The Tragedy Of Julius Caesar: Who Is The Tragic Hero? Essay

A tragic hero is a noble character in a work of literature that dies because they fall into forces beyond their control. These forces ultimately lead to the death of the tragic hero. In William Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar; the character Marcus Brutus fits the definition of a tragic hero. Marcus Brutus is a tragic hero because, though he has great nobility and is very loyal as a character, he also has a tragic flaw, his naïve manner, which leads to his downfall.
Brutus had great promise, ability, and strength, and used it to his advantage. In the beginning of the play, Brutus is fighting with himself against whether or not he wants to join the conspiracy to kill Cesar. Once he decides that he does what to join the conspiracy, he takes matters into his own hands and alters the ideas and plans of the men to his standards. “Our course will seem too bloody/ Caius Cassius/ To cut the head off and then hack the limbs/ Like wrath in death and envy afterwards...” (II.1.162-164). This illustrates how Brutus was informed about the plans of the conspiracy but changed them due to his own understanding and taste. He thought that in order to preserve Rome, the best thing to do would be to join the conspiracy against Caesar even though Caesar was his best friend. He loved Rome more than he loved Caesar and thought that this was the right thing to do. This also illustrates how he is a very strong and persuasive man who can overpower a group of men and change their minds in a matter of minutes.   Not only was Marcus Brutus a very competent man he was also very well respected, especially by Marcus Antony, which is shown in act five, “This was the noblest Roman of them all/ All the conspirators save only he/ Did that they did in envy of great Caesar/ He/ only in general honest thought/ and common good to all/ made one of them/ His life was gentle/ and the elements so mixed in him that Nature might stand up/ And say to all the world/ 'Tis was a man!'” (V.5.68-75). As Antony said...