Octavius Character Analysis

Octavius is a character who never appears on stage but who nonetheless casts a long shadow. He is Antony’s rival for power in Rome and is described as young, ambitious, and strongly competitive in his quest for rule of “half the world.” He is also proud and quick to take offense at perceived insults to his honor and his family—as indicated by his protectiveness of his sister, Octavia, Antony’s wife. In response to Antony’s abandonment of her, he brings an army against Antony and Cleopatra in Egypt. His ambition ultimately finds full space to flourish after Antony’s suicide and military defeat, thus removing the last obstacle to Octavius’s control of the Roman Empire, which he went on to rule for many decades.