KENDRIYA VIDYALAYA

AIR FORCE STATION

KASAULI
ENGLISH PROJECT
WORK
 JULIUS CAESAR
By William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
 Background on William Shakespeare

• Shakespeare was born on April 23, 1564 in

Stratford-upon-Avon in England.
• His parents were Mary Arden and John
Shakespeare, a respected glove-maker.
• He attended the local grammar school were
he learned to read and write in English and
Latin.
 Shakespeare’s Birthplace

                                                             
 Shakespeare background cont.
• Shakespeare acted and wrote for this company
until he retired in 1612.
• By this time he had written thirty-seven plays-
comedies, tragedies, histories, and romances.
• Shakespeare is sometimes referred to as “The
Bard.”
• Not a single original manuscript has survived due
partly to the fact that they were written strictly
for performance.
 Shakespeare background cont.
• Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616, at the age of
fifty-two.
• At the time of his death he was considered one of
the greatest playwrights and actors to have ever
graced the stage.
• He wrote 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and 2 long
poems.
• His works were not published during his lifetime,
but they appeared four years after his death in
the “First Folio.”
Julius Caesar Background
 Julius Caesar : Background

Shakespeare uses Roman

customs and superstition to
create spooky conditions to
mirror the dangerous plot
being planned.
 Julius Caesar : Background

Decius Brutus, Cassius, Casca

and other conspirators
planned a dangerous plot to
kill the Caesar.
 Julius Caesar : Background

The Romans believed

that omens could reveal
the future.

These omens could

take the form of
unusual weather,
flights of birds, or
other natural
phenomena.
 Julius Caesar: Background
Animals were seen as indicators of the future.

The Romans often

sacrificed animals to the
gods, and had their entrails
(guts) examined by an
official called a haruspex.
Any abnormalities or
imperfections indicated the
anger of a god or a
particularly bad event
about to happen.
 Julius Caesar: Background

Unusual astronomical and

meteorological
occurrences were also
seen as signs of future
events.

Solar eclipses were

believed to foreshadow
doom, as was lightning.
 Julius Caesar: Background

It is believed that when king or

princes die a bright star plucks
from the sky. It shoots and fall
later. It leaves a blazing light
behind it. So when Caesar was
murdered, a star blazed forth in
the sky.
 Julius Caesar: Background

One of the reasons the Senate was concerned by

Caesar’s accumulation of power was Rome’s long
history as a republic.
 Julius Caesar : Background

Around 509 B.C., the

Romans ended a
monarchy by rebelling
against the last king of
Rome, Tarquinius.
Julius Caesar: Background

After this revolution, the

Romans established their
famous republic, in which
all citizens were
represented in the Senate.

They were very proud of

their non-king ruled
government, and were
determined to preserve it—
but when Caesar arrived,
they changed their minds!
Julius Caesar Introduction
 Julius Caesar: Introduction

The setting of this play is ancient Rome.

Shakespeare creates a world full of political

intrigue, magical occurrences, and military
conquest.
 Julius Caesar: Introduction

Caesar, the most

powerful man in
Rome, has recently
returned to the city
after months of
fighting abroad.
 Julius Caesar: Introduction

Caesar was fighting Pompey, another powerful

Roman, and his sons.

Pompey, as well as
others in the Roman
senate, was disturbed by
Caesar’s growing
ambition.
 Julius Caesar: Introduction

Their fears seem to be valid when Caesar refuses

to enter Rome as an ordinary citizen after the war.

Instead, he marches his army on Rome and takes

over the government.
 Julius Caesar: Introduction

But the people don’t

mind—in fact, they love
him.

Caesar is made
dictator, or ruler—a
position that was
sometimes granted
for a ten-year term—
for the rest of his life.
 Julius Caesar: Introduction

Many senators,
however, resent Caesar
for having so much
power.
 Julius Caesar: Introduction

Some senators begin to conspire. . .

Brutus, Caesar’s friend who believes that he must act
against Caesar for the good of Rome
Casca, who hates the ordinary citizens of Rome yet is
jealous because they love Caesar and not him
Cassius, a greedy and jealous man who wants
to take drastic measures to keep Caesar from winning any
more power—and to take away any power that Caesar
previously had!
The tragedy of Julius Caesar
 The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
• Most scholars agree that Shakespeare
wrote The Tragedy of Julius Caesar in
1599.
• The historical play is based upon the
assassination of Julius Caesar by his
close friends and confidants.
• Shakespeare gained much of his
knowledge about Caesar and Roman
life from Plutarch’s The Lives of the
Noble Grecians and Romans.
 The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
• During Caesar’s time, Rome was constantly at
war.
• The ruling power of Rome was in the hands of
its generals.
• These generals would contract “private
armies” and subdue other countries that were
weaker than Rome.
 Julius Caesar

                                          
                      
 The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.

• Julius Caesar was born in 100 B.C. in Rome.

• Julius Caesar rises to power through the use of his
oratory skill.
• He was always a member of the democratic or
popular party.
• He married Cornelia, the wealthy daughter of Lucius
Cornelius Cinna.
• Caesar’s uncle arranged the marriage.
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.

