of checking royal authority.
Caesar’s ascendance helped to effect Rome’s transition from republic to empire,
and Shakespeare’s depiction of the prospect of Caesar’s assumption of
dictatorial power can be seen as a comment upon the gradual shift toward
centralization of power that was taking place in Europe.
In
addition, Shakespeare’s illustration of the fickleness of the Roman public proves
particularly relevant to the English political scene of the time. Queen
Elizabeth I was nearing the end of her life but had neither produced nor named
an heir. Anxiety mounted concerning who her successor would be. People feared
that without resort to the established, accepted means of transferring
power—passing it down the family line—England might plunge into the sort of
chaotic power struggle that had plagued it in the fifteenth century, during the
Wars of the Roses. Flavius and Murellus’s interest in controlling the populace
lays the groundwork for
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Brutus’s and
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Antony’s manipulations of
public opinion after Caesar’s death. Shakespeare thus makes it clear that the
struggle for power will involve a battle among the leaders to win public favor
with displays of bravery and convincing rhetoric. Considering political history
in the centuries after Shakespeare wrote Julius
Caesar, especially in the twentieth century, when Benito Mussolini and
Adolf Hitler consolidated their respective regimes by whipping up in the masses
the overzealous nationalism that had pervaded nineteenth-century Italy and
Germany, the play is remarkably prescient.
Act I, scene ii
Quick Summary
src="./JULIUS%20CAESAR_files/image010.jpg" v:shapes="_x0000_i1030">
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Caesar enters a public
square with
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Antony,
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Calpurnia,
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Portia,
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Decius,
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Cicero,
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Brutus,
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Cassius,
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Casca, and a Soothsayer; he
is followed by a throng of citizens and then by
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Flavius and
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Murellus. Antony, dressed
to celebrate the feast day, readies himself for a ceremonial run through the
city. Caesar urges him to touch Calpurnia, Caesar’s wife, as he runs, since
Roman superstition holds that the touch of a ceremonial runner will cure
barrenness. Antony agrees, declaring that whatever Caesar says is certain to
become fact.
The
Soothsayer calls out from the crowd to Caesar, telling him to beware the Ides
of March. (The “ides” refers to the fifteenth day of March, May, July, and
October and the thirteenth day of the other months in the ancient Roman
calendar.) Caesar pauses and asks the man to come forward; the Soothsayer
repeats himself. Caesar ultimately dismisses the warning, and the procession
departs. Brutus and Cassius remain. Cassius asks Brutus why he has not seemed
himself lately. Brutus replies that he has been quiet because he has been
plagued with conflicting thoughts. But he assures Cassius that even though his
mind is at war with itself, he will not let his inner turmoil affect his
friendships.
Cassius and Brutus speak together. Cassius asks Brutus if
Brutus can see his own face; Brutus replies that he cannot. Cassius then
declares that Brutus is unable to see what everyone else does, namely, that
Brutus is widely respected. Noting that no mirror could reveal Brutus’s
worthiness to himself, Cassius offers to serve as a human mirror so that Brutus
may discover himself and conceive of himself in new ways.
Brutus hears shouting and says that he fears that the people
want to make Caesar their king. When Cassius asks, Brutus affirms that he would
rather that Caesar not assume the position. Brutus adds that he loves Caesar
but that he also loves honor, and that he loves honor even more than he fears
death. Cassius replies that he, too, recoils at the thought of kneeling in awe
before someone whom he does not consider his superior, and declares, “I was
born as free as Caesar, so were you. / We both have fed as well, and we can
both / Endure the winter’s cold as well as he” (I.ii.99–101).
Cassius recalls a windy day when he and Caesar stood on the banks of the Tiber
River, and Caesar dared him to swim to a distant point. They raced through the
water, but Caesar became weak and asked Cassius to save him. Cassius had to
drag him from the water. Cassius also recounts an episode when Caesar had a
fever in Spain and experienced a seizure. Cassius marvels to think that a man
with such a feeble constitution should now stand at the head of the civilized
world.
Caesar stands like a Colossus over the world, Cassius
continues, while Cassius and Brutus creep about under his legs. He tells Brutus
that they owe their underling status not to fate but to their own failure to
take action. He questions the difference between the name “Caesar” and the name
“Brutus”: why should Caesar’s name be more celebrated than Brutus’s when,
spoken together, the names sound equally pleasing and thus suggest that the men
should hold equal power? He wonders in what sort of age they are living when one
man can tower over the rest of the population. Brutus responds that he will
consider Cassius’s words. Although unwilling to be further persuaded, he admits
that he would rather not be a citizen of Rome in such strange times as the
present.
Meanwhile, Caesar and his train return. Caesar sees Cassius
and comments to Antony that Cassius looks like a man who thinks too much; such
men are dangerous, he adds. Antony tells Caesar not to worry, but Caesar
replies that he prefers to avoid Cassius: Cassius reads too much and finds no
enjoyment in plays or music—such men are never at ease while someone greater
than themselves holds the reins of power. Caesar urges Antony to come to his
right side—he is deaf in his left ear—and tell him what he thinks of Cassius.
Shortly, Caesar and his train depart.
Brutus and Cassius take Casca aside to ask him what happened
at the procession. Casca relates that Antony offered a crown to Caesar three
times, but Caesar refused it each time. While the crowd cheered for him, Caesar
fell to the ground in a fit. Brutus speculates that Caesar has “the falling
sickness” (a term for epilepsy in Elizabethan times). Casca notes, however,
that Caesar’s fit did not seem to affect his authority: although he suffered
his seizure directly before the crowd, the people did not cease to express
their love. Casca adds that the great orator Cicero spoke in Greek, but that he
couldn’t understand him at all, saying “it was Greek to me” (I.ii.
Murellus were deprived of their positions as civil servants for removing
decorations from Caesar’s statues. Casca then departs, followed by Brutus.
Cassius, alone now, says that while he believes that Brutus
is noble, he hopes that Brutus’s noble nature may yet be bent: “For who so firm
that cannot be seduced?” he asks rhetorically (I.ii.306).
He decides to forge letters from Roman citizens declaring their support for
Brutus and their fear of Caesar’s ascent to power; he will throw them into
Brutus’s house that evening.
Act I, scene ii
Quick Analysis
src="./JULIUS%20CAESAR_files/image012.jpg" v:shapes="_x0000_i1031">
While the opening scene illustrates Caesar’s popularity with
the masses, the audience’s first direct encounter with him presents an omen of
his imminent fall. Caesar’s choice to ignore the Soothsayer’s advice proves the
first in a series of failures to heed warnings about his fate. Just as Caesar
himself proves fallible, his power proves imperfect. When Caesar orders Antony
to touch Calpurnia, Antony replies that Caesar need merely speak and his word
will become fact—that is, Caesar’s authority is so strong that his word
immediately brings about the requested action. However, while the masses may
conceive of Caesar’s power thus, Caesar’s order to Antony alerts us to the
reality that he and his wife have been unable to produce a child. The
implication that Caesar may be impotent or sterile is the first—and, for a
potential monarch, the most damaging—of his physical shortcomings to be
revealed in the play.
This conversation between Brutus and Cassius reveals the
respective characters of the two men, who will emerge as the foremost
conspirators against Caesar. Brutus appears to be a man at war with himself, torn
between his love for Caesar and his honorable concern for Rome. He worries that
it is not in Rome’s best interest for Caesar to become king, yet he hates to
oppose his friend. Cassius steps into Brutus’s personal crisis and begins his
campaign to turn Brutus against Caesar, flattering Brutus’s pride by offering
to be his mirror and thus relaying to him the ostensible high regard in which
the citizens hold him.
Cassius compounds Brutus’s alarm about Caesar’s growing
power with references to his weak physical state: he lacks stamina and is
probably epileptic. But Cassius observes only Caesar’s frail human body, his
private self. When he urges Brutus to consider that the name of Brutus should
be as powerful as the name of Caesar, he fails to understand that Caesar’s real
power is not affected by private infirmities but rather rests in his public
persona, whose strength is derived from the goodwill and good opinion of the
populace.
Caesar, on the other hand, shows much more perceptiveness in
his analysis of Cassius; he observes both Cassius’s private and public personas
and notices a discord. He is made uneasy by what appears to be Cassius’s lack
of a private life—Cassius’s seeming refusal to acknowledge his own
sensibilities or nurture his spirit suggest a coldness, a lack of human warmth.
Caesar comments to Antony, “He loves no plays, / As thou dost, Antony; he hears
no music. / Seldom he smiles, and smiles in such a sort / As if he mocked
himself, and scorned his spirit / That could be moved to smile at anything”
(I.ii.204–208). Cassius remains merely a public
man, without any suggestion of a private self. Such a man, Caesar properly
recognizes, is made uncomfortable by others’ power.
The question of Caesar’s own ambition is raised in Casca’s
account of the triumphal procession. In describing how Antony offered Caesar a
crown three times, Casca makes sure to point out Caesar’s reluctance in
refusing the crown. Since the incident is related from Casca’s anti-Caesar
perspective, it is difficult to ascertain Caesar’s true motivations: did Caesar
act out of genuine humility or did he merely put on a show to please the crowd?
Nevertheless, Casca’s mention of Caesar’s hesitation suggests that, no matter
how noble his motivations, Caesar is capable of being seduced by power and
thereby capable of becoming a dictator, as Brutus fears.
At the close of the scene, when Cassius plots to turn Brutus
against Caesar by planting forged letters in Brutus’s house, Cassius has
shrewdly perceived that Brutus’s internal conflict is more likely to be
influenced by what he believes the populace to think than by his own personal
misgivings. Cassius recognizes that if Brutus believes that the people distrust
Caesar, then he will be convinced that Caesar must be thwarted. Cassius aims to
take advantage of Brutus’s weakest point, namely, Brutus’s honorable concerns
for Rome; Brutus’s inflexible ideals leave him open for manipulation by
Cassius. Cassius, in contrast, has made himself adaptable for political
survival by wholly abandoning his sense of honor.
Act I, scene iii
Quick Summary
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Casca and
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Cicero meet on a Roman
street. Casca says that though he has seen many terrible things in the natural
world, nothing compares to the frightfulness of this night’s weather. He
wonders if there is strife in heaven or if the gods are so angered by mankind
that they intend to destroy it. Casca relates that he saw a man with his hands
on fire, and yet his flesh was not burning. He describes meeting a lion near
the Capitol: bizarrely, the lion ignored him and walked on. Many others have
seen men on fire walking in the streets, and an owl, a nocturnal bird, was seen
sitting out in the marketplace during the day. When so many abnormal events
happen at once, Casca declares, no one could possibly believe that they are
natural occurrences. Casca insists that they are portents of danger ahead.
Cicero replies that men will interpret things as they will: “Indeed it is a
strange-disposèd time; / But men may construe things after their fashion, /
Clean from the purpose of the things themselves” (I.iii.33–
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Caesar is coming to the Capitol
the next day; Casca replies that he is. Cicero departs, warning that it is not
a good atmosphere in which to remain outside.
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Cassius enters. He has been
wandering through the streets, taking no shelter from the thunder and
lightning. Casca asks Cassius why he would endanger himself so. Cassius replies
that he is pleased—he believes that the gods are using these signs to warn the
Romans about a “monstrous state,” meaning both an abnormal state of affairs and
an atrocious government (I.iii.71). Cassius
compares the night to Caesar himself, who
like this dreadful night,
thunders, lightens, opens graves, and roars
As doth the lion in the Capitol. (I.iii.
He also
calls Caesar “prodigious grown, / And fearful, as these strange eruptions are”
(I.iii.76–77).
Casca
reports to Cassius that the senators plan to make Caesar king in the Senate the
following day. Cassius draws his dagger and swears to the gods that if they can
make a weak man like Caesar so powerful, then they can empower Cassius to
defeat a tyrant. He declares that Rome must be merely trash or rubbish to give
itself up so easily to Caesar’s fire. Casca joins Cassius in his censure of
Caesar, and Cassius reveals that he has already swayed a number of high-powered
Romans to support a resistance movement.
A
conspirator named Cinna enters. Cassius now divulges his latest scheme in his
plot to build opposition against Caesar: the conversion of
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Brutus. Cassius gives Cinna
the letters he has forged to place in Brutus’s chair in the Senate, and others
to throw through Brutus’s window and place on Brutus’s statue. Cassius claims
that Brutus has already come three-quarters of the way toward turning against
Caesar; he hopes the letters will bring him the rest of the way around. Casca
comments that the noble Brutus’s participation in their plot will bring
worthiness to their schemes, for “he sits high in all the people’s hearts, /
And that which would appear offence in us / His countenance, like richest
alchemy, / Will change to virtue and to worthiness” (I.iii.
Act I,
scene iii
Quick Analysis
This
scene demonstrates the characters’ inability to interpret correctly the signs
that they encounter. The night is full of portents, but no one construes them
accurately. Cassius asserts that they signify the danger that Caesar’s possible
coronation would bring to the state, while they actually warn of the
destruction that Cassius himself threatens. Meanwhile, Cassius plots to win
Brutus to his cause by misleading him with letters; he knows that Brutus will
take the written word at face value, never questioning the letters’
authenticity.
The
juxtaposition of Cicero’s grave warning about not walking in this night’s
disturbing weather with Cassius’s self-satisfied mood upon meeting with Casca
(he labels the night “very pleasing . . . to honest men” [I.iii.
portend. Further, this nexus suggests a sort of pathetic fallacy—an artistic
device by means of which an inanimate entity assumes human emotions and
responses (Shakespeare was especially fond of employing pathetic fallacy with
nature in moments of turmoil, as in Macbeth,
when the night grows increasingly eerie until Macbeth observes that “Nature
seems dead” right before he goes to murder King Duncan [II.i.
the terrifying atmosphere of supernatural phenomena reflects Cassius’s horrific
plan to murder Caesar.
Furthermore,
Cassius not only walks about freely in the atmosphere of terror but relishes
it: “And when the cross blue lightning seemed to open / The breast of heaven, I
did present myself / Even in the aim and very flash of it” (I.iii.
that the “monstrous state” of which the heavens warn refers to Caesar and his
overweening ambition, yet he himself has become something of a monster—obsessed
with bringing Caesar down, brazenly unafraid of lethal lightning bolts, and
haughty about this fearlessness (I.iii.71). As
Casca notes, “It is the part of men to fear and tremble” at such ill omens; Cassius
seems to have lost his humanity and become a beast (I.iii.
The various omens and portents in
Caesar also raise questions about the force of fate versus free
will. The function and meaning of omens in general is puzzling and seemingly
contradictory: as announcements of an event or events to come,
omens appear to prove the existence of some overarching plan for the future, a
prewritten destiny controlled by the gods. On the other hand, as
of impending events, omens suggests that human beings have the power to alter
that destiny if provided with the correct information in advance.
Julius Caesar: Act Two
"Times New Roman";color:blue;font-weight:normal'>http://members.tripod.com/~lklivingston/caesar/act2.html
Julius Caesar:
yellow'> Act Two, Scene One
Brutus is in his
garden and has made up his mind that Caesar must be killed. His reasons are
that Caesar is abusing his power and that he has ascended far too quickly.
Lucius, Brutus' servant, brings him a letter he has found in Brutus' private
room. The first line of the letter reads, "Brutus, thou sleep'st. Awake,
and see thyself" (2.1.46). Brutus interprets the letter as if it were from
all of Rome, telling him to slay Caesar and restore the republic. Brutus then
asks Lucius what day it is, and he informs his master that it is the ides of
March, or March 15th. A knock sounds on the door and Lucius leaves to answer
it. Brutus takes this opportunity to inform the audience that he has not slept
since Cassius first incited him against Caesar.
Cassius is at the
door, along with Casca, Decius, Cinna, Metellus and Trebonius, all of them
conspirators against Caesar. Brutus invites them in and Cassius takes him
aside. Soon Brutus rejoins the group of men and shakes all their hands, having
agreed to join them. The men then discuss whether they should invite Cicero,
the great orator, to join their plot, but Brutus convinces them against
inviting him in. Cassius is further of the opinion that Mark Antony should be
killed along with Caesar, but again Brutus is against the plan, calling it too
"bloody."
They plan to commit
their murder of Caesar at the Senate at eight o'clock that morning (it is only
three in the morning at this point). However, they are worried that Caesar will
not show up because he has become so superstitious over the past few months.
Decius tells them that he knows how to flatter Caesar, and assures them that he
will convince Caesar to go to the Senate. Cassius and his followers then
depart, leaving Brutus alone. Brutus' wife Portia arrives and tells him that he
has left her bed and given her unkind looks. She begs him to tell her why he is
so upset. He tells her that he is sick, to which she responds that it appears
to be a sickness of the mind, not of the body. She again begs him to tell her
what is wrong, asking him, "Think you I am no stronger than my sex, /
Being so fathered and so husbanded?" (2.1.295-6). She then stabs herself
in the thigh as proof of her courage. Brutus finally agrees to tell her what is
going on, but sends her away before telling her because there is another knock
on the door. Ligarius enters, pretending to be sick. He tells Brutus that he
could be cured if only Brutus had a noble undertaking in mind. Brutus tells him
that he does, and Ligarius pledges to follow Brutus on whatever task he leads
him to.
Caesar:
Two, Scene Two
Caesar, still in
his nightgown, is terrified by a dream his wife Calpurnia has had in which she
cried out, "Help, ho! They murder Caesar!" He orders a servant to go
to the priests and have them sacrifice an animal in order to read the entrails
for predictions of the future. Calpurnia arrives and tells him that he dare not
leave the house that day. Caesar acts brave and tells her that he fears
nothing, and that he will die when it is necessary for him to die. The servant
returns and tells him that the sacrificed animal showed a very bad omen, namely
the beast did not have a heart. Caesar insists on misinterpreting the omens,
but Calpurnia begs him to blame her for his absence from the Senate, to which
he finally agrees.
However, Decius
arrives at that moment in order to fetch Caesar to the Senate House. Caesar
tells him to inform the Senate that he will not come this day. Decius claims
that he will be mocked if he cannot provide a better reason than that. Caesar
then tells him about Calpurnia's dream, which Decius reinterprets in a positive
light. Decius then overwhelms Caesar's resistance by asking him if the Senate
should dissolve until a better time when Calpurnia has more favorable dreams.
Caesar tells Calpurnia that he was acting foolishly, and agrees to go to the
Senate. Cassius and the other conspirators arrive at that moment to accompany
him to the Senate. Antony also appears and joins the group of men who then
escort Caesar out of his house.
Caesar:
Two, Scene Three
Artemidorus has
written Caesar a letter in which he names all of the conspirators against
Caesar. He stands on a street near the Capitol and waits for Caesar to pass by
on his way to the Senate so that he can hand Caesar the note.
Caesar:
Two, Scene Four
Portia orders the
servant Lucius to go to the Senate House. He asks her what he should do there,
but she is so distracted that she is unable to tell him the purpose. She remarks
to the audience, "I have a man's mind, but a woman's might. / How hard it
is for women to keep counsel!" (2.4.7-8). She is alluding to the fact that
she knows what Brutus is planning to do to Caesar, and is unwilling to keep it
a secret. The soothsayer who previously warned Caesar sees her and speaks with
her, informing Portia that he will try to once again warn Caesar about his
fate.
Analysis
Brutus is the only
character in the play who cannot sleep. This is indicative of an internal
struggle, an internal civil war. In fact, it is this struggle taking place
within Brutus that will lead to external civil war in the end. Brutus says
that, "Since Cassius first did whet me against Caesar / I have not
slept" (2.1.61) He adds to this that his mind, "Like to a little
kingdom, suffers then / The nature of an insurrection" (2.1.68-9). This is
exactly what is really going to happen, namely an insurrection over the death
of Caesar. Brutus faces this sleeplessness twice, when it is mentioned again in
4.3 at the time that Caesar's ghost appears to him.
Women play a very
marginalized role throughout Julius Caesar Portia and Calpurnia are the only
two women with any roles, and they are confined to the domestic household. The
differences between them are worth noting, however, because Shakespeare
deliberately twins them. Portia is the first of the women to appear, and she
struggles to convince Brutus that she is worthy of his confidence. She first
kneels to Brutus, and then stands up and dramatically states, "Think you I
am no stronger than my sex, / Being so fathered and so husbanded?"
(2.1.295-6). She then stabs herself in her thigh to prove that she is as strong
as any man. Brutus capitulates and agrees to tell her what has been troubling
him.
The victory of Portia
in making Brutus listen to her contrasts with the failure of Calpurnia. The
scenes follow one another directly, and Calpurnia even mimics Portia's
kneeling. However, she is unable to convince Caesar to remain at home that day.
In fact, the differences between what the two wives hope to achieve indicates
the exact nature of their limited power. Portia must go to extreme lengths
merely to make Brutus tell her what he is plotting, and it abundantly clear
that she has no influence over his actual actions. Calpurnia therefore has no
hope of actually prevailing over Caesar, because her goal is to actually force
him to perform an action against his will.
The great irony of
this act is Calpurnia's dream, which is of a statue bleeding from a hundred
holes with which Romans bath their hands. Decius first mocks the dream, saying,
"Bring up the Senate till another time, / When Caesar's wife shall meet
with better dreams" 2.2.98-99). He then brilliantly and deliberately
misreads the dream, saying, "Your statue spouting blood in many pipes, /
In which so many smiling Romans bathed, / Signifies that from you great Rome
shall suck / Reviving blood" (2.2.85-88). The dream will of course be
fulfilled in the next act, but so too will Decius' interpretation which forebodes
the bloody civil wars to follow.
Brutus, contrary to
the way he tries to present himself, is a vain man. Cassius realizes that there
is much more to Brutus than pure altruism, a fact which he uses to his
advantage in several ways. Cassius first compares Brutus to Caesar by comparing
their names, and subsequently tells Brutus he represents the best qualities of
Caesar without the flaws. Next, Cassius drafts letters to Brutus which he has
Cinna deliver by tossing them through the window or leaving them where Brutus
will find them. It is Brutus' flaw that when he receives the first letter he
responds to it according to his personal bias. Thus, like Malvolio in Twelfth
Night, Brutus misconstrues the letter to mean what he wants it to mean.
"Give me much light that I may read by them.
[He] opens the letter and reads
'Brutus, thou sleep'st. Awake, and see thyself.
Shall Rome, et cetera? Speak, strike, redress.'
'Brutus, thou sleep'st. Awake.'
Such instigations have been often dropped
Where I have took them up.
'Shall Rome, et cetera?' Thus must I piece it out:
Shall Rome stand under one man's awe? What, Rome?
'Speak, strike, redress.' Am I entreated
To speak and strike? O Rome, I make thee promise,
If the redress will follow, thou receivest
Thy full petition at the hand of Brutus."
The
interpretation Brutus gives this letter has nothing to do with the content, and
everything to do with himself. He is so focused on his inner turmoil that when
he reads the letter, he sees exactly what he wants to see. Thus he fills in the
"et cetera" with "Shall Rome stand under one man's awe?" He
further misunderstands the letter by attributing it to Rome, as if this were a
call from the people rather than a note written by Cassius. The reason the
letter is so effective at convincing Brutus to join the conspirators is because
he has been looking for exactly this sort of stimulation all along. Brutus has
hesitated to act against Caesar because he feels that needs the support of the
Roman citizenry. Thus the letter provides him with the excuse to convince
himself of what he has secretly been wishing for.
Brutus' greatest
error is in trying to split the murder into two categories. He wants to uphold
the republic while simultaneously breaking the fundamental rules of the
republic. He tells Cassius:
Let us be sacrificers, but not butchers, Caius.
We all stand up against the spirit of Caesar;
And in the spirit of men there is no blood:
O, that we then could come by Caesar's spirit,
And not dismember Caesar! But, alas,
Caesar must bleed for it! And, gentle friends,
Let's kill him boldly, but not wrathfully;
Let's carve him as a dish fit for the gods,
Not hew him as a carcass fit for hounds:
And let our hearts, as subtle masters do,
Stir up their servants to an act of rage,
And after seem to chide 'em. This shall make
Our purpose necessary and not envious:
Which so appearing to the common eyes,
We shall be call'd purgers, not murderers.
Yet
"murderers" is exactly what Antony will call the conspirators. Brutus
falsely tries to divide the indivisible by pretending this is not murder, when
no one can deny that it is.
Caesar's greatest
achievement is his ability to outlive his mortal death. He accomplishes this
through his use of the third person. "Caesar should be a beast without a
heart" (2.2.42), "And Caesar shall go forth" (2.2.48). This
contrasts with Brutus' use of "I":
"That you do love me I am nothing jealous.
What you would work me to I have some aim.
How I have thought of this and of these times
I shall recount hereafter. For this present,
I would not, so with love I might entreat you"
The
effect of using the third person is to create a sense of permanence. The images
of Caesar invoked include those of the Colossus and Mount Olympus, both massive
and conceived of as standing forever.
ACT III – Scene.i
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Summary
We are outside the
Capitol and Caesar enters with Antony, Lepidus and all the conspirators.
Caesar sees the soothsayer and tells him “The Ides of March are come”, to which
the soothsayer responds, “Aye Caesar, but not gone”.
Artemidorus urges
Caesar to read his letter, but Caesar refuses.
Caesar enters the
Capitol and Trebonius discreetly diverts Antony away. Metellus Cimber
makes a petition to Caesar requesting his brother’s return from exile, which
Caesar refuses. The other conspirators join in the plea and crowd around
Caesar.
Casca is first to
stab him followed by the others with Brutus giving the final, fatal blow, to
which Caesar says, “Et tu Brute? Then fall Caesar!”
Cinna calls out,
“Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!”
Mark Antony’s servant
enters requesting permission to come amongst them and resolve their
differences, on his behalf. Antony enters and makes his farewell to the dead
body of Caesar and requests that he is allowed to speak at Caesar’s
funeral. Despite Cassius’ objections, Brutus agrees.
The conspirators exit
and Antony says,
“O, pardon me, thou
bleeding piece of earth,
That I am meek
and gentle with these butchers!
Thou art the
ruins of the noblest man
That ever lived
in the tide of times.”
In this soliloquy
Antony goes on to predict that there will be a raging revenge, which will bring
civil war and chaos to all Italy.
A servant enters to
advise Antony that Octavius Caesar is but seven leagues from Rome. He tells the
servant to stay and observe the funeral and then to report back to Octavius.
Shakespeare cunningly
introduces tension and gathering suspense in the moments before Caesar’s
assassination. This is done by shifting from lengthy speeches and soliloquies
to short burst of dialogue between the characters. There is still an
element indicating that the plot may be discovered, especially if Caesar was to
read Artemidorus’ letter, but this does not happen. Like a lamb, he is led to
the slaughter, being separated from his ally, Mark Antony. After Caesar’s
death, Shakespeare maintains the tension by revealing for the first time the
full nature of Mark Antony. He is clearly a survivor and needs to
ingratiate himself with the conspirators in the short term, until Caesar’s
funeral.
The audience may now
appreciate that Caesar is just a pawn in the power struggle that is evident in
the Senate. It may be that these events might in the end suit Mark Antony
and accelerate his progress to the seat of power.
We have the first
indication that Antony can change his feelings and behavior according to the
circumstances prevalent. He is known for being a drunkard and a womanizer, but
he is also a clever manipulator using the innocence of Brutus in order to
secure a position at Caesar’s funeral where he can make a speech to the Roman
people.
Cassius sees the
danger in Antony, but he is overruled by Brutus. Brutus and Cassius have
an uneasy alliance.
Mark Antony sees the
chance to gain power, knowing that Octavius and his army are just outside
Rome. You will note that he does not send word for Octavius to enter
Rome, and it may be that he does not wish to share power with anyone else in
the long term.
ACT III – Scene.ii
Summary
This is set in the
Forum, which is full of an uneasy, vocal crowd who are demanding satisfaction
over the murder of Caesar.
Brutus pleads with
the citizens to be patient and to contain their emotions, and allow him to
finish his speech. He reminds them that he is an honorable Roman and he
will give reasons why it was necessary to murder Caesar. The citizens are
convinced at the end of Brutus’ speech and they cheer him.
Then Antony enters carrying
Caesar’s body, and he delivers a reasoned oration. This is a clever speech,
which slowly turns the tide away from the conspirators, back to him. Using
logic, he is able to sway the crowd and in the end they are baying for the
blood of the conspirators. They are spurred on by the fact that Antony
hints that Caesar’s Will leaves his property to the people.
The conspirators flee
Rome and the scene ends with Antony being informed that Octavius and Lepidus
have arrived at Caesar’s house.
Interpretation
This whole scene
revolves round the two speeches, one by Brutus and the other by Mark
Antony. Both are made to the citizens of Rome who are fickle and can be
easily swayed. Whereas Brutus’ speech written in prose is crude, does appeal to
the rabble, Mark Antony’s speech is eloquent and inspirational, and quickly
wins them back. Brutus has to struggle with his audience to obtain their
attention, whereas Mark Antony immediately gets their attention by entering
carrying Caesar’s body.
