How Is Brutus A Tragic Hero

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A tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his or her own destruction. In the play Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, Marcus Brutus fits the characteristics of a tragic hero. Like other tragic heroes, Brutus had integrity, strength, promise, and great ability. He set forth for the good of the country, as he once stated after killing Caesar, “Not that I love Caesar less, but I love Rome more” (III.ii.22). The fact that he could single-handedly take over the group of conspirators and completely over rule Cassius demonstrates his own strength as a character, and his influence on others. However, like any other tragic hero, his flaw eventually leads to his own death. Too much power ended up into the hands of Marcus Brutus. At the end of the tragedy, he commits suicide. Brutus, the protagonist of the story, honestly felt that he had to kill Caesar in order to save Rome from slavery. …show more content…
He was a hero in the fact of his integrity. Most heroes have a conscience, or an inner voice inside their head that guides them through challenges. One example would include Batman. He had a “crisis of conscience” when his concerns turned public. It was clear that Brutus felt terrible about Caesar’s death, but he felt it was the only way to keep peace in Rome. When Caesar’s ghost came to Brutus it may have been a real ghost, but it also might have been Brutus’s conscience coming back to haunt him in a sense of “dishonorableness.” A hero is someone who takes responsibility and leadership. When he joined the conspirators, he immediately took over. Having an older, more experienced person in the group, such as Cicero, would have put Brutus out of power. Knowing this, Brutus and his conscience objected to asking Cicero to become a member. He did not settle for second-in-command. These three points consider Brutus a hero, but the word “tragic” has not come into play yet. Brutus had the characteristics of a hero, but to become “tragic” took the destruction of him. Octavian and Antony crushed Brutus’s army at a second encounter at Philippi. Brutus asks two of his comrades to kill him, but they refuse, because they love him. He asks a third to hold his sword, while he runs on it, but he also refuses. Finally, Strato holds Brutus’ sword, and he runs into it killing himself on his own will. Brutus then mutters his last words, “Farewell, good Strato. Caesar, now be still. I killed not thee with half so good a will" (V.v.55-57). Brutus felt unbearable remorse for Caesar's death and his final words told that. Brutus felt that as a hero, he had to win every battle. The word “tragic” now comes into play when talking about Brutus and his heroism. Every reader of Julius Caesar has different thoughts about the characters. Each individual portrays these characters in different views. One might agree on Brutus being a tragic hero, other interpretations may be different. Some may say Brutus was too trusting. He felt that he had to kill Caesar in order to save Rome. A hero does not kill people for his own benefits. However, Brutus was a hero in this sense. Caesar was going to put the people into slavery and Brutus was trying to stop it. They may also

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