英国文学课件copy
《英国浪漫主义文学》课件
历史背景
哲学思考
英国浪漫主义文学作品中常常包含深 刻的哲学思考,探讨人性、道德、自 由等主题,表现出对人类命运的关注 和思考。
英国浪漫主义文学关注历史背景,将 文学作品与历史事件、社会现实等联 系起来,展现出浓厚的历史感。
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英国浪漫主义文学的影响与评价
对世界文学的影响
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丰富了世界文学的多样性
作品风格
现实主义与浪漫主义相结合, 注重细节描写和人物塑造
晚期浪漫主义
时间范围
1830年-1860年
特点
关注人性探索,深入挖掘内心世界,强调个 性表达
代表人物
丁尼生、布朗宁、梅尔维尔等
作品风格
心理分析、象征主义和神秘主义,注重艺术 表现和情感渲染
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英国浪漫主义文学的主要代表人 物及其作品
威廉·布莱克
诗歌形式与技巧
诗歌形式
英国浪漫主义诗歌形式多样,包 括长诗、短诗、叙事诗等,强调 韵律和节奏感。
象征与隐喻
英国浪漫主义诗歌善于运用象征 和隐喻手法,通过具象的描绘传 达抽象的概念和情感。
情感渲染
英国浪漫主义诗歌注重情感渲染 ,通过强烈的情感表达和渲染来 打动读者。
自然与人文的融合
பைடு நூலகம்
自然描绘
英国浪漫主义作家善于描绘自然,将 自然元素融入到作品中,强调人与自 然的和谐共存。
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时间范围
1789年-1800年
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代表人物
拜伦、雪莱、济慈、华兹华斯 等
特点
强调个人情感、自然和自由, 反对理性主义和传统束缚
作品风格
富有想象力,追求形式和语言 的创新
中期浪漫主义
时间范围
英国文学概况PPT课件
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第二时期(1842-1850年):
《董贝父子》(1846-1848年)
《大卫·科波菲尔》(1849-1850年)
中短篇小说集《圣诞故事集》(1843-1848 年)、以访问美国的见闻和感受为中心内容 的特写集《访美札记》(1842年)和长篇小 说《马丁·朱述尔维特》(1843年)等。
艺术上趋于成熟,结构完整,人物鲜明, 幽默中包含悲凉情调。
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“先生,我太直率了;请你原
谅,பைடு நூலகம்本来应该说,问致电外貌
问题是很不容易当场就随口做出 回答,应该说,各人有个人的审 美观,说美并不重要,或者诸如 此类的话。”
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❖ 唉,它再也不能去求助他了,因为忠 诚已遭破坏—信任已经丧失了,对这 来说,罗撤斯特已不再是过去的他, 因为他原来不像我过去所想像的那样, 我不想把他看成邪恶,我不愿意说他 欺骗了我,不过,他在我心中已失去 了正直不欺的属性,因此我必须离开 他,这一点我看得很清楚。
创作。领会作者的人道主义思想。
(二)课程内容
1、狄更斯的生平、创作和在文学史上的地位。 2、《艰难时世》、《双城记》。
(三)考核要求与考核知识点
1、识记:狄更斯各个时期的代表作品。 2、理解:作者人道主义思想的主要特点。《艰难时世》的 思想价值。 3、掌握:代表作《双城记》的思想内容和艺术成就。从作 品中所刻画的人物看作者的人道主义思想。
英国文学概况
分期与特色——以七十年代为界 “英国杰出的一代小说家” 萨克雷、狄更斯、勃朗特姊妹、盖斯
凯尔夫人 哈代
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萨克雷
《名利场》
副标题: “没有主人公(英 雄)的小说”
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勃朗特姐妹
英国文学简史PPT课件
LOREM IPSUM DOLOR
6.The 18TH Century The Age Of Enlightenment ⅰ Enlightenment Movement ⅱ Neo-classicism ⅲ Realism ⅳ Sentimentalism
LOREM IPSUM DOLOR
Q3: The genres of Literature?
fiction & non-fiction Fiction: Novels, Short stories, Plays and Poems.
