Literature Reader Chapter 14 Julius Caesar

a) Caesar is planning to go to the senate at the Capitol.

b) The ‘things’ refers to his enemies.

c) The word ‘vanished’ means the act of disappearing

Cassius tells Brutus not to allow Antony to speak at Caesar’s funeral because he feared that Antony would use his superb oratorical skills to sway the masses against the conspirators and undo all their plans.

(i) The speaker of the above lines is Brutus.
(ii) The above lines were spoken when Brutus was speaking at Caesar's funeral. As Brutus was about to step out of the pulpit, he spoke these words.
(iii) It is ironical that Brutus tells the citizens to listen to Antony for Brutus' sake because it was Brutus who had a hand in Caesar's murder and Antony took Caesar's revenge by unearthing Brutus's conspiracy.

The Ends do not justify the Means

Good morning to all of you. I am here today to deliver a speech on the topic 'Ends do not justify the means.'
The ends are only justified by the means when the end is the ultimate moral correctness and the means correlate with the just end. Though as individuals, the means may be morally wrong, when performed for the benefit of the just end, the means can earn their moral correctness. If you have high, noble, important goal, you are free to resort to anything, however immoral it seems even to yourself.  History shows rather clearly that any ideology speaking about building a better future, no matter what there is to be done in order to achieve it, if ever come to power, start moving towards this better future in a rather queer, yet very energetic way, which usually involved murdering as many people as possible in as many ways as it is imaginable. Hitler wanted to resurrect his country and lead it to world domination; Lenin offered land to the poor and so on. In the end, it always was the bloodbath and nothing more.
I would like to end my speech by reminding all my friends that we must be careful of the means that we take to our goals.

Thank you.

a)    Caesar is planning to go to the senate at the Capitol.
b)    The ‘things’ refers to his enemies.
c)    The word ‘vanished’ means the act of disappearing.

Cassius tells Brutus not to allow Antony to speak at Caesar’s funeral because he feared that Antony would use his superb oratorical skills to sway the masses against the conspirators and undo all their plans.

(a) The speaker is Antony. The citizens of Rome are referred to as ‘You’.

(b) Caesar had to lose his life for being ambitious. The conspirators assassinated him.

(c) The speaker, Antony reminds the Roman citizens of the good things that Caesar had done for the country and the people to prove that Brutus was wrong in his judgement of Caesar. Antony reminded them of what Caesar did to control the financial situation of the people. Also, how he had wept when the poor have cried. Antony also mentioned that Caesar refused when he presented the crown to Caesar. To assure them completely, he showed the Caesar's will to them, in which he had granted every Roman citizen seventy-five drachmas and land.

Calpurnia was anticipating some misfortune. So, she tries to stop Caesar from going to the senate. She describes her frightening dreams to Caesar and tells him that they indicate a bad omen.

Yes, I agree with Brutus when he says the given statement to justify his reasons for assassinating Caesar. Brutus was a patriotic man. To him, the safety of the Romans was more important than anything else. His sole reason for joining the conspiracy was that he thought Rome would be ruined if Caesar was crowned. He had no personal grudges against Caesar; rather, he loved him dearly. But he sacrificed his love for Caesar to save his countrymen. The following lines spoken by Brutus prove this – “As Caesar loved me, I weep for him; as he was fortunate, I rejoice at it; as he was valiant, I honour him: but, as he was ambitious, I slew him.”
Brutus also says at the end of his speech, “— as I slew my best lover for the good of Rome, I have the same dagger for myself, when it shall please my country to need my death.”
When Brutus says, 'Not that I love Caesar less, but I loved Rome more.', he displays idealism and nobility.

(a) Decius went to Caesar’s palace in order to take him to the senate-house.
(b) Caesar told Decius to inform the members that he would not be attending the senate that day.
(c) ‘Graybeards’ refer to the senior most members of the senate.

Brutus states that Caesar’s slaying was done keeping the interests of the subjects in mind. He asserts that his love for Rome was far greater than his love for Caesar. He would rather see his countrymen free than see Caesar alive. According to Brutus, Caesar was blinded by his ambition and this put Rome in harm’s way. Therefore, he had to be stopped at any cost.

Antony read out Caesar's will at his funeral which stated that he would provide every Roman citizen with 75 drachmas, his newly planted orchards and backyards. This is how Caesar made the Romans his heirs.

Antony's speech undermines the conspirators even while it appears deferential to them. He manages to turn the mob against the conspirators. Antony's speech was emotional and cleverly appealed to the emotional appeals of the mob. Antony uses many rhetorical questions to persuade the people to go against the conspirators and support him and Caesar's goals. This entire speech won over the crowd and turned them against the conspirators. When Antony delivered this speech, his words melted with those of Caesar's to rouse the masses against the injustice of the assassination. This is how Mark Antony was successful in setting mischief afoot.

(a) Decius Brutus has come to fetch Caesar to the senate-house.

(b) Caesar asks Decius Brutus to inform the senate members that he will not come today.

(c) 'Graybeards' is a reference to the old senior members of the senate.

Brutus convinces the Romans that Caesar deserved his death by stating that it was for the benefit of his country rather than his own personal interest. He accuses Caesar of being over ambitious. Moreover, his entire speech had a declamatory quality using a language higher than that of the common tongue.

a) The speaker is Mark Antony.
b) They have done the deed of killing Julius Caesar.
c) The word ‘grief’ means ‘sorrow’.

Brutus kills Caesar because he feels that Caesar is too ambitious to be the king of Rome. He believes that Rome will not benefit from his ambitious nature and making him the king will give him so much power that the Senate will not be able to temper his authority.