Summary of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare

Julius Caesar is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare that tells a tale of valor, treachery, fate, vengeance and conspiracy. The play is known to be one of the most celebrated works of Shakespeare. An easy to understand, act-by-act summary of the play follows: Summary of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare

Act I:

The first act begins with a humorous wordplay between Flavius, Marullus and a few workers on a roadside. The workers are headed towards the ceremony where Julius Caesar is being honored for his victory against Pompey. It is easy to see that the Flavius and Marullus do not like Caesar and are against the entire celebratory mood. The commoners, however, are very fond of him. The scene moves to where Caesar is being honored in a large gathering. We can see that Caesar is a superstitious man. As if corresponding to this, a soothsayer warns Caesar to be beware the Ides of March, which is, the 15th of March. At this moment, Caesar acts as if he is not concerned. After this, Caesar is offered the crown three times and he refuses each time, with the crowd cheering loudly. While this is happening, Cassius is trying to make Brutus believe that Caesar is a very ambitious man and that he should be eliminated before he causes any damages to the Roman Empire. Brutus responds saying he will do whatever is good for Rome and will not let any damage occur to his loyalty and honor for Rome. The same evening, there are ominous occurrences; the weather gets strange and fire falls from the sky. Cassius, however, does not believe this is a bad sign, instead, he believes it is only bad men who need to be scared.

Act II:

Brutus finally gets convinced that Caesar needs to be killed for the better of Rome. Other conspirators are of the opinion that some friends of Caesar's should be killed too, but Brutus finds that unnecessary. Caesar remember the soothsayer's warnings, and being the superstitious person that he is, contemplates whether he could go out on 15th of March. Calphurnia, Caesar's wife tells him about the nightmare she saw the previous night and the strange occurrences could be a warning for his death. He has almost decided to stay back, but one of the conspirators, Decius, convinces him that the signs are not predecessors of his death, but of the changes that Rome is going to experience as an empire. Hearing this, Caesar leaves for the Senate. The act ends with Artemidorus shown on the streets of Rome, waiting to warn Caesar about the conspiracy, through a note.

Act III:

All the attempts made to warn Caesar of the impending danger are all successful and Caesar gets murdered in the Senate. Brutus dissuades others from killing any other people, and he thinks this brave act of theirs will be remembered through the ages. Antony enters and acts as though he agrees with the conspirators reason behind killing Caesar. He also agrees to speak on Caesar's funeral. Brutus is the first one to speak at the funeral, and he uses the opportunity to state the reasons for killing Caesar. The crowd seems to accept his explanation. Once it is Antony's chance to speak, he does not say anything bad about the conspirators, but vividly describes why he feels Caesar was a great man and sacrificed his life for the better of the people. The crowd gets enraged hearing all this and an angrymob sets out to kill the conspirators. They even kill a man just because he had the same name as one of the conspirators.

Act IV:

anilmn878@gmail.com Octavius and Antony are seen deciding which people are to be killed. They methodically make a list, not even sparing family. Battle plans are being made in full swing. On the other hand, Brutus and Cassius are having a quarrel over other issues. Brutus confronts Cassius about taking bribes, and dishonoring the noble act they committed. The two reconcile, especially when Brutus finds out that his beloved wife committed suicide under all the pressure. The same night, Caesar's ghost appears in Brutus' dreams, warning him of defeat, and that he will meet him again in Philippi.

Act V:

The act opens with the battle scene. Octavius, Antony, Brutus and Cassius meet on the battlefield to talk, but quickly realise that things cannot be worked out any other way. Brutus and Cassius are seen bidding each other goodbye. Pinarus tells Cassius that Brutus has been taken and that Antony has already defeated him. Cassius kills him right after this, on seeing Cassius, Titinius kills himself. later, Brutus says that he saw Caesar's spirit walk toward him, and that he wants all his murderers to die. At the end, Brutus and Cassius' armies have been defeated and the Octavius and Antony are moving toward Brutus now. Brutus asks Strato to kill him before the enemy can, and the latter agrees. Octavius and Antony find his body, and have to admit that Brutus was the only noble person among all the conspirators. Recommended Reading: