Marcus Brutus: A Tragic Hero

Marcus Brutus’ plight is ultimately a decision to save a republic that involves sacrificing its soon-to-be dictatorial leader, with the conspiracy taking into consideration the pros and the cons of such an act. Often times the better choice is the more difficult one, especially when it involves the murder of a man beloved by all. As such, Brutus is the tragic hero of the play Julius Caesar. His tragic flaw is his easily trusting nature, and his conflicting emotions and nobleness make him one of the most renowned tragic heroes of all time. In Julius Caesar, Brutus’ unsuspecting and naive personality becomes his tragic flaw. Despite his decision to sacrifice Caesar and save the republic, the letters “from the people” Cassius plants in his home
He goes so far as to say that “it must be by his [Caesar’s] death… he would be crowned… think him as a serpent’s egg (which, hatched, would as his kind grow mischievous) and kill him in the shell” (pages 41-42). In stark contrast to the harsh nature of planning of the murder, Brutus is portrayed as a close friend of Caesar’s, a loving husband to Portia, a wise military leader to his men, and a kind master to Lucius, his servant. However, due to his ancestor’s key role in establishing the Roman Republic and his own sense of justice, Brutus feels responsible to ensure the continued stability of the republic by any means – even if that details murdering Caesar. Antony calls Brutus’ stab the “unkindest cut of all” (page 101), showing how Caesar is betrayed by his most trusted friend. In the end, Brutus needs to weigh the republic’s existence against his friend, a man aspiring to be dictator. Choosing his city over Caesar, Brutus feels remorse for what he has done. Brutus’ guilt has so overrun him that it manifests itself into the “ghost of Caesar,” an ethereal being visible only to him, as the sole way for Brutus to acknowledge the dishonorable crime he has committed against his
However, Brutus remains noble and refuses to take more lives than necessary, stating, “Let’s be sacrificers, not butchers, Caius… we shall be called purgers, and not murderers” (page 51). While others join the conspiracy for their own personal ambitions, much like how Cassius has monetary gains at the sole forefront of his mind when he commits the murder, Brutus is concerned only for his country and kills Caesar for that reason: so that the republic will last longer without a dictatorial threat looming in the distance. When Brutus commits suicide, his final words are: “Caesar, now be still, I killed not thee with half so good a will,” meaning that the would-be dictator’s death is nobler than his and that Caesar’s death is now avenged. At the end of the play, Antony praises Brutus and calls him “the noblest Roman of them all” (page 163); when one is praised by their enemy, it shows that they are well-respected, even by their foes. Any choice that involves choosing either a friend or the greater good is a tricky one, to say the least. Making the best of it and taking the nobler path is what Brutus does in this situation, opting to sacrifice Caesar in return for the prolonged survival of the Roman Republic. While his ingenuousness is the reason behind his downfall, Brutus’ inner turmoil and his respectability