• When Caesar was given orders by Sulla to

divorce Cornelia, he fled Rome in 81 B.C. for
fear of his life because he refused to obey Sulla.
• After Sulla’s death, Caesar returned to Rome
and began to climb his way through the political
arena.
• Caesar soon began to back Pompey, the head of
the popular party.
• Caesar helped him gain both military and
political advantages.
Pompey the Great

                  
 The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
• Caesar and Pompey agreed that one would leave to
fight for the good of Rome every three years, and
then return to Rome so that the other person could
leave and have his turn at conquest.
• During this time Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus form
the First Triumvirate, which means “three men” or
“rule by three.”
• They took over the Senate and the rulings of Rome
for a while. The idea was that Caesar had the backing
of the Legions (army).
 The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
• Pompey had the political power, and Crassus
had the financial backing.
• Pompey was even married to Caesar’s
daughter Julia at this time.
• The First Triumvirate would not last long due
to the jealousy that erupted between Caesar
and Pompey.
 The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
• Pompey returned early from his sieges and
told Caesar that it was his turn to leave again.
While Caesar is gone, Pompey uses this
opportunity to rally people behind him by
claiming that Caesar has become too powerful
and is only interested in benefitting himself
and not the Roman Empire.
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
• By making these allegations, Pompey
declares a war with Caesar.
• The problem is that Caesar had the
backings of the Legions, and Pompey only
had the backing of the Senate.
• While Caesar is conquering new territory
for Rome, he gets word of Pompey’s plan.
Caesar decides to quit his campaigns and
return to Rome to face Pompey and the
charges against him.
 Roman Legionaire

 
         
      
Roman Helmets

                           
 The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
• Caesar’s crossing of the Rubicon is a symbolic
acceptance of Pompey’s challenge.
• During this time the other member of the First
Triumvirate, Crassus, takes his money and flees.
• Caesar easily makes his way into Rome and forces
Pompey to flee.
• Caesar was now in total control of Rome.
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.

• During this time Caesar proclaims himself

Senator for Life.
• Caesar eventually tries to go after Pompey,
who fled to Egypt, but he never catches him.
• Servants of Cleopatra later kill Pompey while
he is in Egypt, and his sons try to avenge the
death of their father by declaring war on
Caesar.
• Shakespeare’s play begins after Caesar defeats
Pompey’s sons.
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
• Contrary to popular belief, Caesar was not an
actual Emperor of Rome. In fact, Rome had no
actual emperors until about twenty years after
Caesar’s death.
• While Caesar was living, Rome was a Republic
ruled by a Senate.
• The name “Caesar” eventually became not a
name, but a word meaning “ruler” or “chief” in
Latin.
 The Tragedy of Julius Caesar cont.
• The word “Caesar” evolved into different languages
such as German which took the name and turned it
into Kaiser. The Russian word Czar as well traces its
roots back to “Caesar.”
• The term “caesarian sections,” or “C-sections” can
trace its origins back to Julius Caesar because the
popular belief was that Caesar did have not a natural
childbirth, but instead was “cut from the womb.”
 Julius Caesar : Discussion Starters…

Discussion starter topic 1:

1. How important is loyalty?
• Does your country or do your friends consider
“loyalty” something to value? When can “loyalty”
sometimes cause problems?
• What should people do when loyalty to their
country and loyalty to their friend comes into
conflict?
• Are there limits to what people should do in
defense of the nation?
 Julius Caesar: Discussion Starters

Discussion starter topic 2:

2. What will a person do for the sake of
political ideals?
• Assassinations of political figures are common in
history.
• What political figures do you know of who have
been assassinated?
• What effect did these assassinations have on the
general public, a political party, or a cause at the
time of the assassination?
Outside the Roman Coliseum
Inside the Roman Coliseum
The Pantheon
The Forum of Julius Caesar
 Recapitulation

Q1. What are the horrid sights seen by Calpurnia in her

dream?
Ans. Calpurnia in her dream saw Caesar's statue stabbed
a hundred times with blood gushing forth from every
wound. A lioness gave birth to her cubs in the street.
Graves opened up to let the ghosts move out. She also
saw a terrible battle fought in the clouds by battalions
stationed in proper order and as a result, blood drops fell
upon the capital. Horses neighed and dying men cried in
pain .
Q2. Who says “Et tu Brute” ? When are these
words spoken? Why?
Ans. Caesar says these words “Et tu Brute” to
Brutus who also stabs him with other
conspirators. Critics say that Caesar was greatly
shocked. He died due to the shock of Brutus’s
stabbing. It was because Brutus was very close
to his heart. Brutus could not be expected by
Caesar to fall so low as to stab him. So Caesar
was shocked due to Brutus’s ‘ingratitude’.
Q3. What prediction does Antony makes
regarding the future events in Rome?
Ans. He predicts that a curse shall fall upon men.
‘domestic fury and civil strife’ shall rage. Blood
and destruction shall be common. Dreadful
objects shall be there. Mothers shall smile (due
to madness) when their infants shall be killed. All
pity shall be choked. Greek goddess of revenge
shall range in the streets with the spirit of Caesar
taking revenge. Dead men will cry for burial due
to this most foul deed of Caesar’s murder.
Antony Speech
Q4. Shakespeare makes use of aside in his plays.
What is an aside? What is its function in a
drama?
Ans. An aside is a literary device in which the
speech, usually an utter able thought, of a
character is supposed to be heard by the
audience but not by other characters….. Asides
are frequently used in dramas to acquaint the
audience with certain facts and thoughts that
are not to be shared with characters present on
the stage.
Q5. What is your impression about Julius
Caesar’s character?
Ans. Julius Caesar was a true countryman. He
loved his country and his country men. He was
rude and boastful as he got easily carried away
with Brutus’ sayings. He was pretentious but
loved his wife.
THE END
Submitted To:
Mrs Harpreet

Submitted By:
Anamika Singh
Class: X