The main thrust of the
first speech, given by Brutus, is to justify Caesar’s death. Brutus says that
Caesar was full of ambition, and that the plebeians would become slaves under
Caesar’s rule. Eventually, Brutus convinces the crowd that they had good reason
to murder Caesar, and the conspirators feel confident and secure.
When Antony delivers
his dramatic and theatrical speech, he immediately has the attention of all
those present. Shakespeare shows his genius in creating a great speech,
the style of which has been copied down the ages, and more recently by Hitler,
Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King.
The first rule in
delivering a speech is to get the audience’s attention. Antony did this
by using Caesar’s body. Hitler would wait until there was complete
silence before starting his speeches.
You will note in
Antony’s speech that certain words are repeated e.g. ‘honorable’ and
‘ambition’. This style was used by Martin Luther King in his famous, ‘I
have a dream’ speech. This is the second rule.
The third rule is to
create an empathy with your audience. This Mark Antony does by speaking as if
he is one of them, and is aware of the problems they have. John F.
Kennedy had this common touch.
The fourth and final
rule is to tell the people what they want to hear. Mark Antony uses the
masterstroke of producing Caesar’s Will. He tells the crowd that they
will benefit from Caesar’s property. Winston Churchill certainly told the
people of Britain what they wanted to hear during their darkest hour, which inspired
them at boosted their morale.
It is fitting,
therefore, to quote part of this speech, which is famous in the literary world,
but the reader should study the whole passage in detail.
“Friends,
Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!
I come to bury
Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that
men do lives after them,
The good is oft
interred with their bones:
So let it be
with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you
Caesar was ambitious;
If it were so,
it was a grievous fault,
And grievously
hath Caesar answered it.
Here, under
leave of Brutus and the rest –
For Brutus is
an honorable man,
So are they all, all
honorable men -”
Not only does Antony
obtain the support of the crowd, but he also incites them into a lawless mob,
and the conspirators have to flee for their lives. As the speech
develops, Antony uses props in order to emphasize certain passages, and in
particular he uses Caesar’s stab wounds as a final image, which in the end do
the speaking for him.
“If you have
tears, prepare to shed them now.
You all do know
this mantle. I remember
The first time
ever Caesar put it on,
Look, in this
place ran Cassius’ dagger through;
See what a rent
the envious Casca made;
Through this
the well-beloved Brutus stabbed.”.
ACT III – Scene.iii
Summary
The mob is abroad in
the streets of Rome seeking out the conspirators and burning their
property. They happen upon Cinna, the poet, and they confuse him with
Cinna, the conspirator. He pleads with them to be spared, and although they now
realize he is Cinna the poet, they kill him anyway because of his bad verse.
Shakespeare’s purpose
here is to show how the ordered Rome has degenerated into a state where the mob
rules. Why he chooses a poet to be the victim of an attack by the mob is
not clear. Perhaps he is making some comment regarding the position of poets in
Elizabethan society, and perhaps indirectly, he is asking the audience to judge
him and poets generally.
Just as Mark Antony
incited the mob to go on a bloodlust, so did Hitler do exactly the same,
inciting hatred against the Jews. Again there is reference to blood and
fire in this scene.
Great
Caesar’s Ghost
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The Life & Times of Julius Caesar
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Caesar's early Life
GAIUS JULIUS CAESAR grew up in a period of unrest and civil war in
Rome. The increased size of the empire had led to cheap slave labour flooding
into the country which in turned made many Roman workers unemployed. The Social
Wars created turmoil all over Italy and MARIUS and SULLA were the
great leaders of the time.
As a member of an old aristocratic family Julius was expected, at the
completion of his education, to assume a modest office on the lower end of the
long ladder of the Roman political career.
However, Caesar was not like other Romans. Already at a young age he had
realized that money was the key to Roman politics as the system had by his time
long been corrupt.
When, Caesar was fifteen years old, his father Lucius died, with him died the
fatherly expectations that Caesar should engage on a modest political career.
Instead Caesar now set out to better himself.
His first step was to marry into a yet more distinguished family. Further he
began building a network of connections, some of which with politicians
currently out of favor (the supporters of Marius).
But these were dangerous contacts to have. Sulla was dictator of Rome
and was seeking to wipe out any Marian sympathizers.
A nineteen year old Caesar was arrested. But it appears that Sulla chose to
spare him, as he did some others. Influential friends managed to have him
released, but it was obvious that Caesar would have to leave Rome for a while,
in order to let things cool down.
And so Caesar left Rome to join the army. Naturally, as a member of a
patrician family, he didn't enter the forces as a common soldier. His first
posting was as a military assistant to a provincial governor. Thereafter he was
posted to Cilicia, where he proved himself a capable and courageous soldier,
winning praise for having saved the life of a comrade. It's believed that his
next assignment was in one of the armies which crushed Spartacus' slave
rebellion.
After this Caesar left the army, yet it was still considered unwise for him
to return to Rome.
Instead he spent some time in the south of Italy improving his education, in
particular rhetoric. Caesar later proved an incredibly talented, if not genial,
public speaker and much of this will undoubtedly have come from his training in
rhetoric.
'Do you know any man who, even if he has concentrated on the art of
oratory to the exclusion of all else, can speak better than Caesar ?'
(quote by Cicero).
Caesar decided to spend the winter on the island of Rhodes, but the ship
taking him there was captured by pirates, who held him hostage for about forty
days, until a large ransom bought his freedom.
During this misadventure Caesar displayed much of the ruthlessness, which
should later lead to his world fame. While captured he joked with his
captors, telling them he'd see them all crucified, once he was released.
Everyone laughed at the joke, even Caesar himself.
But it was in fact exactly what he did once he was released. He hunted the
pirates down, captured them and had them crucified.
Caesar's next task was to organize a force to defend Roman property along
the coast of Asia Minor (Turkey).
Meanwhile the regime in Rome had changed and Caesar could return home.
Based on his deeds and military achievements so far, Caesar successfully
campaigned for a post in the Roman administration. Caesar served in 63 BC as a quaestor
in Spain, where in Cadiz he is said to have broken down and wept in front of a
statue of Alexander the Great, realizing that where Alexander had conquered
most of the known world at thirty, Caesar at that age was merely seen as a
dandy who had squandered his wife's fortunes as well as his own.
Caesar returned to Rome, determined to achieve political standing. His first
wife had died, so Caesar once more entered into a politically useful marriage.
Though he divorced his new wife soon afterwards, on suspicion of adultery. The
suspicion was unproven and friends urged him to show greater faith in his wife.
But Caesar declared that he could not live with a woman even suspected of
adultery. There was some truth in that statement. His enemies were only waiting
to ruin him, seeking any chance to exploit a weakness, no matter if true or
not.
For the next years, Caesar continued to buy popularity, both with the people
of Rome as well as with the high and mighty in important places. Achieving the
post of aedile, Caesar used it to his fullest advantage. Bribes, public
shows, gladiatorial contests, games and banquets; Caesar employed them all - at
huge costs - to buy favour.
'He showed himself perfectly prepared to serve and flatter everybody, even
ordinary people... and he did not mind temporarily grovelling' (quote by
Dio Cassius)
But he also acted, as was usual for an aedile to renovate public
buildings, which naturally also impressed some of the less fickle part of the
populace.
Caesar well knew that his actions were costing him fortunes. And some of his
creditors were calling in their debts. Furthermore, many senators were
beginning to dislike this brash newcomer who in the most undignified fashion
was bribing his way up the political ladder. But Caesar cared little and bribed
his way into the office of pontifex maximus (chief priest). This new
office bestowed upon Caesar not only the sheer status of a powerful position,
but so too the post's dignity granted Caesar a solemn appearance which he
otherwise would have struggled to attain.
Being a religious post it also made him sacrosanct as a person. The pontifex
maximus a man very hard to criticize or attack in any way.
In 60 BC Caesar's career took him back to Spain. Aged 41, he was awarded the
post of praetor. It may well have been that the senate decided to send
the young upstart to a troubled region, in order to have him fail. Trouble had
been brewing with the local tribes in Spain for a long time. But Caesar
undaunted by the problems, excelled in his new role.
Caesar discovered a talent for military command which he himself hadn't known
he possessed. The experience he gained in Spain would be of great value in his
further career. But more so the ability of capturing some spoils of war for himself,
to put his personal finances back to right and repay his debt was what rescued
his career. If there was one lesson, Caesar learnt in Spain then it was that
war could be politically and financially very profitable.
'The First Triumvirate'
In 59 BC Caesar returned to Rome, having proved himself a capable ruler. He
now formed a valuable pact with two of the most prominent Romans of the day, -
the so-called 'first triumvirate'.
The triumvirate helped Caesar achieve his greatest ambition to that day. He
was elected consul, the highest office of Rome. The political influence he had
built up in his previous years of bribery, together with the enormous power and
influence of Crassus and Pompey managed to virtually oust the second consul, L.
Calpurnius Bibulus, who stayed at home for most of the time, knowing he had
little say at all. The historian Suetonius tells of people joking of it being
not the joint consulship of 'Bibulus and Caesar', but of 'Julius and Caesar'.
The formation of the ruling triumvirate with Crassus and Pompey was a mark also
of Caesar's determination to push through genuine and innovative measures in
the face of a hostile senate which was suspicious of his motives and to ensure
that there was some continuity of progressive legislation after his term as
consul was over.
Caesar's laws are indeed seen as more than mere populist measures. For
example, tax demands on farmers were cancelled. Public land was allocated to
fathers of three or more children. These were laws hardly likely to make Caesar
less popular than he was, and yet they reveal that he also possessed insight
into the problems weighing on Rome at the time.
CAESAR also remarried, once again to a bride from a very influential
Roman household. And his daughter JULIA was married to POMPEY, further
cementing his political partnership with the great general.
As his one-year term of office as consul came to an end, Caesar needed to
think of finding a new office into which to retire from his current position.
For his enemies were that bent on vengeance, to not have held any office would
have left him open to attack in the courts and possible ruin. He therefore
obtained for himself the governorship of Cisalpine Gaul, Illyricum and - due to
the sudden death of that governor - Transalpine Gaul for a period of five
years, which was later extended for a second term. Gaul at the time comprised
the subjugated region south of the Alps and to the east of the Apennines as far
as the river Rubicon, together with a small portion of territory on the other
side of the Alps, roughly corresponding with today's French regions Provence
and Languedoc.
The following military campaign Caesar then embarked upon against the Gauls
is still subject of study to students at military academies today.
Caesar had read and informed himself well in the art of warfare. Now also he
should benefit on the experience he had gathered in leading troops in Spain.
Had Caesar at first been hoping to conquer the lands north of Italy. For this
purpose his first task was to start raising , partly at his own expense - more
troops than those which he already commanded as governor. Over the next few
years he was to raise a force of ten legions, about 50'000 men, as well as
10'000 to 20'000 allies, slaves and camp followers. But it was to be in his
very first year in office, 58 BC, before many additional troops had been levied
that occurrences beyond Caesar's control should set him on the path to history.
The tribe of the Helvetians (Helvetii) had been forced from their
mountainous homelands by the migration of Germanic tribes and were now pushing
into Transalpine Gaul (Gallia Narbonensis).
Caesar acted swiftly and shattered the Helvetian invasion in a crushing defeat.
But no sooner was this done a large force of Germans, Sueves and Swabians,
crossed the Rhine and then entered into the Roman part of Gaul. Their leader
Ariovistus was an ally of Rome, but so too was the Gallic tribe of the Aedui,
whom the Germans were attacking.
Caesar sided with the Aedui. the Germans had had their eye on Gaul for some
time, and Caesar wanted to use this opportunity to put a stop to any such
ambitions. Gaul was to become Roman, not German.
The Germans were the larger army and the fighting prowess of the Germanic
tribesmen was renowned. But they did not possess the iron discipline of the
Roman army. Caesar felt sufficiently confident to meet them in battle. On
learning that the Germans believed in a prophecy that they should lose the
battle if they fought before the new moon, Caesar forced a battle upon them
immediately. The Germans were defeated and large numbers of them were
slaughtered, trying to escape the field of battle.
The following year (57 BC) Caesar marched his troops northwards to deal with
the Belgae. The Nervii were the leading tribe of the Celtic Belgae and were
apparently preparing to attack the Roman forces, as they feared Caesar might otherwise
conquer all of Gaul. How right they were in this assumption no one can say with
absolute certainty. But it gave Caesar all the reason he needed to begin a
full-scale war and invade Nervian territory.
It was during the campaign against the Nervii that a weakness of Caesar's
tactics was exposed. Namely that of bad reconnaissance. His horsemen were
mainly German and Gallic. Perhaps he didn't sufficiently trust them. Perhaps he
didn't understand how to use them properly as scouts ahead of his army. but it
is due to that oversight that Caesar was taken by surprise several times during
his campaigns in Gaul. In one particular incident the Nervii swarmed down on
his marching troops. It was only due to the iron discipline of his soldiers
that panic did not take hold of the startled troops.
When the decisive battle eventually came, the Nervii fought heroically, and
the battle for some time hung in the balance, but eventually they were
defeated. With the Nervii smashed the other tribes of the Belgae were gradually
forced into submission.
Having conquered most of Gaul, Caesar met up with the two other triumvirs in
56 BC in the town of Luca in Cisalpine Gaul, where it was decided that his
governorship of Gaul was to be extended and Crassus and Pompey should once more
be consuls.
and Britain
Then in 55 BC another invasion of Germans demanded Caesar's attention. The
Germans were confronted and shattered near today's town of Koblenz (Germany).
Caesar then proceeded in building a bridge across the river Rhine. His
description of events states his troops only took 10 days to construct the
wooden bridge. Recent experiments by have indeed proved it possible.
The meaning of the bridge was mainly symbolic. This display of Roman engineering
and power was meant to frighten the Germans as well as impress people back home
in Rome. (The bridge was used to carry Roman raiding parties into Germany. But
appears to have been destroyed by the Caesar's troops shortly afterwards.) The
senate however was angered at Caesar's flouting of the rules. For as governor
of Gaul Caesar was by no means entitled to take any action against territory
east of the Rhine. But Caesar was not to care for what his enemies in the
senate thought of him. With the Germans crushed, he turned to Britain in the
same year (55 BC). The following year he launched another expedition into
Britain.
These raids on Britain were as such not very successful from a military
standpoint. But to Caesar they were invaluable propaganda. Britain was
virtually unknown to the Roman world, but for some trading links. Ordinary
Romans heard of Caesar fighting near mythical enemies in unknown lands.
Meanwhile the senate was seething.
On his return from Britain in the autumn of 54 BC, Caesar faced a large
revolt of the Belgae. The rest of 54 BC and the following year were spent
subduing the rebellious tribes and ravaging the lands of those who had risen
against him. But in 52 BC Gaul arose in a massive revolt against its conqueror.
Under the Arverni chief Vercingetorix, almost all the tribes of Gaul, except
for three, allied against the Romans. At first Vercingetorix achieved some
advances, trying to starve the Romans out of Gaul. Caesar had spent the winter
in Cisalpine Gaul and now hurried, at great danger to himself, back to join his
troops. Immediately he launched attacks on Vercingetorix allies, overrunning
one foe after the other. At the fortified hill town of Gergovia he was however
repelled. His lieutenant Labienus had been sent with half Caesar's force
against another tribe, the Parisii. Caesar eventually realized he had
insufficient forces to win the siege and withdrew.
Alas, Vercingetorix made his fatal error. Rather than continuing his small scale
guerilla war against Roman raiding parties looking for food for the army (and
so denying Caesar's men food), he switched to a direct confrontation. The
amassed Gallic army then launched a full-scale attack on Caesar's army and
suffered a terrible defeat. Lucky to get away, the remainder of the Gallic
force withdrew into the fortified hill town of Alesia. Caesar laid siege to the
town. The Gauls watched on as the Romans built a deadly ring of trenches and
fortifications around the town. Vercingetorix did not intervene against the
Romans as they built their siege works. Evidently he was hoping for relief
forces to arrive and drive Caesar off. Caesar knew that such a force had been
sent for and hence also built an outer trench to defend against any attacks
from outside.
Alas, a massive relief force arrived, gathered from all parts of Gaul.
Caesar tells of a force of 250'000 thousand infantry and 8'000 cavalry. The
accuracy of such estimates is unclear, and one must consider that Caesar might
well have exaggerated the scale of his challenge. But with the Gauls drawing
from an overall population which by today's estimates numbered between eight
and twelve million, Caesar's figures might indeed be accurate.
Caesar did not retire. The situation was desperate. The Romans still had a
force of 80'000 warriors under Vercingetorix to contain within their siege
works and a massive force without. More still, the Roman troops had stripped
the surrounding countryside of any food. The Gallic troops had brought little
for themselves and now faced the stark choice of having to fight or retreat.
And initial nightly attack by the Gauls was beaten back. A day and a half
later another massive attack was concentrated on one of the main Roman camps.
With fierce fighting all around Caesar mounted his horse, haranguing his troops
to fight on. He sent his reserve cavalry out into the field to ride around a
nearby hill and fall onto the Gauls from behind. Then he finally rushed in to
fight in person. He might have been the general who commanded form a distance.
But here there was no retreat. There were Gauls on either side of the trenches
and to have lost this battle would have meant certain death. Fighting alongside
his men he helped drive off the Gauls.
Some soldiers, either weary from battle or panicked by fear, who sought to flee
were grabbed by the throat by Caesar and forced back to their positions.
Alas, Caesar's cavalry emerged from behind the hills and fell into the rear
of the Gauls. The attacking army fell into disorder, panicked and tried to
retreat. Many were slaughtered by Caesar's German mercenary horseman. The
Gallic relief force realized its defeat and retired. Vercingetorix admitted
defeat and the day after surrendered in person. Caesar had won the battle of
Alesia (52 BC).
Vercingetorix was offered no mercy. He was paraded through the streets of
Rome in Caesar's triumph march, during which he was ritually strangled. The
inhabitants of Alesia and the captured Gallic soldiers fared little better.
They were shared out as slaves among the victorious Roman soldiers, who either
kept them to help carry baggage, or sold them to the slave traders which
accompanied the army.
It took Caesar another year to quell Gallic resistance to Roman rule.
Eventually he assembled all the tribal chiefs of Gaul and demanded their
allegiance to Rome. Gaul was beaten, they could do nothing but comply with his
demands and Gaul was finally secured as a Roman province.
When Caesar had finished his series of brilliant campaigns, he had changed
the nature of the Roman empire from a purely Mediterranean realm into western
European empire. He had also driven the empire's frontier up to the Rhine, a
natural, easily defendable border, which should come to be the imperial border
for centuries.
Rome
But then things turned nasty in 51 BC when Caesar's governorship of Gaul was
revoked by the senate. This left Caesar hanging high and dry, needing to fear
prosecution for past irregularities once he returned to Rome. For months on end
there was diplomatic to'ing and thro'ing with Caesar remaining in Gaul, until
he lost patience with the niceties of political life. In 49 BC Caesar
crossed the Rubicon, the demarcation line between his province and Italy. He
marched on Rome at the head of his battle-hardened army, where he met little
resistance.
Though Caesar's tale is a tragic one. His taking control of Rome by force
had destroyed the very system within which he had wanted to succeed. And there
is little sign that he enjoyed the task of reconstruction. And yet there was
much to reconstruct for Caesar, foremost he had to reinstate order. His first
task was to have himself appointed temporary dictator, a post of the republic
set aside for emergencies, during which one man would be given absolute powers.
Accustomed to working at top speed from his time in Gaul - he dictated letters
to two secretaries while on horseback ! - Caesar went to work.
Caesar might have ruled Rome. But things were far from under control, just
because the capital lay in his hands. The entire state of Rome was under threat
and only one man could stop Caesar - Pompey. But Pompey, though an excellent
general, deemed superior to Caesar by many, he didn't possess the troops to
take on the invader. So he withdrew his troops from Italy to gain time to train
his troops. Caesar tried to stop him but failed.
But with Pompey forced to flee eastwards, Caesar was left to turn to Spain
to put the Pompeian legions there out of action. Not so much by fighting as by
skillful maneuvering was Caesar by his own admission for once outgeneraled.
However, the campaign was brought to a successful issue in six months, most of
the troops joining his standard.
Caesar now turned east to deal with Pompey himself. The Pompeians controlled
the seas, causing him great difficulty in setting across to Epirus, where he
was shut up within his own lines by a much larger army of Pompey in November.
Caesar avoided a pitched battle with some difficulty, whilst waiting for Mark
Antony to join him with the second army in spring 48 BC. Then, in midsummer
of 48 BC Caesar met Pompey on the plain of Pharsalus in Thessaly. Pompey's army
was much the bigger, though Pompey himself knew them not of the same quality as
Caesar's veterans. Caesar won the day, utterly destroying the force of Pompey,
who fled to Egypt. Caesar followed, though Pompey was eventually assassinated
on arrival by the Egyptian government.
Caesar in hot pursuit of Pompey arrived in Alexandria, only to get entangled
in the quarrels of succession to the throne of the Egyptian monarchy. Initially
asked to help settle a dispute, Caesar soon found himself attacked by Egyptian
royal troops and needed to hold out for help to arrive. His few troops he had
with him, barricaded the streets and held off their opponents in bitter street
fighting.
The Pompeians still controlling the seas with their fleet, made it nigh
impossible for Rome to send help. Alas it was a independent expedition of
wealthy citizen from Pergamum and the government of Judaea which helped Caesar
end the 'Alexandrian War'.
And yet Caesar did not leave Egypt at once. The legendary charms of the
woman he had made queen of Egypt, Cleopatra, persuaded him to stay a while as
her personal guest.
Such was the hospitality that a son, named Caesarion, was born the following
year.
Caesar first dealt with king Parnaces, the son of Mithridates of Pontus,
before returning to Rome. Pharnaces had used the Roman's weakness during their
civil war to recover his father's lands. It was after this crushing victory
in Asia Minor (Turkey) that he sent his celebrated message to the senate 'veni,
vidi, vici' (I came, I saw, I conquered.)
Back home Caesar had been confirmed dictator in his absence, an appointment
which was regularly renewed thereafter. With this began an era, the rule of
Rome being held by men who successively held the name Caesar, by birth or
adoption.
But the fact that Caesar had not returned home at once had given Pompey's
sons enough time to raise new armies. Two more campaigns were needed, in Africa
and Spain, culminating in the battle of Munda on 17 March 45 BC. In October of
that year Caesar was back in Rome. Quickly it showed that Caesar was not merely
a conqueror and destroyer. Caesar was a builder, a visionary statesman, the
likes of which the world rarely gets to see.
He established order, begun measures to reduce congestion in Rome, draining
large tracts of marshy lands, gave full voting rights to the inhabitants of his
former province south of the Alps, revised the tax laws of Asia and Sicily,
resettled many Romans in new homes in the Roman provinces and reformed the
calendar, which, with one slight adjustment, is the one in use today.
Caesar's colonial policy, combined with his generosity in granting
citizenship to individuals and communities, was to rejuvenate both the Roman
legions and the Roman governing class. And Caesar, who included some provincial
aristocrats in his enlarged Senate, was perfectly aware of what he was doing.
But despite the pardons he granted to his old senatorial enemies, despite not
drowning Rome in blood like Sulla and Marius had done, when they had seized
power, Caesar failed to win over his enemies. Worse still, many Romans
feared that Caesar was going to make himself king. And Rome still held an old
hatred to its ancient kings. Many saw their fears only confirmed as Cleopatra
with her son Caesarion was brought to Rome. Was Rome perhaps the most
cosmopolitan place in the world of that day, it still didn't take kindly to
foreigners, the people of the east in particular. And so Cleopatra had to leave
again.
But Caesar did manage to persuade a senate which knew it possessed no
effective powers to declare him dictator for life. Julius Caesar was king of
Rome in all but title.
Caesar then began to plan a campaign against the vast Parthian empire in the
east. Why is unclear. Perhaps he sought more military glory, perhaps he simply
preferred the company of soldiers to that of intriguing politicians in Rome.
But Caesar's campaign against Parthia was not to be. Five months after his
arrival back in Rome, only three days before his departure on campaign to the
east, Caesar was dead, at the hands of a band of senatorial conspirators led by
Marcus Junius Brutus (d 42 BC) and Gaius Cassius Longinus (d 42 BC), both
former Pompeians who'd been pardoned by Caesar after the battle of Pharsalus.
He was, at the excuse of some of the conspirators, who claimed to want to
present a petition to him, lured into one of the back room of Pompey's Theatre
in Rome. (The rooms of the theatre were used for senatorial affairs, while the
senate building was being restored.)
There the conspirators pounced and Caesar was stabbed 23 times (15 March 44
BC).
Julius Caesar had changed the nature of the Roman empire, he had swept
away the old, corrupt system of the late Roman republic and had set an example
to future Roman emperors as well as other future European leaders to live up
to.
|
READ |
| First Man in Rome The |
| The Grass Crown The |
| Fortune's Favorites Sulla |
| Caesar's Women Roman |
| Caesar The |
| Steven Saylor's Roma sub Rosa series is a set of Judgment Of Caesar, The: A Novel Of Ancient Rome It |
Monday, May 23, 2005
Hand in homework questions that were assigned on Friday 5/20
Candide Chapters 22-24.
REVIEW CHAPTERS 22-24 (Students should have read over weekend)
DISCUSS Flawed Logic, Hypocrisy & Optimism from Chapter 22
Flawed Logic: The narrator inverts the logical progression of the statement, which describes how medicine and blood-letting "help" Candide worsen his condition. The narrator creates the expectation that these therapies are going to make Candide well, but he concludes by saying they make Candide's health worse. Statements like this reinforce the comical absurdity of Candide's world.
Hypocrisy: After accepting Candide's bribe, the policeman says that if Candide was the worst of criminals, the policeman would think of Candide as the most honest of men.
Optimism: According to the man of letters at the faro game, life is illogical, and full of confusion and quarrelling. He disagrees entirely with the theory that this is the best of all possible worlds. Like Martin and the old woman, he gives Candide a realistic view of the world and strengthens the argument against optimism.
Chapter 22: "What Happened to Candide and Martin in France"
They reach Bordeaux. Candide wants to go straight to Venice. He gives his sheep to the Academy of Sciences, which awards a prize to a man who explains why the sheep was red.
Candide and Martin meet travelers who are on their way to Paris. Their enthusiasm convinces Candide to see Paris. Candide gets sick when he arrives. His conspicuous wealth attracts unsolicited and disingenuous doctors, attendants, and card players. Candide receives treatment, which makes him worse. A clerk announces that Candide will not be given a proper burial if he doesn't accept the religious practices in vogue at the time. Martin throws the clerk out, and Candide gets better.
The sly abbé from Périgord takes Candide to the theatre. Someone says the play is very bad because the author does not believe in innate ideas. (John Locke, admired by Voltaire, believed people acquire knowledge through experience. Descartes, on the other hand, held that people were born with certain innate ideas).
Candide wants to meet the actress who plays the Queen of England. He innocently wonders how he should behave around a queen of England, although she is just an actress playing the queen. The abbé tells him that Parisians respect queens if they are pretty but throw them in the sewer if they are dead. Candide is a little shocked.
The abbé takes Candide to the house of the Marquise de Parolignac to play faro (a card game). The Marquise cheats Candide out of more money, a share of which goes to the abbé. After the card game, a man of letters talks about writing tragedies. Candide is transfixed by the man's philosophical tone. He reminds Candide of Pangloss. Candide asks him if he agrees that all is for the best. The man says, to the contrary, he believes that life is "an eternal war" (104). The Marquise de Parolignac steals the diamonds Candide wears on his fingers while she seduces him.
The abbé orchestrates a meeting in an unlit room with a woman who claims to be Cunégonde. Fooled, Candide gives money to the imposter. The abbé has Candide and Martin arrested on the grounds that they look suspicious. Martin wises up to the abbé's scheming and suggests that Candide bribe the police officer. The police officer accepts the bribe after telling them that all strangers are arrested in France. They are taken to Dieppe where Candide and Martin board a Dutch ship destined for England.
Chapter 23
DISCUSS War:
War: The English admiral's execution--another example of the ridiculous and inhumane practices of war emphasized in Candide--was based on a similar case which happened in England during Voltaire's lifetime.
Chapter 23: "Candide and Martin Reach the Coast of England; and What They Saw There"
Candide and Martin approach the coast of England. Candide wonders if people in England are as crazy as they are in France. Martin supposes that the English are crazy in different ways. Candide and Martin reach Portsmouth and watch a public execution of an English admiral. Candide learns that the admiral did not kill enough people. The execution is supposed to inspire others of similar rank to kill more people. Candide is once again horrified by the state of the world. He demands to be taken to Venice immediately. After getting over his shock and confusion, Candide regains his optimism when he reaches Venice. He revises Pangloss' characteristic refrain that all is well, saying instead that things are as good they get.
Chapter 24
DISCUSS Flawed Logic, Hypocrisy & Optimism:
Flawed Logic: Candide makes the sweeping statement that, besides the people of Eldorado, everyone he meets is unfortunate and miserable. But Candide seems to be unmoved by the force of his own statement when he naively reckons that the smiling couple is happy. Having had plenty of experiences to cultivate a healthy skepticism, Candide remains stupidly optimistic.
Hypocrisy: Friar Giroflée's account of his miserable monastic life casts doubt on the integrity of religious institutions.
Optimism: The philosophy of optimism grows increasingly less tenable to Candide considering the miserable stories of Paquette and Friar Giroflée. Martin's pessimism only amplifies Candide's doubts, although at times, Candide, like Pangloss, remains dumbly optimistic in the face of dire circumstances.
Chapter 24:"Paquette and Friar Giroflée"
When he reaches Venice, Candide cannot find Cacambo and Cunégonde. He falls into a depression and Martin convinces him that the world is indeed a horrible place.
"It would have been better to stay in the Paradise of Eldorado instead of returning to this accursed Europe. How right you are, my dear Martin! Everything is illusion and calamity!"
Candide sees a friar and a young girl who look happy. He remarks that at least they are happy. Martin guesses that they are just as miserable as everyone else. Candide asks them to dinner to find out.
The young girl is Paquette, the Baroness's waiting-maid who gave Pangloss a venereal disease. Paquette confirms Martin's suspicions. Her life has been terrible ever since she was forced to leave the Baron's castle. She became the mistress to a doctor who cured her venereal disease. The doctor's wife got jealous and beat Paquette every day. The doctor poisoned his wife, and Paquette was thrown in prison. The judge released her so she could be his mistress. When a new mistress replaced her, the judge threw her out. She became a prostitute.
Paquette complains bitterly, and she tells Candide that she can only look forward to old age and a dunghill. Candide protests that she appeared to be happy. Paquette says looking happy is part of a prostitute's job.
Paquette's friend, Friar Giroflée is just as miserable. His parents forced him to become a friar so that his older brother would inherit more money. He hates the monastic life and his fellow churchmen. The prior takes most of his money. The friar spends the rest of his money on prostitutes. When he goes home he feels like smashing his head against the wall. Paquette and Friar Giroflée prove that Martin guessed correctly.
Candide gives Paquette and Friar Giroflée some money, thinking this will make them happy. Martin thinks the money will make them more unhappy.
Candide muses that his chances of meeting Cunégonde again are good because he was reunited with his sheep and Paquette. Whatever the outcome, Martin doubts that Cunégonde will make Candide happy. Martin says that experience proves that life is miserable.
Candide points out that the singing gondoliers must be happy. Martin replies that life is miserable whatever one's position, whether it be that of the Doge (a Venetian duke), or that of a gondolier. Candide tells Martin that Lord Pococurante, a Venetian noble, is rumored to be happy all the time. Martin says that he would like to meet this rare individual.
II. CONTINUE READING
Voltaire’s Candide Chapters Chapters 25-27
READ & DISCUSS together in classChapter 25
DISCUSS Chapter:
"Visit to the Noble Venetian, Lord Pococurante"
Candide and Martin go to the lavish and ornate palace of Lord Pococurante. He is polite but not friendly. Two young girls serve Candide and Martin chocolate drinks. Pococurante enjoys the sexual favors of the two girls because he finds Venetian women tiresome, but the young girls are starting to bore him as well. In fact, many things bore Lord Pococurante. He finds no pleasure in his art collection, which includes two Raphaels he bought in order to impress people. He thinks music and the opera are tiresome, and he delivers scathing reviews of Homer's Iliad and Virgil's Aeneid. He finds little merit in the works of Horace. He only reads for pleasure. Martin agrees with Pococurante. Candide is shocked.
"Candide, who had been taught never to judge everything for himself, was greatly surprised by what he heard[.]" Chapter 25, pg. 122
Pococurante is equally disgusted with the theatre and the sciences. He qualifies his praise of the English and their love for liberty, saying they are too politically passionate. He condemns Milton's Paradise Lost. Candide fears that Pococurante will talk nastily about the German poets. Martin wryly tells Candide this would not be a bad idea.
Though Candide is unnerved by this attack on the classics, he is secretly impressed with Pococurante's cynicism. He thinks Pococurante is a happy man. Martin thinks Pococurante's bored hedonism is a far cry from happiness. Candide thinks happiness can be gained from fault-finding. Martin says this is contradictory.
"'[I]s there not pleasure in criticizing, in finding faults where other men think they see beauty?' 'That is to say,' answered Martin, 'that there is pleasure in not being pleased.'" Chapter 25, pg. 125
Candide and Martin go back to their hotel. After some weeks, and no news from Cunégonde or Cacambo, Candide grows more depressed.
Chapter 26
"How Candide and Martin Supped With Six Strangers and Who They Were"
Martin and Candide go to dinner with some guests from their hotel. Candide is pulled aside by Cacambo. He tells Candide he is the servant to one of the guests, and that Cunégonde is in Constantinople. Candide is overwhelmed and overjoyed.
Even more terrific is the novelty of dining with the six guests who turn out to be dethroned kings. Of great note to Candide was how royalty could be cast off and suffer such absurd and humiliating circumstances. Fate was cruel to everyone, it seemed, and these men had taken particularly hard falls. A servant tells one of the kings that his credit is no longer good at the hotel. The servant then deserts him. The other deposed kings offer the king a bit of money, but Candide gives the king a diamond. Candide's generosity, despite his lowly status, surprises the rest of the kings. A group of queens who met similar fates enter the restaurant as Candide leaves the table. He thinks only of Cunégonde.
DISCUSS Optimism:
Optimism: The stories of the six dethroned kings are sobering. Even the most powerful and influential men are subject to absurd reversals of fortune. Despite Pangloss' attempts to explain away "private misfortunes" (Chapter 4, pg. 19), neither the metaphysics of optimism nor any theory can give an acceptable explanation for the cruelty of life.
Chapter 27
"Candide's Voyage to Constantinople"
Cacambo secures passage to Constantinople for Candide and Martin on the Sultan Achmet's boat. Candide and Martin must kneel before "his miserable highness" (132) as they board, even though he has been dethroned. En route, Candide reflects on the remarkable dinner he and Martin had with the six dethroned kings. Considering someone like himself can be charitable to a king, Candide concludes that things are, for him at least, going well. Besides, he was on his way to see Cunégonde. Candide is inclined to agree, once again, with Pangloss. All is well, after all. Martin is, as always, impassive; he sees nothing extraordinary in the kings' stories, considering what he and Candide have already been through.
Candide learns that Cunégonde and the old woman are servants for a poor dethroned prince, and that both the Governor of Buenos Aires and a pirate took all of Cacambo's gold and jewels from Eldorado. Even worse, Cunégonde was now ugly. Candide proclaims he will love her anyway. He feels loyal to her. But he does think it a shame that she has lost her looks. Considerably deflated by the prospect of an anticlimactic reunion, Candide's mood turns sour. He asks Martin who is to be pitied more, one of the dethroned kings or himself. Martin replies that it is impossible for him to know. Candide thinks that Pangloss would know if he were still alive.
"'I do not know,' said Martin, 'what scales your Pangloss would use to weigh the misfortunes of men and to estimate their sufferings. All I presume is that there are millions of men on earth a hundred times more to be pitied than King Charles Edward, the Emperor Ivan, and the Sultan Achmet.'" Chapter 27, pg. 134
DISCUSS Optimism, Flawed Logic, Hypocrisy & Pride:
Optimism: Candide buys Cacambo's freedom from the sultan. They arrive at the Black Sea and Candide, Martin, and Cacambo catch a ride on a galley ship to the shores of Propontis, a sea in Turkey, to find Cunégonde even though she is ugly.
Two of the galley rowers get beaten often. Candide recognizes them as Pangloss and the Baron's son. Like most of the miraculous reunions that occur in Candide, this one is ecstatic and exaggerated.
The Baron's son shows no hard feelings toward Candide for stabbing him, while Candide addresses Pangloss as the most profound metaphysician in Germany, slightly revising Pangloss's earlier title as "the greatest philosopher in the province, and therefore the whole world" (Chapter 1, pg. 5).
Noticing the reverence with which Candide addresses Pangloss and the Baron's son, the Levantine captain inflates the price of their freedom to fifty thousand sequins. They soon reach Constantinople. Candide sells two of his diamonds, and the group of five set out to fetch Cunégonde.
Flawed Logic: The absurdities which result from Candide's frequent misuse of language has great comic effect. He asks Pangloss how he was hanged and yet is still alive. He asks the Baron's son how he did not kill him. Both questions seem backward in the sense that Candide emphasizes actions that, in the real world, have the irreversible effect of death: killing, and hanging.
Hypocrisy: Like all of the opportunistic con men who descend on Candide in Paris, the Levantine captain seizes the chance to line his own pockets. He inflates the price of his galley slaves' freedom (though they were poor rowers). Candide encounters very few people who have any moral integrity.
Pride: Though the sultan Achmet has been dethroned, he still requires a ridiculous gesture of deference from Cacambo and Candide as they board his ship. When Candide buys the Baron's son's freedom from the Levantine ship captain, Pangloss falls to Candide's feet in gratitude. The Baron's son is too proud to acknowledge Candide's generosity and he only gives a slight gesture of thanks and says he will reimburse Candide.
III. HOMEWORK QUESTIONS: You can get the questions off the edline web site. https://www.edline.net/DocView.page or http://jmarzoengl10.blogspot.com/
HOMEWORK QUESTIONS CANDIDE CHAPTERS 25 - 27
Due Tuesday May 24, 2005
Chapter 25
1.This is Candide's exposure to the topic of great literature and the arts. Here Voltaire voices his own opinions about literature and the arts.
2.What do you think is Martin's opinion of Pococurante (name means "caring little")?
3.How does Pococurante's name fit his character?
4.What is Martin's opinion of Pococurante?
5.What is your opinion of the concept of great men, artists, books, politicians, etc.? Why do you think such people are considered great?
6.Pococurante represents the idea of the importance of independent judgment. How independent do you think we are in our tastes?
7.Is Pococurante happy or unhappy? Why?
Chapter 26
1.What does Candide learn from Cacambo about Cunegonde?
2.What is the meaning of the encounter with the six dethroned kings, who are real historical figures? What role does Providence play in their fate?
3.Do you feel any sympathy toward them, or do you think they got what they deserved?
Chapter 27
1.Where is Constantinople? How did Candid and martin get there?
2.What is the first thing that Candide wants to know from Cacambo about his Cunegonde? What does he learn about her? What is his attitude about it?
3.This chapter also focuses on the role that beauty plays in relationships. In one place Candide says that he is bound by duty to love Candide, and in another place he says that it is a pity that she has become so ugly. Is it possible to love someone who is ugly?
4.Reassembling of the major characters. Have the young baron and Pangloss changed any after so many horrible experiences?
Monday, April 18, 2005
Voltaire Page!
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/7308/
"Candide" text on line
http://www.readprint.com/work-1462/Francois-Marie-Arouet-Voltaire
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FRIDAY JANUARY 28, 2005
I. READING CIRCLES ( Work in small groups of 3 to 6 people)
Arrange your chairs in a circle and quietly READ together.
Montana 1948 - Part 2 Pages 133 - 162
II. HOMEWORK
READ "Epilogue" Pages 165 - 175 and "Afterword" ( 3 pages )
at home over the weekend. We will DISCUSS in class on Monday 1/31
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THURSDAY JANUARY 27, 2005
I. READ together in class (Popcorn) Montana 1948 - Part 3 Pages 105 - 132
REMINDER!
Essay # 3 Narrative - Due March 4, 2005
In the novel Montana 1948, David, Wesley, Gail and Marie have a strong sense of place.
All but Gail are part of Montana and the river and the river and Montana are part of them.
Gail yearns for the dirt smell of North Dakota which is her place. Your assignment is to
write a personal narrative of two to three pages (500 words or so) about a place that has
had some special meaning in your life - a place which is still a part of you. Provide specific
physical details about the place and explain how this place helped form you into the person
you are today. Think of how you want to order your narrative. What will you summarize?
What will you dramatize? Will you use chronological order or flashback? Give the reader
enough information so that they can understand why this place is significant to you.
As with all of our writings, brainstorm with your classmates in writing circle for ideas, get
feedback on your rough drafts, revise and group edit, before turning in a final draft.
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WEDNESDAY JANUARY 26, 2005
I. READING CIRCLES ( Work in small groups of 3 to 6 people)
Arrange your chairs in a circle and quietly READ together.
Montana 1948 - Part 2 Pages 80 - 102
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TUESDAY JANUARY 25, 2005
I. READ together in class (Popcorn) Montana 1948 - Part 2 Pages 57 - 79
HOMEWORK
Answer Questions - Montana - 1948 Covering Pages 38 - 79 - Due Wed. 1/26
1) Explain in detail what Watson (The Author) has to say about racism so far
in the story. Give three specific examples from the story. (Hint: David’s
recollections of Ronnie Tall Bear)
2) What does David remember about Ollie Young Bear and how do
David's recollections tie in with the major theme of the story? (Describe Ollie and give examples)
3) Which major accomplishments of Ollie Young Bear make Ollie the perfect
choice for white people to point to as an example of what Indians can be?
4) When Wesley questions Marie, what does he learn about his brother Frank.
5) What passage from the story reveals Gail Hayden's desire for ‘a few moments
of purity, a temporary escape from the sordid drama that is playing itself out?
6) Describe Julian's (David's Grandfather) house.
7) Explian how Julian passes off Frank's ordeal as a trivial matter.
What does he tell Westley about Frank?
8) Describe Frank's wife Gloria and how she may have been a better mother to David.
9) Briefly Describe David’s grandmother, who is a largely nonexistent character.
10) Describe in detail how David felt after he shot the magpie. Why do you think he had to
shoot the bird? What connections does he make while looking into the dead bird's eye?
11) What happens when Wesley confronts Frank about molesting Indian women?
12) How does Gloria feel about it?
13) What is Wesley's reaction and why?
14) What terrible event must occur before David admits that he saw Frank visiting the house?
15) Besides the White Man's prejudice against Indians, what else is a major theme in the novel?
16) Describe David's Dream. What do you think his dream means?
17) Describe Len's Character and how he is connected to David's Mother Gail.
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MONDAY JANUARY 24, 2005
FINAL EXAM REVIEW - Finals begin Tuesday Feb 1st
Know the following about "Montana 1948" for the Final Exam
I. Montana 1948: A boy's coming of age story & his initiation to life's harsh realities
Character Profiles
1) Julian Hayden (Grandfather) is an arrogant, domineering patriarch: ‘He wanted, he
needed, power. He was a dominating man who drew sustenance and strength from controlling
others…When my grandfather finally decided to retire for good and return to the ranch, he found
a way to do this yet retain his power in the county: he turned the post over to my father. Yes,
the sheriff of Mercer County was elected, but such was my grandfather’s popularity and influence
– and the weight of the Hayden name – that it was enough for my grandfather to say, as he had
earlier said of his deputy, now I want my son to have this job.’