LOREM IPSUM DOLOR
Non-fiction : Essay (4 categories -- description, narration, exposition and argumentation.)
7. The Romantic Period (1798-1832): a. desire for the good old times b. Looking into the future Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, Shelley and Keats Walter Scott Jane Austen
(3) Factors related to religious background: the spread
and establishment of Christianity
LOREM IPSUM DOLOR
2. General colors of English Literature (1) Factors affecting the colors of English literature: A. Its environment.
William Wordsworth 英国文学优秀课件
Special features
1. One of the greatest poets of nature. 2. Incidents and situations of common life. 3. A return to nature. 4. Simple and colloquial language: iambic
– Reverse personification: speaker—natural object, a cloud
– Personification: daffodils—human beings, dancing and “tossing their heads” in “a crowd, a host”.
tetrameter.
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Themes
• The soothing effect of memories on human thoughts; small things in life may bring happiness to us.
• The unity between human and nature in a simple style and musical eloquence.
未曾想到 • What wealth the show to me had brought; 这美景给了我
怎样的珍宝。
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• For oft, when on my couch I lie 因为,每当我依榻而卧, • In vacant or in pensive mood, 或情怀抑郁,或心境茫然, • They flash upon that inward eye 水仙呵,便在心目中闪
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• He claimed that the great subjects of poetry were “the essential passions of the heart” and “the great and simple affections” as these qualities interact with "the beautiful and permanent forms of nature” and are expressed in a “naked and simple” language that is “adapted to interest mankind permanently”.
【最新】英国文学ppt课件
2021/2/2
An Introduction to British and American Culture
Charles Dickens (1812-1870)
佳句赏析 “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity…” 这是最好的时代,这是最坏的时代;这是智慧 的时代,这是愚蠢的时代;这是信仰的时期, 这是怀疑的时期……”
2021/2/2
An Introduction to British and American Culture
English Novel
Daniel Defoe (1660-1731)
Robinson Crusoe describes how Crusoe makes great efforts to overcome the hardships and difficulties he encounters on the island. . .
Three famous plays : 1.Tamburlaine (1587) 《帖木耳大帝》 2.The Jew Of Malta (1592) 《马耳它的犹太人》 3.The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus (1588)
《浮士德博士的悲剧》
2021/2/2
An Introduction to British and American Culture
英国文学课件
Renaissance Literature
• Late 15th century---early 17th century • The rise of bourgeois class • Renaissance: the rebirth of letters the key: humanism • Thomas More: the greatest humanist • Representatives: --William Shakespeare: drama --Edmund Spencer: poetry --Francis Bacon: essay
Second period:five history plays: Richard II, King John, Henry IV, Parts I and II, and Henry V six comedies: Much Ado About Nothing, and The Merry Wives of Windsor ,As You Like It,Midsummer Night’s Dream,Twelfth Night,The Merchant of Venice twotragedies: Romeo and Juliet and Julius Caesar
Anglo-Saxon Period
English people) feature: alliteration, metaphors and understatements. 诗中的英雄贝奥武甫杀巨魔 、斗毒龙,并在征服这些自 然界恶势力的过程中为民捐 躯。它的背景和情节是北欧 的,但掺有基督教成分,显 示出史诗曾几经修改,已非 原貌。 按照保存在一部10世纪的 手抄本里的版本来看,诗的 结构完整,写法生动,所用 的头韵、重读字和代称体现 了古英语诗歌的特色。
英国文学史PPT课件
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Johnson thought that “all was false and hollow” despised the honeyed words, and wrote a letter to Lord Chestfield, saying “ when I had once addressed your lordship in public, I had exhausted all the art or pleasing which a retired and uncourtly scholar can possess.”
英国文学史与选读 讲座课件
汤富华 2004年3月
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通过作品找意境,通过中西文学 对比,让文学课升华至文化课,让我 们的学生成为自己的主人。
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Early and Medieval English Literature
Geoffrey Chaucer, the founder of English poetry, was born, about 1340, in London. He was the son of a wine merchant who had connections with the court.
