Caesar Wrap-Up

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Caesar Wrap-Up
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Todays Checklist

• Take up Act V Questions
• Brief note on Act V
• Act V Quiz
• Poetry Introduction

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Chronology of Act V

• Brutus and Cassius meet during the battle of
  Philippi and discuss its outcome. Suicide comes
  to their mind even though Brutus is a stoic.
• Noting a weakness in Octavius ranks, Brutus
  sends a message to Cassius that he should have
  his men attack the forces of Antony.
• From a hilltop, Cassius and his slave Pindarus
  see a group of horsemen approaching. Titinius is
  sent to discover whether they are friend or foe.
  He is surrounded and apparently taken by the
  enemy.
• Cassius orders his slave, Pindarus, to kill him
  in exchange for his own freedom.
• When Titinius and Brutus men enter to give
  Cassius the victory wreath, they find him dead,
  the victim of a mistaken conclusion. The grief
  stricken Titinius places the wreath on the corpse
  and kills himself. Brutus enters, finds the two
  men dead, and mournfully orders the battle
  continued.
• Brutus realizes that defeat is inevitable. He
  begs his associates to kill him, but they refuse.
• Strato, Brutus slave, holds the sword, and
  Brutus runs upon it. His last thought is that
  Caesar is avenged.
• Octavius and Antony arrive, and Antony praises
  Brutus as the noblest Roman of them all.

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Act V, scene i

• 1. Where does the scene take place?
• It takes place on the plains of Philippi.
• 2. What do Brutus and Cassius do?
• Brutus and Cassius arrive at the head of their
  army. They argue over how they will act if they
  lose this battle. They say a dramatic farewell to
  one another, and prepare for battle.

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Act V, scene iii

• 3. How does Cassius die?
• Cassius army has been surrounded. He tells
  Pindarus to take the sword with which he killed
  Caesar, and stab him with it.
• 4. How does Pindarus earn his freedom?
• Cassius orders him to kill him in exchange for
  his freedom. He runs away after assisting Cassius
  in his death.
• 5. What happens to Titinius?
• Titinius returns to Cassius with a wreath of
  laurels (a sign of victory) on his head. He finds
  Cassius dead and sees that he has misconstrued
  everything. Titinius then takes his own life.

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Act V, scene iv

• 6. How does Brutus die?
• Brutus arrives with stragglers from his defeated
  army. Brutus convinces Strato to hold a sword
  while he impales himself on it.
• 7. What do Antony and Octavius say about Brutus?
• Antony states, "This was the noblest Roman of
  them all" (5.5.67).
• He believes that of all the conspirators only
  Brutus believed that he was killing Caesar to
  uphold the Roman Republic the others were simply
  jealous and power hungry.
• 8. Who wins and becomes ruler of Rome?
• Octavius (Julius Caesars nephew) emerges as the
  new ruler.

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Question for further thought

• What is said and done in Act V that supports the
  comment Brutus' and Cassius' defeat is revenge
  for Caesars murder?

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Act V Analysis

• Power shift - Antony to Octavius
• Signified through the use of names
• Referred to as young Octavius until his
  challenges Antony
• Antony replies to Octavius, "No, Caesar, we will
  answer on their charge" (5.1.24)
• For the rest of the play, he is Caesar

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• Omens
• Act I omens reappear
• Cassius speaks of the noble eagles being replaced
  by kites and ravens (a bad sign)
• His interpretation is that he will lose the
  battle, and he remarks, "Our army lies ready to
  give the ghost" (5.1.88)
• The ghost ? Caesar, whose presence and memory is
  the reason for battle

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• Caesars ghost
• Caesars spirit dominates in the battle
• Cassius last words are, "Caesar, thou art
  revenged, / Even with the sword that killed thee"
  (5.3.44-45)
• Brutus also invokes the image of Caesar
• As he commits suicide he again mentions Caesar,
  saying, "Caesar, now be still. / I killed not
  thee with half so good a will." (5.5.50-51)

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• Brutus tragedy
• Brutus seemed eager to achieve power
• But he is the only conspirator to maintain his
  humanity and dignity
• He stands as a symbol of honor
• Contrast to the dishonorable Cassius who lies,
  manipulates, and wishes to take bribes
• Brutus would never have killed Caesar except to
  defend the Roman Republic
• Antony "his life was gentle, and the elements /
  So mixed in him that nature might stand up / And
  say to all the world 'This was a man'" (5.5.74)

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Translation

• Translation - Act V

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Act V Quiz Take-Up

• A
• D
• D
• B
• D
• B
• A

• Quotation Identification
• Cassius
• Brutus
• Octavius

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Introduction to Poetry

• What is poetry?
• Is it more than words on a page?
• This Charlie Brown comic strip contains a Haiku
  (a type of poem)!

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Word search

• Find a selection of words that relate to you
• These could be words that represent what you
• Value
• Like
• Enjoy doing
• Fear
• Dream of doing in the future

• You will find that you avoid using words like
  a, the, and, etc.
• You will then create a poem using the words that
  you find
• You are trying to say something using as few
  words as possible