Renaissance Art

Paolo Veronese's Feast in the House of Levi

Galleria della Academia

1573

Bewitched Brutus

Which character from the play Julius Caesar was the most interesting to you and why? On your blog, create a posting that identifies your character and completes the following:

1. Create a clear title that identifies your character.
2. Describe your character by writing a brief character analysis. What was the character's motives (goals or dreams)? How did the character change throughout the play? What was the level of your character's morality. Include key quotes from the play that support your points.
3. Explain why this character was interesting to you.
   
4. Connect your character to a modern day (popular or political) personality that best exemplifies your character. Link to outside sources for support.
   

The most interesting character in Julius Caesar to me would be Brutus.  Brutus is a very gullible and easily persuaded character.  He is very noble and try's to appease everyone. He is also a very powerful public figure.  But he just has these constant battles within himself.  In the play, Brutus' motives are his self serving ambitions. "Hear my for my cause [...] not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved ome more" (13-14, 21-22)  He does it upon what he believes, even if he gets persuaded.  In the beginning of the play he was pretty set on his ideas but later on he was willing to be persuaded into believing that Caesar must die to save Rome.  So I believe even though he is very easily persuaded he still has that sense of right/wrong or his beliefs even if they may change frequently.  So his level of mortality is much higher then some of the other characters in the story. 

 

Brutus is interesting to me because he reminds me of myself.  I am very gullible and I can get persuaded easily but I'll also stand up for what I believe in.  Even if I am wrong, or I know will fail.

 

Brutus could be connected to a Martin Luther King.  He stood up for what he believed in.  He died but he did it for his country.  

The Allegory

What are the "shadows" Plato would tell us we cannot trust as truth? Give several examples of these "shadows" we encounter.

The shadows Plato describes are all but simple illusions.  According to Plato, the shadows are as close as the prisoners get to seeing reality.  There are so many shadows in our world today, so many things pulling us away from the truth.  Many shadows in society today come from the media. The television, newspapers, magazines, radio, internet, advertisements and propaganda all promote many false truths that "shadow" us everyday.  Another great example is religion.  With all the various religion groups who knows truly what is right.  There religion is just as important or right as mine, the same goes for race. Again, just more illusions that lead us to those twisted truths.

Link to an online source that portrays a "shadow." What makes it a shadow? What is the truth?

http://www.geico.com/ 

"15 min could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance." They try to make you think that they actually want to help you.  But in reality they are just sucking your money away. The only reason they do it is for there benefit.  This shadows you from the truth of spending a lot of money.  I mean do you really believe 15 actual minutes will save you a whole 15 percent on car insurance? No.  They are just trying to catch your attention.  They want you to go to them.  So they thrust upon these false notions like that.  Every advertisement like that have those catchy false statements.  The only possible truth of them is that they may want to do what's best for you, but that is only to put money into their own wallets. 

How do "shadows" impact society? What danger do we face in trusting the "shadows?"

Shadows not only fill us with false notions but increases our gullibility.  Shadows change and form society, especially in the young lives. With all these shadows throughout our life we get confused with them and actual reality.  We trust the shadows which end up hurting us with the real truth.  How do we decipher between them?  In our society, shadows are truly taking over.  We face many dangers trusting these shadows.  We are in that cave, that world of illusions.