2) Wesley Hayden (Sheriff of Mercer County) Went to law school. Reluctantly followed
his father Julian Hayden's footsteps and became the Sheriff of Mercer County. Was not able
to go off to war because of an injury. Held Indians in low regard. He was not a hate-filled bigot
– he probably thought he was free of prejudice! – and he could treat Indians with generosity,
kindness, and respect (as he could treat every human being). Nevertheless, he believed Indians,
with only a few exceptions, were ignorant, lazy, superstitious, and irresponsible. David first learned
of his father's racism when he was seven or eight. An aunt gave David a pair of moccasins for his
birthday, and his father forbade him to wear them. When David made a fuss and his mother sided
with him, his father said, “He wears those and soon he’ll be as flat-footed and lazy as an Indian.”’
3) Gail Hayden (David's Mother) is a religious woman who feels uncomfortable in Montana.
She once worked at the courthouse.
4) Narrator, David Hayden, 12 years old. wanted to ‘grow up wild.’ He spent a great deal
of his childhood swimming, fishing, hunting and exploring the wilderness of Mercer County:
‘Out of town I could simply be, I could feel my self, firm and calm and unmalleable as I could
not when I was in school or in any of the usual human communities that seemed to weaken
or scatter me. I could sit for an hour in the rocks above the Knife River, asking for no more
discourse than that water’s monotonous gabble. I was an inward child, it was true, but beyond
that, I felt a contentment outside human society that I couldn’t feel within it.” This desire is a
direct manifestation of his ‘shy and too serious character’. David seeks the solitude and
freedom of the wilderness and often as he can: ‘I never felt as thought I understood how
town life worked. I thought there was some secret knowledge about living comfortably and
unselfconsciously in a community, and I was sure I did not possess that knowledge. When
the lessons were taught on how to feel confident and at ease in school, in stores, in cafes,
with other children or adults, I must have been absent.’
5) Frank Hayden (Doctor), is a charming physician. Entered the service and returned home a war hero.
6) Marie Little Soldier, a Native American woman, housekeeper. Becomes very ill.
7) Gloria Hayden
8) Len (Wesley Hayden's deputy)
Literary Elements
Setting: Bentrock, Montana "hard country—the land is dry and sparse and the wind never
stops blowing. The heat and thunderstorms in summer can be brutal, and the winters are
legendary for the fierceness of their blizzards and the depths to which temperatures drop"
Theme: The white man's attitude toward Native Americans.
Conflict: Sibling rivalry between Wesley and Frank.
II. READING CIRCLES ( Work in small groups of 3 to 6 people)
Arrange your chairs in a circle and quietly READ together.
Montana 1948 - Part I Pages 38 - 54
III. Journal #7 - After reading Pages 38 - 54,
answer the following journal prompt:
If you had an uncle that did what Frank Hayden had done to Marie
and many other Native American Women, what would you do? How
would this make you feel? Please explain in detail. Write 1/2 Page
FRIDAY JANUARY 21, 2005
I. Hand in Montana 1948 – Questions (and Journal #5 if you have not already done so)
II. Journal # 6 – Massacre at Washita River
READ handout about the "Washita River Massacre" and watch clips from the film
“Little Big Man.” Respond to the article and scenes from the film using the questions
found at the bottom of the handout to stimulate ideas. WRITE a one-page response.
Due Today 1/21/05
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THURSDAY JANUARY 20, 2005
I. Warm-Up: Journal #5 - Write 1 Full Page
Title: Perception Is Reality
Marie, a Native American woman appearing in the story Montana 1948
is stereotyped by some as an uncivilized childlike “earth mother” whose
sole purpose is to serve men—ministering to their sexual needs and
looking after their children.
Why do you think Native Americans were depicted throughout early
U.S. History as lewd and lazy Injuns constantly on the warpath?
How important is one’s image, especially if you take into account that
there are some (like entertainers) who make their lively based on how
well audiences identify them?
Is demonstrating positive PR (Public Relations) the key to success?
As individuals do we always have to be knowledgeable about the roles
we undertake or can we just wing it and pretend to be something that we
are not.
Can a completely unqualified, and dubious person or group of people be
transformed in the public’s eyes to appear smart, confident, and upstanding?
Please explain your answer in concrete detail and commentary.
Use your book (Montana 1948) as a resource for examples.
II. READING CIRCLES ( Work in small groups of 3 to 6 people)
Arrange your chairs in a circle and quietly read together. Pages 23 - 38
III. ANSWER QUESTIONS for Montana 1948 Pages 15 - 38. DUE Friday, Jan. 21st
(Write out questions & answer)
1) Where is the setting of this story?
2) Who is narrating the story?
3) What does the terrian of Montana look like?
4) What does it mean to be 4-F?
5) What did the men of Mercer County, Montana
do that was unusual after returning home after WWII?
6) Is Mr. Hayden proud of being a Sheriff?
(Give three examples from the story to support your answer)
7) Describe in detail 12-year-old David Hayden's Mother.
8) What does "wildness" mean to David?
9) What was David's House Keeper's full name?
What was wrong with her?
10) Why didn't a college snap up a athlete like Ronnie Tall Bear?
11) How do the Sioux Indians bring down a fever? What ritual do they perform?
12) Why do you think Marie doesn't want to see Dr. Hayden?
13) What is Sheriff Hayden's reasoning for Why Marie doesn't want a Doctor?
14) How did David first learn about his father's racism?
15) Describe Aunt Gloria.
16) What was uncle Frank's first reaction to Marie's illness?
17) Descibe Uncle Frank.
18) Why do you think Sheriff Hayden was uncomfortable
listening to his brother Franks' modest speech about the war?
19) What happened to Harold Branch during the war?
20) Which one of Grandfather Hayden's sons does he like the best?
REMINDER!
Essay # 3 Narrative
- Due March 4, 2005In the novel Montana 1948, David, Wesley, Gail and Marie have a strong
sense of place. All but Gail are part of Montana and the river and the river
and Montana are part of them. Gail yearns for the dirt smell of North Dakota
which is her place. Your assignment is to write a personal narrative of two
to three pages (500 words or so) about a place that has had some special
meaning in your life - a place which is still a part of you. Provide specific
physical details about the place and explain how this place helped form
you into the person you are today. Think of how you want to order your
narrative. What will you summarize? What will you dramatize?
Will you use chronological order or flashback?
Give the reader enough information so that they can understand why
this place is significant to you. As with all of our writings, brainstorm
with your classmates in writing circle for ideas, get feedback on your
rough drafts, revise and group edit, before turning in a final draft.
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WEDNESDAY JANUARY 19, 2005
I. READ & DISCUSS Montana 1948 Pages 18 - 26
II. HOMEWORK - Due Thur. 1/20/03
Make a CHART listing the differences and similarities between Country Life
in Mercer County, Montana and City Life in Cerritos, California. (List 20 )
EXAMPLE:
Mercer County, Montana****************************Cerritos, California
1) Recreation:
Horseback Riding ................................................Bicycling
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TUESDAY JANUARY 18, 2005
I. Essay - Peer Review. Meet in groups of
four and use Rubric (handout) to score essays
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FRIDAY JANUARY 14, 2005 
I. Continue working on Essay in Library (Peer Edit, Rough Draft)
Outline, rough draft & final draft Due Tue. Jan.18th
(Use Library Computers. Periods 4 & 5 only)
Format: Typed, double-spaced. 1” margins, font style,
Times New Roman or Arial, Size 12 font only!
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THURSDAY JANUARY 13, 2005
Sioux Massacre At Wounded Knee
I. Work on Essay Final Draft in Library - Due Tue. Jan.18th
(Use Library Computers. Periods 4 & 5 only)
II. Montana 1948 - Web Quest - Due Tue. Jan.18th
Visit the following web sites by clicking on the blue
links below and answer the questions that follow
on your own sheet of paper.
(Remember, you are going to have to read the information at
each of the web sites if you want to answer the questions correctly)
Montana: Big Sky Country
1) What is a nickname for the state of Montana?
2) What date was Montana granted admission to Statehood?
3) What does the seal on Montana's state flag show?
4) What is the highest point in Montana?
5) What does the Topography of Montana look like?
Sioux Today
6) The Sioux were often punished for______________?
7) Sioux tribes today are usually governed by___________?
8) Today, howm many Sioux live on reservations in South Dakota?
9) What were some of the bad things that early Sioux schools did to Native Americans?
10) Life has been very difficult for the Sioux Indians since the battle of _____________?
Sioux Indians
11) Briefly Explain what the earth was like to the Sioux Indians
12) Who's death removed almost the last link binding the Sioux to their Indian past?
13) Name the two Native Americans who pressured the U.S. Government to close the
"Montana road" and to abandon three outposts that had been established to protect it.
14) What does the name Sioux mean?
15) What was the name of the final battle in
which the Sioux way of life changed forever?
Broken Treaties, Empty Promises
16) How did the U.S. government massacre Native Americans
by what is considered by many historians to be one of the
earliest examples of biological warfare?
17) Why were Native American Children removed from
their families, cultures, languages, and communities?
18) What are some of the abuses of Native American
women that are carried out by "Indian Health Services?"
19) What is the main problem with drugs such as Depo-Provera and Norplant?
20) How has the lack of available treatment on Native lands for alcoholism and
drug abuse affected Native American women?
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WEDNESDAY JANUARY 12, 2005
I. PEER EDIT Expository Response
(Rough Draft) to Elie Wiesel's “Night”
Five Paragraph Essay Due Tuesday January 18, 2005
(See handout for details)
Please include outline, rough draft &
final draft when turning in assignment
Format: Typed, double-spaced. 1” margins, font style,
Times New Roman or Arial, Size 12 font only!
Writing Standards 2.2 and 2.4
(1) develop an interpretation which exhibits careful reading, understanding and insight
(2) organize the interpretation around several clear ideas, premises, or images
(3) develop and justify the interpretation through sustained use of examples and textual evidence.
Peer Edit using the following guidelines
Exposition is a type written discourse that is used to explain,
describe,give information or inform. The author of an expository text
mustn’t assumethat the reader or listener has prior knowledge or prior
understanding of the topicthat is being discussed. One important point
to keep in mind for the author is to tryto use words that clearly show
what they are talking about rather then blatantly tellingthe reader what
is being discussed. Pretend the reader has never read the book “Night”
and doesn’t know anything about justice, forgiveness or the Holocaust.
(Compare andcontrast, and/or discuss the problem/solution)
ESSAY TOPIC: No peace without Justice - No Justice without Forgiveness
“Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heal that has crushed it.”-- Mark Twain
Think about the horrible things that the Nazi did in the story “Night.”
Thinkabout reasons that made “Night” such a horrendous account!
Write a paperthat examines the definition of power and that explores
the differences betweenjustice and forgiveness. Can Elie Wiesel forgive
the Nazis for what they have done?Which action is a greater manifestation
of powerful – being just or merciful? Be sureto use specific details to support
each of your reasons. Use vivid verbs and adjectivesto make your paper
interesting to read. Use examples from the book “Night” to supportyour paper.
Please consider the following account before composing your essay.
In Simon Wiesenthal’s book “The Sunflower,” Wiesenthal is imprisonedin
a Nazi concentration camp and unnervingly lays in an infirmary bedside one
of his captors, a dying Nazi soldier. Haunted by the crimes in which he had
participated, the Nazi soldier wants to confess to--and obtain forgiveness from
Wiesenthal --a Jew. This unusual encounter and moral dilemma it poses raises
fundamental questions about the limits and possibilities of absolution. Can we
forgive the repentant criminal? Can we forgive crimes committed against others?
What do we owe the victims? If we forgive the Nazis for their crimesagainst mankind,
than should we also pardon those that are responsible for 9/11? Is there more power
in righteousness or amnesty?
These are the questions that you will be exploring in your 5 – paragraph essay.
II. Book Report #2 CD - Due Friday Jan. 28, 2005
(See handout for details)
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TUESDAY JANUARY 11, 2005
Montana 1948
I. Continue Reading Montana 1948
READ & DISCUSS together in class
Montana 1948, Pages 19-26
II. Assignment: Write an Extended Metaphor Poem
Due Wed. 01/12
Similes, Metaphors, and Poetry
A simile is a comparison of two, usually unlike objects, using like or as:
He was as nervous as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.
Example:
Willow and Ginkgo
Eve Merriam
The willow is like an etching,
Fine-lined against the sky.
The ginkgo is like a crude sketch,
Hardly worthy to be signed.
The willow’s music is like a soprano,
Delicate and thin.
The ginkgo’s tune is like a chorus
With everyone joining in.
A metaphor states that something is something or
someone else. It is a comparison, but it does not use like or as.
Example:
Life is a mountain, filled with switchbacks and
rock slides and few straight paths to the top
Sample Poem:
Bat
My son is a bat.
His eyes blink when darkness comes.
His body stirs with life.
His limbs gorge with blood
as he sets out through the cave of night
his roof the stars
the moon a big white eye watching.
Attracted by the false light
she mingles with his batty friends
weaving in and out of nightclubs
endless parties
each other’s places
till sensing the sudden ebb
of darknes
she flutters home
a cloaked Dracula
to the hollow of his room
where he will sleep all day
Assignment: Write an Extended Metaphor Poem - Due Wed. 01/12
In his novel Montana 1948, Larry Watson uses the river outside of town
as a metaphor for life for David. WRITE an extended metaphor poem based
on the metaphor "Life is a _______"choosing your own concrete object as a
metaphor for life.
On your own sheet of paper, draw a chart, listing attributes of your choice
in the left column and attributes of life in the right column. Choose those
that are similar and shape your poem. Use specific images and examples.
III. Montana 1948: Notes Part 2
Themes
Loyalty
David sees his father as a man of divided loyalties. He sees one half of
Wesley trying to fill the shoes of his father as sheriff and to gain respect
from his father who seems to love his other son more. Then David sees
the other divided loyalty of his father Wes, towards his mother. The book
gives the impression that Wes' wife and Wes' father do not get along and
Wes is caught in the middle trying to impress and gain respect. "There you
have it, then, a portrait of my father in those years, a man who tried to turn
two ways at once toward my grandfather, who wanted his son to continue
the Hayden rule of Mercer County, and towards my mother, who wanted
her husband to be merely himself and not a Hayden. That was not possible
as long as we lived in my grandparents domain."