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Daniel Defoe: 1660-1731
• Son of James and Mary Foe, a merchant family committed to Puritanism (Presbyterians)
• Sound education at Morton’s Academy. Only Anglicans could gridge.
积土成山,风雨兴焉。积水成渊,蛟龙生焉。积善成德,而
英国文学PPT
Hawthorne’s Major Works
1)Two collections of short stories: Twice-told Tales 《故事新编》 Mosses from an Old Manse «古宅青苔»
2) The Scarlet Letter «红字» masterpiece, which established him as the leading American native novelist of the 19th century
May – October 1692: Salem [`seɪləm] , MA Constitute a series of investigations and persecutions that caused 19 ―witches‖ to be hanged and many others imprisoned Period of public hysteria generated by false accusations and coerced [kəʊ‘ɜ:s]强迫 confessions
Causes for the Outbreak
An unfortunate combination of an ongoing frontier war, economic conditions, congregational 公 理 教 会 的 strife, teenage boredom, and personal jealousies can account for the spiraling连锁的 accusations, trials, and executions that occurred in the spring and summer of 1692.
《英国文学简介》课件
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文艺复兴时期文学
莎士比亚的戏剧和斯宾塞的史诗,代表了英国文艺复兴时期的顶峰成就。
18世纪文学
启蒙时代文学
以强调理性和人权为特点,代表作品包括斯威夫特 的《格列佛游记》。
浪漫主义文学
通过追求自然、个人情感和幻想,让艺术与内心相 互融合,如拜伦的诗歌作品。
罗曼主义文学
文学流派 诗歌 小说 戏剧
代表作家 威廉·华兹华斯、塞缪尔·柯勒律治 简·奥斯汀、勃朗特姐妹 威廉·莎士比亚
现代主义文学
特征
反叙述、流派混合、内心意识流的表达方式,如弗 吉尼亚·伍尔夫的《到灯塔去》。
代表作家
T.S.艾略特、詹姆斯·乔伊斯、维吉妮亚·伍尔夫。
当代文学
文学派别
后现代主义、魔幻现实主义、 女性文学、后殖民文学等。
重要作家
伊恩·麦克尤恩、朱利安·巴恩 斯、萨尔曼·鲁西迪。
全球影响
当代英国文学作品在全球范 围内受到广泛关注,引领潮 流并触及世界共同话题。
《英国文学简介》
本PPT课件将带领大家一起探索英国文学的丰富历史和重要作家,以及各个时 期的文学流派和风格。
英国rse
英国文学拥有丰富多样的作品,从古代到现代,涵盖了各种题材和风格。
2 Influential and Enduring
英国文学对世界文学产生了深远的影响,作品在多个国家和文化中广为传播与研究。
3 Reflecting Society
英国文学作品引人深思,反映了当时社会的价值观、文化特征和历史背景。
英国文学史
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古英语文学
从盎格鲁-撒克逊时期的《贝奥武夫》到中世纪的传说故事,古英语文学充满古 老而神秘的魅力。
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中世纪文学
《英国文学选读u》课件
从古典悲剧到现代荒诞派戏剧。
英国文学在世界文学中的地位
对欧洲文学的影响
英国文学在欧洲文学史上占有重要地 位,是欧洲文学的重要组成部分。
对世界文学的影响
英国文学对世界文学产生了深远的影 响,许多世界著名作家都受到了英国 文学的影响和启发。
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英国文学作品赏析
莎士比亚的《哈姆雷特》
总结词
人文主义思想的悲剧体现
莎士比亚、伊丽莎白时代文学等 。
英国文学的历史背景
18世纪文学:启蒙运动、 现实主义小说等。
维多利亚时期:查尔斯·狄 更斯等。
浪漫主义时期:拜伦、雪 莱等。
现代主义文学:詹姆斯·乔 伊斯、T.S.艾略特等。
英国文学的主要流派
诗歌
从古典主义到浪漫主义、现代主义和后现代主义 。
小说
从现实主义到魔幻现实主义、奇幻小说等。
念,拓展视野,增强跨文化交流能力。
英国文学作品中所传达的人性关怀、道德观念和审美追求,有
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助于个人提升自身修养和审美水平。
对社会观念的影响
英国文学作品反映了社会历史的变迁和时代精神的演变,对于理解历史和 社会发展具有重要意义。
英国文学作品中所探讨的社会问题、道德困境和人性挣扎,引发人们对现 实问题的关注和思考。
《英国文学选读》PPT课件
目录
• 英国文学简介 • 英国文学作品赏析 • 英国文学中的主题和人物 • 英国文学的影响与启示 • 英国文学的未来发展
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英国文学简介
英国文学的历史背景
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古代文学
古英语文学,以英雄史诗《贝奥 武甫》为代表。
中世纪文学
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文艺复兴时期
骑士传奇、教会文学和市民文学 等。
Chapters 1—2 英国文学简史ppt(English Literature)
The Old English Period
History of Invasions ➢ 5th century BC: tribal kingdoms of Celtic people ➢ 55 BC: invaded by the Roman Empire (under control
for over 400 years) ➢ 5th Century: by Germanic people: the Angles and the
Chaucer and English Language
➢ Sometimes called the father of English literature, Chaucer is credited by some scholars as the first author to demonstrate the artistic legitimacy of the vernacular Middle English, rather than French or Latin.
English Literature Chapters 1—2
Key Points in Chapter 1
The Old English (Anglo-Saxon) Period
• History of Invasion • Anglo-Saxons • Caedmon • Beowulf • King Alfred the Great
The Pre-Elizabethan Period: A Brief Introduction
• 3 Major Events Turning the Middle Ages into the Modern Time • Reformation • Renaissance
English-LiteratureII英国文学PPT课件
Three years later, in 1790, he visited Revolutionary France and supported the Republican movement. The following year, he graduated from Cambridge.
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Poet Laureate :
桂冠诗人(英语:)是经由政府官方任命 的诗人及其称号。
Therefore, it is like a ‘national’ poet
A poet laureate is a poet officially appointed by the government of a country. He or she is responsible for writing poems for special occasions in that country
In 1783 his father, who was a lawyer died.
Although many aspects of his boyhood were positive, he remembered times of loneliness and sadness. It took him many years, and much writing, to recover from the death of his parents.
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浪漫主义重视民间艺术、自然以及传统, 主张一个根基于自然的知识论,以自然的 环境来解释人类的活动,包括了语言、传 统、习俗。浪漫主义受到了启蒙运动的理 念影响,也吸收了中世纪文化复古的艺术 成分。“浪漫”一词来自于“romance”—代 表了源于中世纪文学和浪漫文学里颂扬英 雄的诗赋风格。
《英国文学选读》课件
通过阅读英国文学作品,可以培 养个人的审美观念、批判思维和
创造力,提升个人综合素质。
英国文学作品中所描绘的人物形 象和故事情节,有助于引导个人 树立正确的价值观、人生观和世
界观。
对社会观念的反思
英国文学作品反映了社会历史的变迁 和人类文明的进步,促使人们对社会 问题进行深入反思。
英国文学作品中对社会问题的揭示和 批判,有助于激发人们对社会正义和 进步的思考,推动社会变革和进步。
,关注其思想内涵和人文精 神,了解当时的社会变革和
文化思潮。
总结词
注重作品的文学技巧和创新
详细描述
探讨中期文学作品所运用的文学技巧和创 新,如何推动文学的发展,以及在文学史 上的贡献。
总结词
关注作品的情感表达和审美追求
详细描述
分析中期文学作品中的情感表达和审美追 求,如何通过情感和审美来表达作品的主 题和思想。
英国文学的价值
英国文学不仅是文化遗产,也是人类智慧的结晶。它提供了对人性、社会和人 类命运的深刻洞察,启发了人们对生活、道德和人性的思考。英国文学作品还 具有很高的审美价值,为读者提供了丰富的阅读体验。
分析当前英国文学的发展趋势
多元化与包容性
当前英国文学的一个显著趋势是 多元化和包容性。越来越多的作 家来自不同背景,关注各种社会 议题,使英国文学更加丰富多彩
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社会责任与担当
面对当今世界的挑战,未来的英国文学将更加注重社会责任和担当。作
家们将通过他们的作品关注环境保护、社会公正和人权等议题,发挥文
学在社会问题上的舆论引导和思考启迪的作用。
THANKS
感谢观看
通过阅读英国文学作品,可以了解不 同社会背景和文化传统下人们的思想 观念和行为方式,促进跨文化交流和 理解。
UK Literature英国文学史PPT资料
Samuel Taylor
→Drama
Famous women novelists
Charles Dickens Daniel Defoe The Postmodern Period
➢ The Canterbury
Tales (1387-1400) He is considered the greatest English poet of the classical school in the first half of the 18th century.
