Preview

Brutus Flaws

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
731 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Brutus Flaws
A tragic hero is a central character. This character is good and noble but has flaws, which lead to his downfall and death. In William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, Brutus is a tragic hero. In his attempt to go good he makes errors in judgment. Brutus attempting to do what is right, yet doing what is wrong, fits the definition of a tragic hero.

A tragic hero is characterized as a good and noble character. Brutus, fitting the good and noble aspect of a tragic hero, kills Caesar for what he believes is the good of Rome. Brutus expresses his feelings about the death of Caesar,"...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" ( .82-85). Brutus does not crave power
…show more content…
If I have veiled my look, I turn the trouble of my countenance Merely upon myself" ( .42-45).

If Brutus allows himself to be deceived, it will result in his own ruination. This happens as his flaws in judgment, and his foolishness, catch up with him.

Because of his flaws and errors in judgment, a tragic hero such as Brutus experiences death and downfall. Brutus, fulfilling the death portion, kills himself. "Caesar, now be still./ I killed not thee with half so good a will" (V.V.56). Brutus, as he kills himself, tells Caesar to rest in peace. He, in a noble thought, says that he killed him, Caesar, not half as willingly as he now kills himself. Brutus realizes what the conspirators have done to both Caesar and him. Under the influence of Cassius, Brutus is lead to believe killing Caesar is the correct thing to do, the only option to save Rome from ambitiousness of Caesar. "Let us be sacrificers, but not butchers, Caius" (II.I.179). Brutus, forever righteous, believes the death of Caesar should be sacrificial with a purpose behind it, not a mindless slaughter. Brutus is not scheming to gain power by the death of Caesar as the other conspirators are, but instead he is aiming to help

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    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.…

    • 831 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgement error that inevitably leads to his or her own destruction. Characteristics of a tragic hero are typically the character has an internal struggle, which he or she may display as a weakness or a pernicious trait like hubris, and this trait brings about his or her own destruction. Also, the tragic hero is normally a person of nobility, or a great significance, whose destruction will arouse the audience in pity or fear. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, written by the world renowned author William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar is the tragic hero, for he fits all the characteristics stated above.…

    • 990 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A tragic hero can be defined as a noble, high-class individual which takes his own life in return of the greater good of a society or empire. Marcus Brutus displays characteristic traits which fit the common theme of tragic heroes, which display signs of noble birth, the suffering of a catastrophe, as well as the presence of a tragic flaw within the individual’s personality. Marcus Brutus is the tragic hero of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, written by William…

    • 680 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Brutus the Tragic Hero

    • 483 Words
    • 2 Pages

    There is much debate as to who plays the part of the tragic hero in Julius Caesar, but through analysis and literal evidence, it can be proved that Marcus Brutus plays the tragic hero. The definition of a tragic hero, as by Dictionary.com, is “a literary character who makes an error of judgment or has a fatal flaw that, combined with fate and external forces, brings on a tragedy.” As given by examples in the play, Marcus Brutus possesses all of these traits.…

    • 483 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Tragic hero: A tragic hero has the potential for greatness but is doomed to fail. He is trapped in a situation where he cannot win. He makes some sort of tragic flaw, and this causes his fall from greatness. Even though he is a fallen hero, he still wins a moral victory, and his spirit lives on. In every one of Shakespeare's plays, there is a hero. In Julius Caesar, there are a number of people to pick from; Caesar himself could be the hero, Cassius could be considered the hero, Calpurnia could be the hero...etc. This boils down to the main question; who was the hero of Julius Caesar? Almost every character has it's heroic moments; but which one really qualifies to all of the requisites to be a hero? After careful examination or all of the characters, any reasonable person should realize, that, of course, this hero was none other than Caesar's best friend, Brutus.…

    • 965 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Brutus Tragic Flaw

    • 405 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Brutus’ tragic flaws are part of what makes him a tragic hero. In Julius Caesar, Brutus is a great example of a tragic hero. His tragic flaws are honor, poor judgement, and idealism (Bedell). In Shakespeare’s plays, the tragic hero and his flaws cause the downfall of the play (Tragic Flaws).…

    • 405 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    and the others into deep trouble. Brutus indeed ended up in a position, from his own actions, that is tragic to the reader. In the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, the character Marcus Brutus fits the definition of the tragic hero. Like other tragic heroes, he had great promise, ability, and integrity of character, but he had a tragic flaw. He was too trusting and naive, and these qualities led to his death.…

    • 649 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Brutus believes he must kill Caesar to avoid a one- man rule and for the good of the country. His tragic flaw allows him to be fooled into this by the other conspirators. Brutus believes his motives are honorable. If Caesar was really being killed for the good of Rome and not because the other conspirators were jealous of his power, Brutus motives would be…

    • 792 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Brutus Flaws

    • 448 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Nobody is perfect. We all have flaws in our daily life. Flaws are what defines us. We all want someone in life to look up to for their qualities. A person that we look up to for their qualities in life is called a hero. In reality, the people we look up to have flaws just like we do. In Shakespeare’s play “The Tragedy of Julius Caesar”, we are introduced to Brutus. Brutus is portrayed as a tragic hero. A tragic hero is the protagonist of a tragedy. Brutus is a leader and citizen of Rome who leads in the killing of Julius Caesar. Brutus is considered to be a tragic hero because of his strong qualities yet he had many flaws.…

    • 448 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It should be mentioned that the purpose of the analysis is to see how true Brutus’ actions are. A character so honorable with such just and humble intents is rare, even in old fiction. Several which will not be mentioned were skeptical of his behavior, thinking that he was simply too good to be true, but all evidence points to the fact that he really is.…

    • 660 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    All tragic heroes possess a certain trait that ultimately leads to their demise. In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Marcus Brutus fills that role perfectly. Although he is one of the most psychologically complex and controversial characters to analyze, he is undoubtedly a heroic figure with one fatal flaw: his patriotism. Brutus has a strong moral conscience, a noble personality, and an uncanny willingness to strive towards the greater good. These three qualities blend beautifully into the very definition of a hero.…

    • 596 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Brutus convinces himself that Caesar needs to be killed, by justifying that once Caesar becomes King, the power will manifest his true selfish nature and he will ruin Rome. Brutus has no personal grudge against Caesar. But if it is for the greater good of the people, for Rome, he will kill Caesar. In Brutus’s personal experience Caesar has never shown fault. Thus, he goes through a process of logic in the unknown to convince himself that Caesar should die. In his justification, Brutus considers that just as poisonous snakes come into the sunny day, Caesar could be evil and giving him the crown would grant him the ability to damage Rome. Yet he has personally “not known when [Caesar’s] affections swayed more than his reason” (Brutus 2.1.20-21).…

    • 381 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Julius Caesar's Downfall

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages

    A common component in Shakespeare’s tragedies is the occurrence of a tragic hero, a character who is usually from a noble family, an respectable man with a fatal flaw that leads to his downfall. The title character in Julius Caesar is the tragic hero. Caesar is an honorable man, loved by a majority of the citizens whose dreadful pride leads to his destruction.…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Tragic Hero

    • 1050 Words
    • 5 Pages

    In Shakespeare's play "Julius Caesar", there are deaths, tragedies, and of course, a tragic hero. A tragic hero is a person of noble birth with heroic or potentially heroic qualities. In order to be identified as a tragic hero, a character must have at least one fatal flaw. Throughout the play a few main characters present themselves as possibilities for being the tragic hero, like Ceasar for example, but there really is only one person to fit the part. Brutus is a perfect example of a tragic hero. He has the characteristics that make up a tragic hero. Shakespeare demonstrates how Brutus is a strong tragic hero who has a tragic flaw. Brutus' tragic flaw is that he is very trustworthy, and is too honest. Brutus also demonstrates many acts of affection toward other people. Brutus is a general for the Empire and he is respected and is seen as a noble man and true “Roman” by almost all people. Shakespeare develops Brutus' tragic flaw over the course of the play, as more people manipulate his trust and his honesty. He has a tragic flaw that causes his downfall and at the end he realizes his mistake. In “Julius Caesar”, Brutus displays the traits of a tragic hero throughout this play. His tragic flaw is his being too naive. He makes an error in judgment, and when this error took place it causes his own downfall. Brutus causes his own downfall when after killing Caesar all of Rome turns against the conspirators. All these events cause his death.…

    • 1050 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    William Shakespeare is a world renowned English poet and playwright famous for many tragic plays such as Macbeth and Julius Caesar. These two plays both contain tragic heroes with Marcus Brutus from Julius Caesar, and Macbeth from Macbeth. A tragic hero is defined as a protagonist of high standing with heroic or potential heroic abilities who must oppose some external or internal force. A tragic hero needs to have a “tragic flaw” where a character has too much or too little of one of Aristotle’s twelve virtues. Macbeth and Brutus are both considered tragic heroes but have many similarities as well as differences.…

    • 1386 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays