When beggars die, there are no comets seen; The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes
(a) Who speaks these lines and to whom?
(b) How does the speaker differentiate between the death of beggars and that of princes?
(c) What is the importance of these lines in the context of the play?
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1. Calipurnia spoke these words to Julius Caesar.
2. Calipurnia metaphorically tries to explain that nobody even gets to know the death of a beggar. It does not bother anyone much and thus, there are no prophecies or signs to foresee a beggar's death. On the other hand, in her dream, she foresaw many such actions and events that made her believe that they projected towards the death of a royal person such as Julius Caesar.
3. These lines are very important as far as the role of superstitions in Julius Caesar is concerned. He was being persuaded by his wife to quit the idea of appearing at the Capitol. She was sure of the fact that her nightmare was a warning to Caesar against going to the Capitol. She was convinced that something terrible was going to happen to him. However, Brutus succeeded in targeting the ambition and pride of Caesar, thus compelling him to accompany Brutus.
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