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Caius Cassius
Antony is Caesar's close friend. He desires to make Caesar king, and he brings about the undoing of the conspirators after Caesar's murder. Described as a passionate man who loves art and music, and teased by Caesar for staying out late at parties, Antony is the opposite of the coldly logical Brutus. While not perceptive enough to suspect the plot against Caesar, his masterful speech to the plebeians at Caesar’s funeral stirs up the masses to mutiny. He then takes up an army against Brutus and the other conspirators to avenge Caesar’s death. Antony can be devious when necessary, planning to cheat the people by altering Caesar's will, and to eliminate his ally Lepidus. It is the combination of these qualities that make him a better all-around politician—and replacement for Caesar—than either Brutus or Cassius. At the end of the play, his army triumphs over Brutus’s, yet he praises Brutus as having been the noblest of Romans.
Mark Antony Quotes in Julius Caesar
The Julius Caesar quotes below are all either spoken by Mark Antony or refer to Mark Antony. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Act 3, scene 1
Quotes
Cry Havoc! and let slip the dogs of war.
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Act 3, scene 2
Quotes
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you Caesar was ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault;
And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest, —
For Brutus is an honorable man;
So are they all, all honorable men, —
Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me:
But Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honorable man.
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Act 5, scene 5
Quotes
This was the noblest Roman of all
All the conspirators, save only he,
Did that they did in envy of great Caesar;
He only, in a general honest thought,
And common good to all, made one of them.
His life was gentle; and the elements
So mix'd in him that Nature might stand up
And say to all the world, "This was a man."
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Mark Antony Quotes in Julius Caesar
The Julius Caesar quotes below are all either spoken by Mark Antony or refer to Mark Antony. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Act 3, scene 1
Quotes
Cry Havoc! and let slip the dogs of war.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Act 3, scene 2
Quotes
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you Caesar was ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault;
And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest, —
For Brutus is an honorable man;
So are they all, all honorable men, —
Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me:
But Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honorable man.
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Act 5, scene 5
Quotes
This was the noblest Roman of all
All the conspirators, save only he,
Did that they did in envy of great Caesar;
He only, in a general honest thought,
And common good to all, made one of them.
His life was gentle; and the elements
So mix'd in him that Nature might stand up
And say to all the world, "This was a man."
Related Characters:
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
