Julius Caesar... - Page 2

awwwwwwwwwwww... glad i could help you ipsi... there's more... but i wonder if it's enough to help you cover the remaining 80 or so pages of your project... i'll try though... you can elaborate as much as you want... it'll be partially condensed here... lots of historical info here too... (here=my head!)

hey anglina 😊 ... no worries dear 😉 ... this is for EVERYONE!
u don't need to ask for my permission dear... u're free to use it... love you all! 😆
all the best angie and ipsi! 😉

ok.. here's more:

introducing the characters:

Flavius and Marullus: Tribunes or elected representatives of the people... u must remember, Rome was one of the earliest civilisations in the world to have a democratic or (public based government)... and the Romans were rather proud of this... there were mainly two classes in Roman society: Plebians and Patricians... the lower and upper classes respectively. Nobility was INHERITED... but in unusual cases, slaves earned nobility through their merit and extraordinary loyalty...
The Senate House was located at the Capitol... the Forum was like a bazaar where public speeches, demonstrations and other actvities took place. The Senators were also elected, but above the Tribunes in station... The Senators had at their head, a Triumvirate consisting of THREE... the FIRST triumvirate was composed of Julius Caesar, Crassus and Pompey.
Now I don't exactly remember what happened to Crassus, but Julius and Pompey fell out with each other and went to war...IMPT: this was a CIVIL war... that means... a war within the state... between to citizens of the state...

this point is important... it explains the retort : "what conquest brings he home?"

so, Caesar managed to win this civil war... Pompey's sons were killed as well... now, this is a historical point... whenever any Roman general won a war, the opponent soldiers were treated as slaves and brought to Rome... the "spoils" (conquests... both in terms of land and material wealth) were brought to Rome... and these were added to the Public Treasury for the "general good"... the victorious Roman General rides in to the city through the city gates in his chariot, with the "slaves" chained to his chariot... these "spoils" or conquests were paraded... the slaves paraded in disgrace... while the Romans cheered... this victory procession was called the "triumph"...

In the beginning/opening scene... the common people are crowding together to watch Caesar's triumph... but the Tribunes feel that Caesar is going to bring about the downfall of Republicanism (Democracy) in the Roman Empire... they felt he was fast becoming a tyrant or dictator and would soon establish Monarchy... a system of government where one person is given ABSOLUTE powers...

they angrily admonish the people for supporting this man (Caesar), who has, above all, spilt the blood of one as noble as Pompey, who always worked for the good of the Romans...

Marullus:
"Wherefore rejoice? What conquest brings he home? What tributaries follow him to Rome, to grace in captive bonds his chariot wheels?"

Tributaries: refers to the enemy soldiers who are treated as captives...

What Marullus wants to say is: Why are you all cheering for this man who returns to Rome in triumph of a CIVIL war... this honour is given to those brave men who go to war to expand the boundaries of Rome... who bring foreign captives as Slaves... who pour foreign wealth into the Public Treasuries... but what has Caesar acheived... he has not brought foreign wealth, nor has he brought foreign soldiers as captives/slaves, neither has he expanded the boundaries of Noble Rome... in fact, he has spilt Roman blood, enslaved Roman soldiers and won Roman wealth in the war... it was a Civil war, being a Roman himself...... what has he achieved? Why do you support him so? He has, in fact, not only spilt Roman blood, he has killed one of the noblest men of our times...

more later...
i hope this was useful! 😆

Thanx, that will be useful for me too! I'm also doin work on Caesar.