David suggests that his father had rejected religion because perhaps all
of the other Hayden's never attended church or had religious beliefs.
Yet David's mother was a strong Lutheran. The reason would be the
difference in families. The Hayden's, just like young David did not believe
in religion because they lived there life wild, just like David wants too.
But then there's his mother who is a believer and I think that, because
she's like that, David isn't wild. My mother was a Lutheran of boundless
devotion; my father was irreligious, a path I eventually found and followed
after wondering through those early years of church, Sunday school, and
catechism classes."
David's father obviously casts doubt on Marie's story about his brother,
Frank molesting his patients because it's his family, or brother more to
the point who has been accused. I'd imagine it would apply to anyone's
family that if you heard such a story such as Marie's that you would deny
it, especially if it was your brother. David's father also believed that you
couldn't trust an Indian over your own family. "My father didn't say anything
at the time, by knew what he was thinking. She's an Indian, why would
she tell the truth."
David's conflict between the love for Marie and the worship for his uncle is
shown when he starts to think about the accusation about Uncle Frank.
He thinks about how Uncle Frank could do such a thing or whether Marie
is telling stories. But he soon knows what to believe. "I was beginning already
to think of Uncle Frank as a criminal. I may not have been entirely convinced
of his guilt, but the story that my mother told was too lurid, too frightening for
me to continue thinking of my uncle in the way I always had. Charming, affable
Uncle Frank was gone for good."
Julian is outraged when he hears that Wes is or has arrested Frank for the
sexual assault of young Indian women who were his patients. Julian, Wes'
father was angry with his son for believing Marie's stories about Frank.
Julian then lets the accusations fly saying that Wes is only jealous of his
fathers and his brother's relationship, in that Julian loved and treated Frank
with more respect. Julian also points out to Wes about the way he goes
about his job is wrong and that he's pulling the Hayden family name out
of the town's spotlight.
Len McCauley's loyalty is tested in the story because he has an obligation
as deputy sheriff to uphold the law, despite the fact he has worked with the
Hayden family for quite some time, and there's no doubt he shows or has a
lot of loyalty towards the family. So when the accusation of rape against
Frank's name arises, Len's obligation is to do his job. But his loyalty has
been stretched because of the relationship he has with the Hayden's.
Ollie Young Bear's loyalty is split between two societies, the white people
who admire him and often point out that that's how all Indians could be and
his own race, Indian Americans, which is said that he had no special status with.
It has even been heard that Ollie won't be happy until he's white."
Racism
There are many important themes that come up in the novel associated with
racism. All of the characters have their own personal view about the Indians
of their town and demonstrate their views in their own way: "I realize now how
much I was a part of that era's thinking: I never wondered then why a college
didn't snap up an athlete like Ronnie. Then, I knew without being told, as if it
were knowledge that I had drank in with the water, that college was not a place
for Indians." Similar views were held by other member of the community. "My
father did not like Indians. No, that's not exactly accurate, because it implies
that my father disliked Indians, which wasn't so. He simply held them in low
regard. He was not a hate-filled bigot he probably thought he was free of
prejudice! and he could treat Indians with generosity, kindness, and respect
(as he could treat every human being). Nevertheless, he believed Indians, with
only a few exceptions, were ignorant, lazy, superstitious, and irresponsible.
I first learned on his racism when I was seven or eight. An aunt gave me a pair
of moccasins for my birthday, and my father forbade me to wear them. When
I made a fuss and my mother sided with me, my father said, "He wears those
and soon he'll be as flat-footed and lazy as an Indian."
"In my daily life I saw Indians everyday. There were Indian children in school,
their mothers in the grocery store and their fathers in the filling station. Object
of the most patronizing and debilitating prejudice the Indians in and around our
community were nonetheless a largely passive and benign presence." The Indians
were barely noticed in the community, they were just 'there'. Only the ones that
made a scene were noticed but in a negative form. (eg, Roy Single Feather, drunken Indian).
The Indians living on the reservation were stuck in the middle of nowhere. Their
housing was poor and their roads unpaved: "On the western edge of the county
and extending into two other counties was the Fort Warren Indian Reservation,
the rockiest, sandiest, least arable parcel of !and in the region. In 1948 its roads
were unpaved and many of its shacks looked like they would barely hold back a breeze."
Wesley thought of Ollie Young Bear as a good example to what
Indians can become: "He's a testimony to what hard work will get you."
David had a slightly different view of Indians to his father. He seems to think
a little more highly of them than Wesley does because of his love for Marie
Little Soldier: "And I loved her. Because she talked to me, cared for me...
Because she was older but not too old...Because she was sexy, though my
love for her was, as a twelve year old's love often is, chaste." David also
respected Marie's boyfriend, Ronnie Tall Bear: "I was not jealous of Ronnie,
because I like him almost as much as I liked Marie. Liked Ronnie. I worshiped him."
It is obvious that Julian Hayden has a condescending opinion of most Indians:
"Your mother and I thought that we'd have more to show than just one grandchild.
Nothing against Davy. But Christ just the one from the both of you...and white...we
want them white."
Family and power
Uncle Frank
The Hayden family had a great deal of power over Bentrock. An example
of this was when Julian forced the town into electing Wesley to be sheriff
of the town. They are the upper class of the town, ie. Hold all the positions
of power - Frank is a doctor and Wesley is the Sheriff. Before Wesley was
sheriff, Julian was the sheriff.
Julian was a Sheriff for such a long time he still holds a lot of power within
the community: "Once people had eaten and drunken their fill, my grandfather
climbed up onto a picnic table. He didn't call for silence. That wasn't his way.
He simply stood there; his feet planted wide, his hands on his hips. He was
wearing his long buckskin jacket, the one so tanned and aged that it was
almost white. He assumed that once people saw him, they would give him
their attention. And they did."
"They couldn't arrest us-we are the law!"
"He wanted, he needed power. He was a dominating man who drew sustenance
and strength from controlling others." Julian gets angry when he doesn't get his
own way, When Julian wanted to get Frank- sends goons over putting Wesley,
his own family at risk of harm.
The name Hayden is well-known and respected. They are constantly in the
limelight, which is a problem when they run into family crisis. David regrets
being constantly in the public eye. The way David feels the public is watching
him. He doesn't want to face the public, he felt ashamed of the Hayden family
name: "But as I walked down our tree-lined street that morning, I imagined,
behind every curtain or pulled shade, someone peering out and seeing a Hayden
and thinking not of power, wealth, and the rule of decay. The citizens of Bentrock
didn't know yet that my father had arrested his own brother for sexually assaulting
his patients and murdering Marie Little Soldier, they would know soon enough.
Then being a Hayden would mean having an identity I didn't want but could do
nothing to disown or deny."
Essay # 3 Narrative - Due March 4, 2005
In the novel Montana 1948, David, Wesley, Gail and Marie have a strong
sense of place. All but Gail are part of Montana and the river and the river
and Montana are part of them. Gail yearns for the dirt smell of North Dakota
which is her place. Your assignment is to write a personal narrative of two
to three pages (500 words or so) about a place that has had some special
meaning in your life - a place which is still a part of you. Provide specific
physical details about the place and explain how this place helped form
you into the person you are today. Think of how you want to order your
narrative. What will you summarize? What will you dramatize?
Will you use chronological order or flashback?
Give the reader enough information so that they can understand why
this place is significant to you. As with all of our writings, brainstorm
with your classmates in writing circle for ideas, get feedback on your
rough drafts, revise and group edit, before turning in a final draft.
For more ideas on writing this type of essay and some good examples go to
http://webster.commnet.edu/grammar/composition/narrative.htm
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MONDAY JANUARY 10, 2005
Montana 1948
Summary: All families have secrets. In a reflective narrative, a history
teacher reviews an event in his family history…a series of events in a
small western town changes the lives of twelve year old David Hayden,
his sheriff father, his mother, and their Sioux Indian housekeeper, as they
discover the truth about family loyalty and justice.
I. Warm-Up: Journal #4 - Write 1/2 Page
Is it important to know that some of those that we look up to and admire
have shortcomings such as Mickey Mantle's alcoholism or Ex-President
Clinton's philandering, for example? Or, are High School aged students
better off to learn these types of "secrets" later in life? Does such premature
knowledge rob young people of their innocence? What are your feelings on this?
II. Hand in Journal X - What is your vision of the future?
III. Take NOTES on Montana 1948
Copy the following:
SETTING AND CONTEXT
•Cold, impoverished, barren environment
•Sioux Indian tribe live in nearby settlement
•The text reveals events that occurred over the summer of 1948
•Note it is based on a situation after WW2
•Wild west context
THEMES
•Honesty and integrity
•Professionalism
•Family pride
•Discrimination of Indians
•Power and privilege
•Medical ethics
MAIN CHARACTERS
•David, his parents: Wes and Gail
•Uncle Frank and wife Gloria
•Deputy sheriff, Len McAuley & wife Daisy
•Marie Little Soldier, the Hayden’s servant
•Julian and Enid, David’s grandparents
•Ronnie Tall Bear, Marie’s boyfriend
•Ollie Young Bear & wife Doris(Strickland)
CONTRASTS
•Whites
•Wealth
•Power
•Honesty
•Life
•Control
•Loyalty
•Summer-heat
•Indians
•Poverty
•Oppression
•Deceit
•Death
•Submissive
•Betrayal
•Winter-chill
SIOUX INDIANS
About 6,800 Assiniboine and Sioux live on the Fort Peck
Reservation with another approximately 3,900 tribal members
living off the reservation.
LOCATION: The Fort Peck Reservation is in northeastern
Montana, 40 miles west of the North Dakota border, and 50
miles south of the Canadian border, with the Missouri River
defining its southern perimeter. It includes more than two
million acres of land.
IV. READ & DISCUSS togther in class
Montana 1948, Pages 15 -18
Things to Know: Montana 1948
http://www.koonung.vic.edu.au/koonungsc/library/montana.ppt
Objective: Questions students should be able to answer on
completion of the novel Montana 1948 by Larry Watson
1) What motivates Frank Hayden's final act?
(The author has characterized it as both a selfish and a selfless act.)
2) Late in the novel, Gail Hayden changes her attitude.
She no longer wants her husband to continue the course
of action that earlier she encouraged him to follow. What causes her to change?
3) What does Wesley Hayden mean by his admonishment not to "blame Montana"?
4) A great deal of attention is paid to locating Bentrock (a fictional community)
on the map. What role does the setting play in the novel?
5)Whose story is this? Wesley's? David's?
6)Who is the moral center of the story?
7) How does prejudice play into the story?
8) Why is Wesley Hayden especially concerned when his son
David tells him that Len McAuley might "know something"?
9) What would the outcome of the story have been had David's
father publicly arrested his uncle?
Would things have turned out better? Worse?
Would you have done the same thing as Wesley had it been your family?
10) Was there any justice for the crimes committed by Uncle Frank?
11) Most of the novel's action takes place in 1948. Why did the
author choose that year? Could the events occur today?
12)In what ways is the novel about privilege and the abuse of power?
13)What is the effect of David Hayden telling this story so many years after the fact?
14) At the end of the book, Wesley Hayden says, "Don't blame Montana! Don't
ever blame Montana!" Find a map of Montana and try to locate Bentrock, Montana.
What role do you think having the novel set in Montana plays in the events of that summer?
15) Find eight facts about Montana that are supported by the novel.
16) Have the Sioux Indians always lived in Montana?
17) Find at least five facts about both present day Sioux.
18) Find at least five facts about the Sioux in the 19th century.
19) How does the setting of the novel -- the time, place, and the presence
of the Sioux -- contribute to the events that happen during the summer of 1948?
--------------------------------------------------------------
FRIDAY JANUARY 7, 2005
Post-Apocalyptic Visions Of The Future
Psalms 137
By the rivers of Babylon-
there we sat down and there we wept
when we remembered Zion.
I. Hand in homework questions
II. Finish Reading & Discuss "By the Waters of Babylon"
by Stephen Vincent Benet
III. Review Post-Apocalyptic Video Clips - Respond to writing prompt
JOURNAL X - Due Monday 01/10/2005
What is your vision of the future?
Will mankind continue to prosper or
will society keep repeating the mistakes
of the past, ultimately causing it’s own destruction?
What is your prediction?
Write ½ page, using concrete detail and commentary.
IV. Return "Night" to Library. Pick up Montana: 1948
V. Montana: 1948 Introduction
Bring Book Montana: 1948 to class
with you on Monday, 01/10/2005
THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2005
Babylon: Before & After
I. Have Literature workbook stamped &
Hand in literary devices homework by
end of the period
II. READ & REVIEW "By the Waters of Babylon"
in Literature Work Book: Pages 84 - 90
III. ClassWork/Homework - Due Friday, 01/07
Answer the following questions in complete sentences:
1) What hardships or challenges would
you be willing to endure to gain knowledge?
2)What role does technology have in your gaining knowledge?
3) Is knowledge the ultimate power?
4)What are the destructive or negative effects of technology?
5) John defies the rules of his society in several ways
during his journey. Write a journal entry from John’s point
of view to explain what he did that was forbidden, and
why he did it. (1 paragraph answer)
WEDNESDAY JANUARY 5, 2005
"By the Waters of Babylon"
I. Hand in Orwell's "Shooting an Elephant" Essay Questions
II. READ & REVIEW "By the Waters of Babylon"
by Stephen Vincent Benet Literature Work Book: Pages 84 - 90
Have Literature workbook stamped
Or go to the follow web link to read :
http://flash.lakeheadu.ca/~pallingh/lesson/WATERSOFBABYLONSCIENCEFICTIONUNIT.DOC
A young shaman makes a perilous journey to
the forbidden island of the gods - where he
finds the ruins of a brilliant but self-destructive
civilization.
HOMEWORK: - Due Thursday 01/06
Assignments:
I. Finish reading "By the Waters of Babylon"
Literature Work Book Pages 90 -98 at home.
Record your thoughts in the work book while reading
(write in the side bar panels)
I will stamp your work on Thursday 01/06
II. Identify the following literary devices found in the story:
First-person narrative
Naive Narrator
Physical setting
Temporal Setting
Internal Conflict
External Conflict
Moral, mental, and emotional conflict
Physical Conflict
Man vs. Man, Man vs. Nature, Man vs. Him/herself Conflict
Foreshadowing
Suspense
Climax
Allusion - "By the Waters of Babylon" contains
a direct reference to Psalm 137 in the Bible.
