Julius Caesar Characters

"Never fear that. If he be so resolved,
I can o'ersway him; for he loves to hear
That unicorns may be betrayed with trees
And bears with glasses, elephants with holes,
Lions with toils, and men with flatterers;
But when I tell him he hates flatterers,
He says he does, being then most flattered..."
~Decius Brutus, 2.1.25-21, when it was feared that the conspirators would be prevented due to Caesar's superstitions.

One of the most fascinating things I've found about Julius Caesar are the characters. This is my take on them, with a bit of help from this site (though not much).

So then, onward?

The main characters, in no particular order, are:

Julius Caesar: Rome's emperor. Supposedly ambitious, proud, and egotistical. His death makes up the climax of the play, and he returns in Act IV, as a ghost, to prophesise Brutus' downfall.

Marcus Brutus: Known as Brutus. He's one of Caesar's friends, but kills him in what he believes is Rome's best interest, and pays for it later. There's some speculation as to whether he was or wasn't Caesar's illegitimate son, which, in such event, would make his betrayal that much worse. He commits suicide at the end of the play.

Caius Cassius: Known as Cassius. He's Brutus' elder brother (perhaps brother-in-law, though it doesn't tell us), and begins the conspiracy. He's jealous of Caesar's power, and thinks that he could do just as good a job ruling Rome as Caesar could, given the chance. One of his biggest faults is that he's too impulsive--He's misinformed, and believes that Brutus' army was overtaken, therefore killing himself (and making everyone sad).

Decius Brutus: One of the conspirators. He has a way with Caesar (see above quote), and is probably most responsible for the conspiracy to be carried out (he reinterpreted Calpurnia's dream in such a way that Caesar attended the Senate, despite her wishes.)

Marcus Antonius: Known as Marc Antony or Antony. He's immensely close to Caesar, and speaks at his funeral (despite oposition from Cassius, Brutus allows this), thereby winning over the crowd and turning them against Brutus and the other conspirators, right after Brutus had won them over. He's in the second triumverate with Octavius Caesar and Aemilius Lepidus.

Octavius Caesar: Known as Octavius. He's Caesar's adopted son because Calpurnia couldn't concieve. Forms the second triumverate, and defeats, with Antony, the armies of Cassius and Brutus.

Calpurnia: Caesar's wife. She has a dream on the morning of the Ides of March, but is not heeded by Caesar, who pays dearly for it.

Portia: Brutus' wife. She's concerned about Brutus, and makes a futile attempt to warn Caesar of his impending doom. After Brutus flees Rome, she commits suicide by "swallowing fire."

For more, go to the above-mentioned site.

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