➢Emily ——Wuthering Heights
➢Anne
➢ George Eliot
——her profound thinking and complex representation of life won her the name “philosophical writer”.
➢ Thomas Hardy
➢Gulliver’s Travels
《格列弗游记》
Daniel Defoe
➢ He was a famous pamphleteer, journalist and novelist.
➢ He wrote many books and was viewed as one of the progenitors of the novel in the English language.
➢ An Eassay on Criticism
➢ The Rape of the Lock
➢ Iliad &Odyssey
➢ Oxford Dictionary of Quotations
Jonathan Swift
➢ He is probably the foremost prose satirist in the English language.
英国文学新版ppt
The Romance 罗曼史
The romance is a popular literary form in the medieval period. It uses verse or prose to sing knightly adventures or other heroic deeds. It follows the motifs of the quest, the test, the meeting with the evil giant and the encounter with the beautiful beloved. The hero is usually the knight, who sets out on a journey to accomplish some omissions. The romance uses mysteries and fantasies, romantic love, and standardized characterization. Its structure is loose and episodic, and its language is simple and straightforward. The importance of the romance can be seen as a means of showing medieval aristocratic men and women in relation to their idealized view of the world. The romance reflects a chivalric age.
The Middle English Literature 中世纪英语文学
The period of Middle English literature starts from the Norman Conquest of 1066 and covers about four centuries. Middle English literature deals with a wider range of subjects with more voices and in a greater diversity of styles, tones and genres. Popular folk literature also occupies an important place in this period. Its presentation of life is not only accurate but also lively and colorful though it often lacks originality of thought. Middle English literature strongly reflects the principles of the medieval Christian doctrine, which were primarily concerned with the issue of personal salvation.
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Brutus addresses the crowd, saying that while he loved Caesar, he loved Rome more. He asks them whether they would prefer it if Caesar were alive and they all slaves, or Caesar were dead and they were free? Brutus honors Caesar for his bravery but says he killed him because he was ambitious. Who wants to be a slave? he asks. Who does not love his country? He invites a response from the crowd, which cries out in support of him. Brutus concludes that he can have offended no one by his act. As Antony enters with Caesar's body, Brutus tells the crowd that he killed his best friend for the sake of Rome, and that he has the same dagger reserved for himself, when his country should need his death. He then leaves to the cheers of the crowd, insisting that everyone stay to hear Antony's speech. The crowd is convinced by Brutus's speech that Caesar was a tyrant. Antony addresses the crowd. He says he came to bury Caesar, not to praise him. Brutus has said that Caesar was ambitious, and if that was true, then it was a bad fault in Caesar, and he has fully paid for it. Antony points out that he speaks with the permission of the assassins, and he calls Brutus an honorable man, as are all they all. He says that Caesar was his friend and always behaved fairly to him. Then he repeats that Brutus said Caesar was ambitious, and Brutus is an honorable man. But then he begins to cast doubt on the case against Caesar. He points out that Caesar brought home many captives to Rome, whose ransoms increased Rome's revenues. Was that ambitious? When the poor suffered, Caesar pitied and wept with them. Did that seem ambitious? He repeats for a third time that that Brutus said Caesar was ambitious, and that Brutus is an honorable man. Next, he reminds the crowd that three times he tried to present Caesar with a crown, and each time Caesar rejected it. Was that ambitious? Once more Antony repeats the reference to Brutus and the fact that he is honorable. He claims that he is not there to disprove what Brutus has said, only to speak what he knows. He asks the crowd that since they all loved Caesar once, why can they not mourn for him? For a moment he is overcome by tears and has to pause. Antony's speech is beginning to have its effect. Convinced by the points he has made, the crowd is ready to change sides and denounce Brutus. Continuing, Antony claims it is not his intention to stir up rage against Cassius and Brutus (who are