An Introduction to Julius Caesar Along with Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus and Titus Andronicus, Julius Caesar forms the basis of Shakespeare’s Roman plays which deal with Roman generals and the life and times of ancient Rome. Shakespeare’s source was ultimately Plutarch’s Lives of the Novel Grecians and Romans.
Julius Caesar is a political play, and political issues are the root of the tragic conflict in the play. It is a play about a general who would be king, but who, because of his own pride and ambition, meets an untimely death. Shakespeare deals with why Caesar was murdered and subsequently what happened to his murderers. Shakespeare seems to be saying that good government must be based upon morality. In this respect, Julius Caesar has relevance to the politics of the modern world.
Although the play is named Julius Caesar, Caesar dominates only the first half of the play. This fact has lead some critics to conclude that the play might more aptly be names the Tragedy of Marcus Brutus, the man who dominates much of the play. Caesar’s influence however, is felt throughout the play: after Caesar’s death, his ghost appears to Brutus the night before the battle on the plains of Philippi and both Brutus and Cassius refer to Caesar before their own deaths. Thus it might be convincingly argued that the main character is indeed Julius Caesar and that The Tragedy of Julius Caesar is a fitting title for the play.
