Compare and Contrast the Speeches of Mark Antony and Brutus. Which Is the Most Effective and Why?

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In Caesar’s funeral oration, Antony abides by his agreement with Brutus not to place blame on the conspirators. However, he manages to turn the mob against them. How does he manage to do this? Use examples from the speech to support your answers. Julius Caesar is a play deeply concerned with the idea of rhetoric, or persuasion. The play is driven by persuasion. Cassius convinces Brutus that Caesar must die, setting the story in motion. The resolution of the plot is decided by Antony's speech to the plebeians. Shakespeare sees rhetoric as one of the most powerful forces in the world; able to topple kings and crown them. The play, Julius Caesar, examines what gives rhetoric its power by putting Brutus's speech against Mark Antony's. Shakespeare shows Antony's rhetoric to be superior by the effect he has on the plebeians. To be sure, Antony does not have it easy. He is already a man distrusted by the conspirators for his friendship with Caesar. Brutus lets him speak at Caesar's funeral, but only after Brutus, a great orator in his own right, has spoken first to "show the reason of our Caesar's death." Brutus makes it clear that Antony may speak whatever good he wishes of Caesar so long as he speaks no ill of the conspirators. But Antony has two advantages over Brutus: his subterfuge and his chance to have the last word. It's safe to say that Antony makes the most of his opportunity. Antony's performance on the pulpit should come as no surprise. It is obvious from his Act III, sc. i meeting with the conspirators that he means something different in nearly everything he says. He even subtly mocks the senators with his lines "My credit now stands on such slippery ground/That one of two bad ways you must conceit me/Either a coward or a flatterer." Antony is the picture of disingenuous. Brutus, ignoring the more sensible misgivings of Cassius, takes Antony at his

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