I felt that the theme in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar is that when somebody trusts you with power, no matter how much or how little, don't try to abuse it. It all comes back to you in the end. Caesar was given power and he tried to do away with Rome's history of being a republic. He wanted to rule the people of Rome but in the end, the people of Rome killed him. Caesar wasn't born with an advantage over the baby before him and yet three times( in the play) he is offered the crown. Cassius says that he was "born free as Caesar"æ"àThis shows that Caesar wasn't born with the ability to announce himself as king or that he was handed the crown because he was the heir to the throne. He was given a bit of authority each time he succeeded in a battle. Instead of using it to do good for his country, he uses it to his advantage and tries to become the sole leader of Rome.
Denarius (42 BC) issued by Cassius Longinus and Le...
The Death of Caesar
CaesarHe was going to use his power to do something that he knew would destroy his country's pride. Other characters show that they also could not control themselves. Antony could have just accepted that his leader and close friend was dead. He went and led the people into killing Cassius and the other conspirators. One might argue that he was right in killing the conspirators but they did what they did because of their opinion. Antony, unfortunately for the conspirators, had different opinions. Cassius could have also controlled his power. He influenced Brutus to turn against Caesar even though the conspirators probably could have succeeded. In a way, he killed Brutus. If Brutus hadn't joined the conspirators, he would probably still be alive. Cassius turned his power of friendship into evil. Because of the actions of the characters in Julius Caesar, I felt that power is only truly power when you use it in the proper way.
Marcus Junius Brutus (Rome character)
Bust of Julius Caesar from the British Museum
Bust of Gaius Julius Caesar in the National Archae...