Date of Award

7-12-1972

Degree Type

Master's Essay - Restricted

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

English

Abstract

We may take the view which states that Brutus in Shakespeare' s Julius Caesar is not given a full development as a tragic character because, although the raw material of self-confrontation and self-knowledge are present, Shakespeare doesn't let the self-probing take place. Or we may take the position of critics who see no question at all in the fact of Brutus' being the tragic hero although they establish this for different reasons. One such critic calls his tragedy the blindness of his character--"blind to his own limitations and the guiding motives of the other men...." Another considers t hat Brutus suffers from "a state of spiritual or mental division" and the division will prevent success and be the ultimate reason why tragedy is inescapable. A third regards it as tragedy when nobility which might have led only follows, when it consents to be used by envious men for their base purposes. Goddard sees Brutus in this tragic role.

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