Unit III Test Review
● The central idea of the entire play is that sometimes people do bad things
for the greater good. The line that shows the central idea is when the
conspirators shout “ Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!” (Line 85) after
killing Caesar. It shows the conspirators motivation for the assassination.
● The main idea of 1.2 is that Cassius is trying to persuade Brutus to join the
conspiracy.
● The theme is that people will manipulate others to get what they want. The
theme is supported by
“Except immortal Caesar, speaking of Brutus / And groaning underneath
this age's yoke, / Have wish'd that noble Brutus had his eyes.” (Lines
65-67)
● Cassius tells Brutus about his swim with Caesar to prove that Caesar is a
weak man, not a god.
● The audience learns of Cassius’ true feelings during his soliloquy at the end
of 1.2, when he says Brutus was more easily manipulated than he ought to
have been, and Cassius plans to convince Brutus further by planting fake
letters from Roman citizens.
● At the end of 1.2, Brutus is considering joining the conspirators. This idea is
supported by
“Brutus had rather be a villager/ Than to repute himself a son of
Rome/ Under these hard conditions as this time/ Is like to lay upon
us.” (Lines 179-182)
● "When could they say (till now) that talked of Rome That her wide walls
encompassed but one man?" is personification.
● In Act II, Scene II, Calpurnia rushes to Caesar, begging him not to go to the
Senate. While the audience knows that Brutus has made up his mind to join
the conspirators and the assassination is in the making, Caesar feels
confident that nothing will happen to him, despite what his wife has seen in
her dream, and not knowing what the audience knows. This is an example of
dramatic irony
● Shakespeare is able to build tension by using dramatic irony; the reader
knows about the plot but does not realize the true consequences of the
conspirators’ actions.
● Shakespeare portrays Caesar as arrogant. One example is ``What touches us
ourself shall be last served.” (Line 8)
● “I am constant as the northern star” (Line 65). Is a ___________________
Caesar compares himself to this fixed star, among the other stars which burn
out or shift in the sky, and proclaims himself to be as “steady” in his
decisions.
Explain the reasons that Brutus gives for killing Caesar in the excerpt of Act III,
Scene II. How does he persuade the audience to sympathize with his reasons?
Cite evidence from the text in your response