honorable men). Then he produces Caesar's will. If the people could hear it, he says, even though he does not intend to read it, they would kiss Caesar's wounds, by which he means that they would be extremely grateful to him. The crowd clamors to hear the will, but Antony says it is not good for them to know how much Caesar loved them; it will only inflame them and make them angry. The crowd continues to call for the will. Persuaded by the clamor, tells them to form a circle around Caesar's corpse. Antony points to each of the many wounds in Caesar's mantle, describing which was made by which conspirator. He makes particular play with the wound caused by Brutus, whom Caesar loved. When Caesar saw Brutus stab him, he was overcome by Brutus' ingratitude far more than any physical wounds. For the first time, Antony refers to the assassination as treason. Then he pulls back the mantle and shows Caesar's body. The crowd is shocked and calls for revenge. Antony asks them to restrain themselves, although as he explains himself, referring again to the "honorable" men who killed Caesar, and saying that he has no gift of oratory, unlike Brutus, to stir men to action. But if he were Brutus, and Brutus Antony, then he would speak with passion and call for mutiny in Rome. The crowd is about to scatter and stir up a rebellion when Antony reminds them that they have not heard the will yet. Antony announces that Caesar gives to every Roman citizen the sum of seventy-five drachmaes. He has also left his forest and orchards to be public pleasure-grounds, where anyone can walk. The common people rush off, vowing to burn down the assassins' houses. Antony is satisfied at what his words have achieved and waits for whatever events unfold. A servant enters and tells Antony that Octavius, and Lepidus have arrived. He also says that Brutus and Cassius have fled Rome. Antony assumes it is because they heard of how he had stirred the people up against them. Brutus makes an effective speech that appeals to reason. But he is far surpassed by the brilliant cunning of Antony, who plays directly on the emotions of the crowd. Through the use of irony, he not only manages to suggest that Brutus and his fellow conspirators are not honorable men, he does so without violating the conditions imposed on him: that he not speak ill of the assassins. Not only are Antony's words devastating in the way they undermine Brutus's speech, he is also a master actor. The pause for tears, for example, whether sincere or not, is dramatically effective, and Antony's use of his props, the dead body-who could not be moved by the sight of Caesar's bloody corpse?-and the will, are also superb in their timing and effect. It is clear that Brutus has made a series of miscalculations. His biggest mistake is to allow Antony to speak at the funeral. He then compounds the error by leaving the scene after his own speech, which effectively gives Antony the last word. It seems that Brutus is so concerned with acting nobly (or perhaps trying to convince everyone, including himself, that he is doing so), that he makes the kind of blunders that Cassius, moreruthless and with a fiercer hunger for power, would never have made if left to himself. In the game of power politics, ruthlessness pays bigger dividends than nobility.The action begins in February 44 BC. Julius Caesar has just reentered Rome in triumph after a victory in Spain over the sons of his old enemy, Pompey the Great. A spontaneous celebration has interrupted and been broken up by Flavius and Marullus, two political enemies of Caesar. It soon becomes apparent from their words that powerful and secret forces are working againstCaesar appears, attended by a train of friends and supporters, and is warned by a soothsayer to “beware the ides of March,” but he ignores the warning and leaves for the games and races marking the celebration of the feast of Lupercal. After Caesar’s departure, only two men remain behind—Marcus Brutus, a close personal friend of Caesar, and Cassius, a long time political foe of Caesar’s. Both men are of aristocratic origin and see the end of their ancient privilege in Caesar’s po litical reform s and conquests. Envious of Caesar’s power and prestige, Cassius cleverly probes to discover where Brutus’ deepest sympathies lie. As a man of highest personal integrity, Brutus opposes Caesar on principle, despite his friendship with him. Cassius