Shakespeare's Julius Caesar Act 3, Scene 2
Summary
Brutus and Cassius enter the Forum, which is
thronged with citizens demanding satisfaction. They divide the crowd —
Cassius leading off one portion to hear his argument, and Brutus
presenting reasons to those remaining behind at the Forum. Brutus asks
the citizens to contain their emotions until he has finished, to bear in
mind that he is honorable, and to use their reason in order to judge
him. He then sets before them his reasons for the murder of Caesar and
points out that documentation exists in the Capitol that support his
claims. The citizens are convinced and at the end of his oration, cheer
him with emotion. He then directs them to listen to Antony's funeral
oration.
Antony indicates that, like Brutus, he will
deliver a reasoned oration. He refers to Brutus' accusation that Caesar
was ambitious, acknowledges that he speaks with "honorable" Brutus'
permission, and proceeds to counter all of Brutus' arguments. The crowd
begins to be swayed by his logic and his obvious sorrow over his
friend's murder. They are ultimately turned into an unruly mob calling
for the blood of the conspirators by mention of Caesar's generosity in
leaving money and property to the people of Rome, and by the spectacle
of Caesar's bleeding body, which Antony unveils.
The mob leaves to cremate Caesar's body with due
reverence, to burn the houses of the assassins, and to wreak general
destruction. Antony is content; he muses, "Mischief, thou art afoot, /
Take thou what course thou wilt!" A servant enters and informs Antony that Octavius
has arrived and is with Lepidus at Caesar's house. Antony is pleased
and decides to visit him immediately to plan to take advantage of the
chaos he has created. The servant reports that Brutus and Cassius have
fled Rome, and Antony suspects that they have heard of his rousing the
people to madness.
DETAILED ESSAY
After the murder of Caesar:
He asks if any disagree with him, and none do. He thus concludes that he has offended no one and asserts that now Caesar’s death has been accounted for, with both his virtues and faults in life given due attention. Antony then enters with Caesar’s body. Brutus explains to the crowd that Antony had no part in the conspiracy but that he will now be part of the new commonwealth. The plebeians cheer Brutus’s apparent kindness, declaring that Brutus should be Caesar. He quiets them and asks them to listen to Antony, who has obtained permission to give a funeral oration. Brutus exits.
Speech of Antony:
Antony ascends to the pulpit while the plebeians discuss what they have heard. They now believe that Caesar was a tyrant and that Brutus did right to kill him. But they wait to hear Antony. He asks the audience to listen, for he has come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. He acknowledges Brutus’s charge that Caesar was ambitious and maintains that Brutus is “an honourable man,” but he says that Caesar was his friend (III.ii.84). He adds that Caesar brought to Rome many captives, whose countrymen had to pay their ransoms, thus filling Rome’s coffers. He asks rhetorically if such accumulation of money for the people constituted ambition. Antony continues that Caesar sympathized with the poor: “When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept” (III.ii.88). He reminds the plebeians of the day when he offered the crown to Caesar three times, and Caesar three times refused. Again, he ponders aloud whether this humility constituted ambition. He claims that he is not trying to disprove Brutus’s words but rather to tell them what he, Antony, knows; he insists that as they all loved Caesar once, they should mourn for him now.
Antony speaks about Caesar's will:
Antony pauses to weep. The plebeians are touched; they remember when Caesar refused the crown and wonder if more ambitious people have not stepped into his place. Antony speaks again, saying that he would gladly stir them to mutiny and rebellion, though he will not harm Brutus or Cassius, for they are—again—honorable men. He then brings out Caesar’s will. The plebeians beg him to read it. Antony says that he should not, for then they would be touched by Caesar’s love for them. They implore him to read it. He replies that he has been speaking too long—he wrongs the honorable men who have let him address the crowd. The plebeians call the conspirators traitors and demand that Antony read the will.
Antony urges the crowd:
Finally, Antony descends from the pulpit and prepares to read the letter to the people as they stand in a circle around Caesar’s corpse. Looking at the body, Antony points out the wounds that Brutus and Cassius inflicted, reminding the crowd how Caesar loved Brutus, and yet Brutus stabbed him viciously. He tells how Caesar died and blood ran down the steps of the Senate. Then he uncovers the body for all to see. The plebeians weep and become enraged. Antony says that they should not be stirred to mutiny against such “honourable men” (III.ii.148). He protests that he does not intend to steal away their hearts, for he is no orator like Brutus. He proclaims himself a plain man; he speaks only what he knows, he says—he will let Caesar’s wounds speak the rest. If he were Brutus, he claims, he could urge them to rebel, but he is merely Antony.
Conclusion:
The people declare that they will mutiny nonetheless. Antony calls to them to let him finish: he has not yet read the will. He now reads that Caesar has bequeathed a sum of money from his personal holdings to every man in Rome. The citizens are struck by this act of generosity and swear to avenge this selfless man’s death. Antony continues reading, revealing Caesar’s plans to make his private parks and gardens available for the people’s pleasure. The plebeians can take no more; they charge off to wreak havoc throughout the city. Antony, alone, wonders what will come of the mischief he has set loose on Rome. Octavius’s servant enters. He reports that Octavius has arrived at Caesar’s house, and also that Brutus and Cassius have been driven from Rome
