The women characters in Julius Caesar are not themselves instrumental in the plot and therefore have little importance as characters in their own right. To a certain extent, they serve to illuminate the more personal, as opposed to the public, sides of their respective husbands. They also provide elements of love and loyalty in a play that is largely concerned with death and intrigue. .
Portia is the more fully described of the two women and provides a portrait of a woman of above average strength and quality. Throughout the play, references to womanly qualities are used to denote the weaker sides of men's characters. Women are supposedly weak physically and intellectually. Thus for a man to be called womanly is an insult to his strength of character. Cassius is especially prone to making such equations between women and weakness and less worthy qualities of character. In pointing to the cowardice of the population in accepting Caesar's rule, he states .
Our father's minds are dead.
And we are governed by our mothers" spirits. (I.iii.82-3).
Portia is an example of a woman who does not conform to the prevailing idea of the limitations of women in general. As the wife of Brutus and the daughter of Cato, she regards herself as necessarily stronger than the rest of her sex. To prove herself, she wounds herself in the thigh to show she is physically capable of bearing pain. So, too, she concludes, has she the strength of mind to bear Brutus's secret. .
But Portia also retains her womanly qualities. Worried at her husband's melancholy mood, his troubled thoughts and his new impatience, she persistently uses her womanly guile to draw his secret from him. She is aware that Brutus's anxiety is not a physical sickness. As his wife, it is her right to share his every thought, and she appeals to him, through love, and on her knees, to divulge his secret. Portia demands that he remember their marriage vows. He should treat her as a wife, not as a harlot who would only know the outer man, not the inner, thus instilling a guilt in him.
Portia and Calpurnia are the two main women in the story of Julius Caesar. ... She is the wife of Caesar. Caesar treats Calpurnia as if she was the scum level of his servants. ... (Caesar was stabbed by the Senate who had been planning against him.) Therefore, the two important wives in the story had two totally different roles. ...
Two of the leaders who displayed bravery were Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. Gaius Julius Caesar was born 100 B.C. ... Caesar had a total of 3 children with various women and a nephew, whom he took in as his own. ... Due to his prestigious military career, Julius Caesar appointed Antony as a staff officer in 52 BC. ... When Caesar was killed Mark Antony assumed the role of leader of Rome, but Caesar's nephew believed that he should be a ruler, so he challenged Antony. ...
She played a major role in Egypt's history. ... Cleopatra and Julius Caesar fell in love. A major problem was that Julius Caesar was already married. ... Julius Caesar invited Cleopatra and Caesarion to Rome. ... She took advantage of his weakness towards women. ...
During the days of the classical world, the structures of family as well as the social roles of Roman women were different than how they have evolved today. ... The Oppian Law "limited the amount of gold women could possess and required that all funds of wards, single women, and widows be deposited with the state". ... By the time of Julius Caesar's reign, wives had gained much freedom and were able to lead less restricted lives (The Roman Family). After Caesar's reign, during the Imperial Age, women were then permitted to "own land, run businesses, free slaves, make wills, b...
She was particularly skilled in linguistics-these talents useful to her in facilitating her role as diplomat and politician. ... Explain the Significance of Cleopatra's alliance with Julius Caesar: When Julius Caesar entered Alexandria, he entered as a triumphant conqueror. ... In 44bc, Cleopatra joined Caesar in Rome. ... However, Cleopatra's alliance with the great Caesar was soon to end as on the Ides of March Caesar was assassinated in the Senate house. ... John of Nikiu describes her as "The most illustrious and wise among women...great in herself and in her achievements in c...
WOMEN IN ANCIENT SOCIETIES Research has substantiated the belief that, in the ancient world, Western women had far more opportunities and power with lesser restrictions than Eastern women. ... Although most admired in the traditional roles of wife and mother, Egyptian women in many ways suffered far fewer restrictions than women in other contemporary cultures. ... We tend to think of "women's liberation" and feminism as a late twentieth century phenomenon, but even in the ancient world there were a few women who carved out significant roles for themselves, and the status of women varie...
Gaius Julius Caesar was one of the world's most powerful leaders and was killed for that. ... George Bush has made mistakes before early in his life that people tried to use against him in his role as President of the United States of America. ... Decisions are what caused George Bush to become another hero to go on the lengthy list of men and women whose courageous guidance has had a lasting effect on the planet. ...
Sulla had an interesting dynamic with the women in his life. ... Sulla played a vital historical role in shaping and reforming the Republic before military opponents would destroy it. ... This affected the Roman Republic and paved the way for future emperors such as Julius Caesar. ... His memoirs highlighted his many roles such as dictator, reformer, politician, soldier and dictator. ... Sulla's legacy paved the road for future rulers like Julius Caesar. ...
This baby was born to the name of Gaius, his personal name, Julius was the name of his family's clan and the name of his family was Caesar meaning hairy. ... Caesar hated this idea. ... A little later Caesar's father died. ... The seat was being held for Caesar. ... Caesar had four wives. ...