cautious ly inquires about Brutus’ feelings if a conspiracy were to unseat Caesar; he finds Brutus not altogether against the notion; that is, Brutus shares “some aim” with Cassius but does not wish “to be any further moved.” The two men part, promising to meet again for further discussions.In the next scene, it is revealed that the conspiracy Cassius spoke of in veiled terms is already a reality. He has gathered together a group of disgruntled and discredited aristocrats who are only too willing to assassinate Caesar. Partly to gain the support of the respectable element of Roman society, Cassius persuades Brutus to head the conspiracy, and Brutus agrees to do so. Shortly afterward, plans are made at a secret meeting in Brutus’ orchard. The date is set: It will be on the day known as the ides of March, the fifteenth day of the month. Caesar is to be murdered in the Senate chambers by the concealed daggers and swords of the assembled conspirators. After the meeting is ended, Brutus’ wife, Portia, suspecting something and fearing for her husband’s safety, questions him. Touched by her love and devotion, Brutus promises to reveal his secret to her later.The next scene takes place in Caesar’s house. The time is the early morning; the date, the fateful ides of March. The preceding night has been a strange one—wild, stormy, and full of strange and unexplainable sights and happenings throughout the city of Rome. Caesar’s wife, Calphurnia, terrified by horrible nightmares, persuades Caesar not to go to the Capitol, convinced that her dreams are portents of disaster. By prearrangement, Brutus and the other conspirators arrive to accompany Caesar, hoping to fend off any possible warnings until they have him totally in their power at the Senate. Unaware that he is surrounded by assassins and shrugging off Calphurnia’s exhortations, Caesar goes with them.Despite the conspirators’ best efforts, a warning is pressed into Caesar’s hand on the very steps of the Capitol, but he refuses to read it. Wasting no further time, the conspirators move into action. Purposely asking Caesar for a favor they know he will refuse, they move closer, as if begging a favor, and then, reaching for their hidden weapons, they kill him before the shocked eyes of the senators and spectators.Hearing of Caesar’s murder, Mark Antony, Caesar’s closest friend, begs permission to speak at Caesar’s funeral. Brutus grants this permission over the objections of Cassius and delivers his own speech first, confident that his words will convince the populace of the necessity for Caesar’s death. After Brutus leaves, Antony begins to speak. The crowd has been swayed by Brutus’ words, and it is an unsympathetic crowd that Antony addresses. Using every oratorical device known, however, Antony turns the audience into a howling mo b, screaming for the blood of Caesar’s murderers. Alarmed by the furor caused by Antony’s speech, the conspirators and their supporters are forced to flee from Rome and finally, from Italy. At this point, Antony, together with Caesar’s young grandnephew an d adopted son, Octavius, and a wealthy banker, Lepidus, gathers an army to pursue and destroy Caesar’s killers. These three men, known as triumvirs,have formed a group called the Second Triumvirate to pursue the common goal of gaining control of the Roman Empire.Months pass, during which the conspirators and their armies are pursued relentlessly into the far reaches of Asia Minor. When finally they decide to stop at the town of Sardis, Cassius and Brutus quarrel bitterly over finances. Their differences are resolved, however, and plans are made to meet the forces of Antony, Octavius, and Lepidus in one final battle. Against his own better judgment, Cassius allows Brutus to overrule him: Instead of holding to their well-prepared defensive positions, Brutus o rders an attack on Antony’s camp on the plains of Philippi. Just before the battle, Brutus is visited by the ghost of Caesar. “I shall see thee at Philippi,” the spirit warns him, but Brutus’ courage is unshaken and he goes on.The battle rages hotly. At fi rst, the conspirators appear to have the advantage,but in the confusion, Cassius is mistakenly convinced that all is lost, and he kills himself. Leaderless, his forces are quickly defeated, and Brutus finds himself fighting a hopeless battle. Unable to face the prospect of humiliation and shame as a captive (who