Grammatical parallelism and Effective Repetition
--------------------------------------
TUESDAY JANUARY 4, 2005
I. Hand in Euphemism assignment, Question 1 - 29
II. READ & DISCUSS Orwell's "Shooting an Elephant" (Handout)
III. Introduction:
Eric A. Blair, better known by his pen name, George Orwell,
is today best known for his last two novels, the anti-totalitarian works
Animal Farm and 1984. He was also an accomplished and experienced
essayist, writing on topics as diverse as anti-Semitism in England,
Rudyard Kipling, Salvador Dali, and nationalism. Among his most
powerful essays is the 1931 autobiographical essay "Shooting an
Elephant," which Orwell based on his experience as a police officer
in colonial Burma.
READ Shooting an Elephant by GEORGE ORWELL
In Moulmein, in lower Burma, I was hated by large numbers of people--the only
time in my life that I have been important enough for this to happen to me.
I was sub-divisional police officer of the town, and in an aimless, petty kind of
way anti-European feeling was very bitter. No one had the guts to raise a riot, but
if a European woman went through the bazaars alone somebody would probably spit
bettel juice over her dress. Asa police officer I was an obvious target and was baited
whenever itseemed safe to do so. When a nimble Burman tripped me up on the
football field and the referee (another Burman) looked the other way, the crowd yelled
with hideous laughter. This happened more than once. In the end the sneering yellow
faces of young men that met me everywhere, the insults hooted after me when I was
at a safe distance, got badly on my nerves. The young Buddhist priests were the worst
of all. There were several thousands of them in the town and none of them seemed to
have anything to do except stand on street corners and jeer at Europeans. All this was
perplexing and upsetting. For at that time I had already made up my mind that
imperialism was an evil thing and the sooner I chucked up my job and got out of it
the better.
Theoretically--and secretly, of course--I was all for the Burmese and all against
their oppressors, the British. As for the job I was doing, I hated it more bitterly than
I can perhaps make clear. In a job like that you see the dirty work of Empire at close
quarters. The wretched prisoners huddling in the stinking cages of the lock-ups, the
grey, cowed faces of thelong-term convicts, the scarred buttocks of the men who had
been Bogged with bamboos--all these oppressed me with an intolerable sense of guilt
But I could get nothing into perspective. I was young and ill-educated and I had had to
think out my problems in the utter silence that isimposed on every Englishman in the
East. I did not even know that the British Empire is dying, still less did I know that it is
a great deal better than the younger empires that are going to supplant it. All I knew was
that I was stuck between my hatred of the empire I served and my rage against the
evil-spirited little beasts who tried to make my job impossible. With one part of my mind
I thought of the British Raj as an unbreakable tyranny, as something clamped down, in
saecula saeculorum, upon the will of prostrate peoples; with another part I thought that the
greatest joy in the world would be to drive a bayonet into a Buddhistpriest's guts. Feelings
like these are the normal by-products of imperialism; ask any Anglo-Indian official, if you
can catch him off duty.One day something happened which in a roundabout way was
enlightening. It was a tiny incident in itself, but it gave me a better glimpse than I had had
before of the real nature of imperialism--the real motives for which despotic governments act.
Early one morning the sub-inspector at a policestation the other end of the town rang
me up on the phone and said that an elephant was ravaging the bazaar. Would I please
come and do something about it? I did not know what I could do, but I wanted to see
what was happening and I got on to a pony and started out. I took my rifle, anold .44
Winchester and much too small to kill an elephant, but I thought the noise might be
useful in terrorem. Various Burmans stopped me on the way and told me about the
elephant's doings. It was not, of course, a wild elephant, but a tame one which had
gone "must." It had been chained up,as tame elephants always are when their attack
of "must" is due, but on the previous night it had broken its chain and escaped. Its
mahout, the only person who could manage it when it was in that state, had set out
inpursuit, but had taken the wrong direction and was now twelve hours'journey away,
and in the morning the elephant had suddenly reappeared in the town. The Burmese
population had no weapons and were quite helpless against it. It had already destroyed
somebody's bamboo hut, killed a cow and raided some fruit-stalls and devoured the
stock; also it had met the municipal rubbish van and, when the driver jumped out and
took to his heels, had turned the van over and inflicted violences upon it.The Burmese
sub-inspector and some Indian constables were waiting for me in the quarter where
the elephant had been seen. It was a very poor quarter, a labyrinth of squalid bamboo
huts, thatched with palmleaf,winding all over a steep hillside. I remember that it was a
cloudy,stuffy morning at the beginning of the rains. We began questioning the people as
to where the elephant had gone and, as usual, failed to get any definite information.
That is invariably the case in the East; a story always sounds clear enough at a
distance, but the nearer you get to the scene of events the vaguer it becomes. Some
of the people said that the elephant had gone in one direction, some said that he had
gone in another, some professed not even to have heard of any elephant. I had almost
made up my mind that the whole story was a pack of lies, when we heard yells a little
distance away. There was a loud, scandalized cry of"Go away, child! Go away this
instant!" and an old woman with a switch inher hand came round the corner of a hut,
violently shooing away a crowd of naked children. Some more women followed, clicking
their tongues and exclaiming; evidently there was something that the children ought not
to have seen. I rounded the hut and saw a man's dead body sprawling in the mud. He was
an Indian, a black Dravidian coolie, almost naked, and he could not have been dead many
minutes. The people said that the elephant had come suddenly upon him round the corner
of the hut, caught him with its trunk, put its foot on his back and ground him into the earth.
This was the rainy season and the ground was soft, and his face had scored a trench a foot
deep and a couple of yards long. He was lying on his belly with arms crucified and head
sharply twisted to one side. His face was coated with mud, the eyes wide open, the teeth
bared and grinning with an expression of unendurable agony. (Never tell me, by the way,
that the dead look peaceful. Most of the corpses I have seen looked devilish.) The friction
of the great beast's foot had stripped the skin from his back as neatly as one skins a rabbit.
As soon as I saw the dead man I sent anorderly to a friend's house nearby to borrow an
elephant rifle. I had already sent back the pony, not wanting it to go mad with fright and throw
me if it smelt the elephant.The orderly came back in a few minutes with a rifle and five cartridges,
and meanwhile some Burmans had arrived and told us that the elephant wasin the paddy fields
below, only a few hundred yards away.
As I startedforward practically the whole population of the quarter flocked out ofthe houses and
followed me. They had seen the rifle and were all shouting excitedly that I was going to shoot
the elephant. They had not shown much interest in the elephant when he was merely ravaging
their homes, but it was different now that he was going to be shot. It was a bit of fun to them,
as it would be to an English crowd; besides they wanted the meat.It made me vaguely uneasy.
I had no intention of shooting the elephant--I had merely sent for the rifle to defend myself if
necessary--and it isalways unnerving to have a crowd following you. I marched down the hill,
looking and feeling a fool, with the rifle over my shoulder and a never-growing army of people
jostling at my heels. At the bottom, when you got away from the huts, there was a metalled
road and beyond that a mirywaste of paddy fields a thousand yards across, not yet ploughed
but soggy from the first rains and dotted with coarse grass. The elephant was standing eight
yards from the road, his left side towards us. He took not the slightest notice of the crowd's
approach. He was tearing up bunches of grass, beating them against his knees to clean them
and stuffing them into his mouth.I had halted on the road. As soon as I saw the elephant I knew
with perfect certainty that I ought not to shoot him. It is a serious matter to shoot a working
elephant--it is comparable to destroying a huge and costly piece of machinery--and obviously
one ought not to do it if it can possibly be avoided. And at that distance, peacefully eating,
the elephant looked no more dangerous than a cow. I thought then and I think now that his
attack of "must" was already passing off; in which case he would merely wander harmlessly
about until the mahout came back and caught him. Moreover, I did not in the least want to
shoot him. I decided that I would watch him for a little while to make sure that he did not
turn savage again, and then go home.But at that moment I glanced round at the crowd that
had followed me. It was an immense crowd, two thousand at the least and growing every
minute.It blocked the road for a long distance on either side. I looked at the sea of yellow
faces above the garish clothes-faces all happy and excitedover this bit of fun, all
certain that the elephant was going to be shot.They were watching me as they would watch a
conjurer about to perform a trick. They did not like me, but with the magical rifle in my hands I
was momentarily worth watching. And suddenly I realized that I should have to shoot the elephant
after all. The people expected it of me and I had gotto do it; I could feel their two thousand wills
pressing me forward,irresistibly. And it was at this moment, as I stood there with the rifle in my
hands, that I first grasped the hollowness, the futility of the white man's dominion in the East.
Here was I, the white man with his gun,standing in front of the unarmed native crowd--seemingly
the leading actor of the piece; but in reality I was only an absurd puppet pushed to and fro by the
will of those yellow faces behind. I perceived in this moment that when the white man turns tyrant
it is his own freedom that he destroys. He becomes a sort of hollow, posing dummy, the
conventionalized figure of a sahib. For it is the condition of his rule that he shall spend his life
in trying to impress the "natives," and so in every crisis he has got to do what the "natives"
expect of him. He wears a mask, and his face grows to fit it.
I had got to shoot the elephant. I had committed myself to doing it when I sent for the rifle.
A sahib has gotto act like a sahib; he has got to appear resolute, to know his own mind and
do definite things. To come all that way, rifle in hand, with two thousand people marching at
my heels, and then to trail feebly away,having done nothing--no, that was impossible. The
crowd would laugh atme. And my whole life, every white man's life in the East, was one long
struggle not to be laughed at.But I did not want to shoot the elephant. I watched him beating his
bunch of grass against his knees, with that preoccupied grandmotherly air that elephants have.
It seemed to me that it would be murder to shoot him. At that age I was not squeamish about
killing animals, but I had never shot an elephant and never wanted to. (Somehow it always seems
worse to kill a large animal.) Besides, there was the beast's owner to be considered. Alive,
the elephant was worth at least a hundred pounds; dead, he would only be worth the value of his
tusks, five pounds, possibly. But I had got to act quickly. I turned to some experienced-looking
Burmans who had been there when we arrived, and asked them how the elephant had been behaving.
They all said the same thing: he took no notice of you if you left him alone, but he might charge if
you went too close to him.It was perfectly clear to me what I ought to do. I ought to walk up to within,
say, twenty-five yards of the elephant and test his behavior. If he charged, I could shoot; if he
took no notice of me, it would be safe to leave him until the mahout came back. But also I knew
that I was goingto do no such thing. I was a poor shot with a rifle and the ground was soft mud
into which one would sink at every step. If the elephant charged and I missed him, I should have
about as much chance as a toad under a steam-roller. But even then I was not thinking particularly
of my own skin, only of the watchful yellow faces behind. For at that moment, with the crowd watching
me, I was not afraid in the ordinary sense, as I would have been if I had been alone. A white man mustn't
be frightened in front of "natives"; and so, in general, he isn't frightened. The sole thought in my mind was
that if anything went wrong those two thousand Burmanswould see me pursued, caught, trampled
on and reduced to a grinning corpse like that Indian up the hill. And if that happened it was
quite probable that some of them would laugh. That would never do.There was only one alternative.
I shoved the cartridges into the magazineand lay down on the road to get a better aim.
The crowd grew very still,and a deep, low, happy sigh, as of people who see the theatre
curtain goup at last, breathed from innumerable throats. They were going to have their bit of
fun after all. The rifle was a beautiful German thing with cross-hair sights. I did not then know
that in shooting an elephant one would shoot to cut an imaginary bar running from ear-hole to
ear-hole. Iought, therefore, as the elephant was sideways on, to have aimed straightat his ear-hole,
actually I aimed several inches in front of this,thinking the brain would be further forward.
When I pulled the trigger I did not hear the bang or feel the kick--one never does when a shot
goes home--but I heard the devilish roar of gleethat went up from the crowd. In that instant,
in too short a time, one would have thought, even for the bullet to get there, a mysterious,
terrible change had come over the elephant. He neither stirred nor fell,but every line of his
body had altered. He looked suddenly stricken,shrunken, immensely old, as though the
frighfful impact of the bullet had paralysed him without knocking him down. At last, after what
seemed along time--it might have been five seconds, I dare say--he sagged flabbily to his knees.
His mouth slobbered. An enormous senility seemed to have settled upon him. One could have
imagined him thousands of years old. I fired again into the same spot. At the second shot he
did not collapse but climbed with desperate slowness to his feet and stood weakly upright, with
legs sagging and head drooping. I fired a third time. That was the shot that did for him.
You could see the agony of it jolt his whole body and knock the last remnant of strength from
his legs. But in falling he seemed for a moment to rise, for as his hind legs collapsed beneath
him he seemed to tower upward like a huge rock toppling, his trunk reaching skyward like a
tree. He trumpeted, for the first and only time. And then down he came, his belly towards me,
with a crash that seemed to shake the ground even where I lay.I got up. The Burmans were
already racing past me across the mud. It was obvious that the elephant would never rise again,
but he was not dead. He was breathing very rhythmically with long rattling gasps, his great mound
of a side painfully rising and falling. His mouth was wide open--I could see far down into caverns of
pale pink throat. I waited a long time for him to die, but his breathing did not weaken.Finally I fired
my two remaining shots into the spot where I thought his heart must be.The thick blood welled
out of him like red velvet, but still he did not die.His body did not evenjerk when the shots hit
him, the tortured breathing continued without a pause. He was dying,very slowly and in great
agony,but in some world remote from me where not even a bullet coulddamage him further. I
felt that I had got to put an end to that dreadful noise. It seemed dreadfulto see the great beast
lying there, powerless to move and yet powerless to die, and not even tobe able to finish
him. I sent back for my small rifle and poured shot after shot into his heart anddown his
throat. They seemed to make no impression. The tortured gasps continued as steadily
as the ticking of a clock.In the end I could not stand it any longer and went away. I heard
later thatit took him half an hour to die. Burmans were bringing dahs and baskets even
before I left, andI was told they had stripped his body almost to the bones by the afternoon.
Afterwards, of course,there were endless discussions about the shooting of the elephant.
The owner was furious, but hewas only an Indian and could do nothing. Besides, legally
I had done the right thing, for a madelephant has to be killed, like a mad dog, if its owner
fails to control it. Among the Europeansopinion was divided. The older men said I was
right, the younger men said it was a damn shameto shoot an elephant for killing a coolie,
because an elephant was worth more than any damnCoringhee coolie. And afterwards I
was very glad that the coolie had been killed; it put me legallyin the right and it gave me
a sufficient pretext for shooting the elephant. I often wondered whetherany of the others
grasped that I had done it solely to avoid looking a fool.
II. Questions: Due - Tuesday 01/04/05
(Use examples from the story to answer each question.
Answers should be one to two paragraphs in length)
1) How does Orwell use literary tools such as symbolism,
metaphor,irony and connotation to convey his main point, and what is that point?
2) What is Orwell's argument or message, and whatpersuasive tools does he use to make it?
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