would be chained to the wheels of Antony’s chariot and dragged through the streets of Rome), he too takes his own life.As the play ends, Antony delivers a eulogy over Brutus’ body, calling him “the noblest Roman of them all.” Caesar’s murder has been avenged, order has been restored, and, most important, the Roman Empire has been preserved.Act Three, Scene TwoBrutus and Cassius tell the plebeians to follow them in order to hear an explanation for the murder. They split the multitude into two parties and Cassius leaves to speak to one group while Brutus speaks to the other. Brutus tells the masses that he loved Caesar more than any of them, but that he killed Caesar because he loved Rome more. He says, "As Caesar loved me, I weep for him. As he was fortunate, I rejoice at it. As he was valiant, I honor him. But as he was ambitious, I slew him" ( Brutus then asks them if they wish him to die for his actions, to which the crowd replies, "Live, Brutus, live, live!" ( Lastly, he begs them listen to Mark Antony and to let him depart alone. Thus, he leaves Mark Antony alone to give his oration.Antony's speech begins with the famous lines, "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears" ( His speech continually praises Brutus as "an honourable man" who has killed Caesar for being ambitious yet also describes Caesar as the most honorable and generous of men. In this way, Antony appears to praise his friend while respecting the men who murdered him, when in fact, Antony is inciting hte crowd against Brutus, Cassius and the conspirators.The plebeians are easily swayed and conclude that Caesar was not ambitious, and was wrongly murdered. Next, after the plebeians beg, Antony reads Caesar's will after descending into the masses and standing next to Caesar's body. He shows them the stab wounds and names the conspirators who gave Caesar the wounds. The crowd starts to surge away in anarchy, crying, "Revenge! About! Seek! Burn! Fire! Kill! Slay!" ( Antony stops them and finally reads the will, in which Caesar has given every Roman citizen seventy-five drachmas and the freedom to roam his land. The plebeians react in a frenzy of anger against the men who killed Caesar, and carry away the body. Antony says, "Now let it work. Mischief, thou art afoot. / Take thou what course thou wilt" ( The servant of Octavius arrives and tells Antony that Octavius is already in Rome and is waiting for him at Caesar's house. Brutus Marcus Junius Brutus, Roman senator and mastermind of the plot to assassinate Julius Caesar, is the central character of the play. Brutus is first seen in 1.2., discussing with Cassius why the republic would be best served with Caesar's removal. After the conspirators carry out the crime, Brutus gives a moving speech to convince the Plebeians that it was necessary to kill Caesar, but Antony arrives and turns the crowd against him. Brutus flees Rome and tries to regain the capitol by forming an army, but Antony’s forces are too skilled and strong to combat. Wh en he realizes the cause is lost, Brutus convinces his servant, Strato, to hold his sword while he falls upon it, and he dies. Antony and Octavius find his body and Antony, knowing Brutus was pure in his motive to help the republic, declares Brutus "was the noblest Roman of them all." Shakespeare’s Brutus is very similar to the historical Brutus, as described in Plutarch’s Lives. His qualities in both are best summarized by Victorian critic M. Guizot:Marc Antony Antony, the heroic leader of the forces that defeat Brutus and the other conspirators, is also the title character in another Shakespearean tragedy, Antony and Cleopatra. In Julius Caesar, Antony is introduced in 1.2 and his importance is indicated by Cassius’s proposal that he be assassinated along with Caesar (2.1). Antony delivers his most significant speech (in either tragedy) in 3.2: "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears…" (79). After Brutus commits suicide, Antony eulogizes Brutus in a speech that begins with one of Shakespeare's best known lines: "This was the noblest Roman of them all" (Antony’s speech serves to restore Brutus to the position of tragic hero. Antony can see in Brutus the morality he does not himself possess - the capability to act selflessly for the common good. Brutus's pride and political naivety have led to his destruction, but his ideals are etched into the memory of his enemies.。