- Hardcover: 144 pages
- Publisher: Kessinger Publishing (10 Sep 2010)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1169261639
- ISBN-13: 978-1169261631
- Product Dimensions: 17.8 x 25.4 x 1 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,709,571 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
THE TRAGEDY OF JULIUS CAESAR (non illustrated)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
One of Shakespeare's most political plays, Julius Caesar continued Shakespeare's interest in Roman history, first developed in Titus Andronicus. Drawing on Plutarch, the great historian of Rome, Shakespeare dramatises one of the most crucial moments in Roman history--the assassination of Julius Caesar. Loved by the Roman crowd but increasingly feared by the Senators, Caesar increasingly shows signs of his desire to abolish the Republic and crown himself emperor. A conspiracy is hatched, led by Cassius and Brutus, who murder Caesar on the steps of the Capitol. Mourning over his dead friend's body, Mark Antony gives one of the famous rhetorical speeches in literature, asking "Friends, Romans, Countrymen" to lament Caesar's death, privately vowing to "let slip the dogs of war" against those who have shed Caesar's blood. Antony joins forces with Caesar's son Octavius to defeat Cassius and Brutus in battle, and establish an uneasy alliance whose collapse is dramatised in Shakespeare's later play Antony and Cleopatra. Written at the end of Queen Elizabeth's reign, Julius Caesar has been seen by many as a radically pro-Republican play which sailed close to the political wind of the time. --Jerry Brotton
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Review
..a stimulating and original reading of the play which provides a thought-provoking introduction for students --Years Work In English
...I went back to the play with great excitement after reading the book. --The Brown Book --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
...I went back to the play with great excitement after reading the book. --The Brown Book --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
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First Sentence
Enter Flauius, Murellus, and certaine Commoners ouer the Stage. Read the first page
Front Cover | Table of Contents | Excerpt
Enter Flauius, Murellus, and certaine Commoners ouer the Stage. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | Excerpt
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Excellent introduction and notes plus relevant extracts from Plutarch's Lives and descriptions of the characters make this so much more than a copy of the text - a veritable study guide.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Gaius Julius Cæsar is the Caesar we think of when we hear the word "Caesar" -- he conquered Gaul, bedded Cleopatra, and died a pretty dramatic death. And while he only appears in a few scenes of "Julius Caesar," he's the nucleus that William Shakespeare's taut conspiracy play revolves around -- his murder, his legacy, and the bitter jealousy he inspired.
Julius Caesar is returning to Rome in triumph, only to be stopped by a strange old soothsayer who warns him, "Beware the ides of March." Caesar brushes off the warning, but he has no idea that a conspiracy is brewing under his nose. In a nutshell, a group of senators led by the creepy Cassius are plotting against Caesar because of his wild popularity, suspecting that he wants to become KING.
And Cassius' latest target: Brutus, one of Caesar's best buddies. Brutus is slowly swayed over to the conspiracy's side, beginning to believe that Caesar as a great man corrupted by power. Everything comes to a a devastating assassination on... guess when... the ides of March, which will elevate some men to greatness and destroy others.
Though the story is supposedly about Julius Caesar, Caesar himself only has a few scenes -- but his charismatic, dominating presence hangs over the play like a heavy tapestry. What he does, what he plans, what he thinks and who he is are constantly on people's minds, and even after his death he is a powerful presence in the memories of the living.
And Shakespeare cooks up a dialogue-heavy play that is a bit on the slow side, but whose speeches are so powerful and intense that you don't quite notice. There's a lot of those speeches here -- not only Antony's famous speech to the Roman people ("The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones"), but Brutus' impassioned argument with Portia ("You have some sick offence within your mind") and Cassius' oily slanted editorials about Caesar.
Shakespeare's depiction of Brutus is also a beautifully nuanced one -- Antony calls him the "noblest Roman of them all" at the very end, despite the fact that Brutus calmly murdered his friend and leader. He's basically a gullible guy who follows his passions rather than his brain, and bounces into the conspiracy rather than trying to find out the truth about Caesar. You feel sorry for him, and at the same time you want the much smarter Antony to kick him like a soccer ball.
"Julius Caesar" is rather slow-moving, but Shakespeare's powerful writing and nuanced depiction of Brutus more than make up for that. Friends, Romans, countrymen...
Julius Caesar is returning to Rome in triumph, only to be stopped by a strange old soothsayer who warns him, "Beware the ides of March." Caesar brushes off the warning, but he has no idea that a conspiracy is brewing under his nose. In a nutshell, a group of senators led by the creepy Cassius are plotting against Caesar because of his wild popularity, suspecting that he wants to become KING.
And Cassius' latest target: Brutus, one of Caesar's best buddies. Brutus is slowly swayed over to the conspiracy's side, beginning to believe that Caesar as a great man corrupted by power. Everything comes to a a devastating assassination on... guess when... the ides of March, which will elevate some men to greatness and destroy others.
Though the story is supposedly about Julius Caesar, Caesar himself only has a few scenes -- but his charismatic, dominating presence hangs over the play like a heavy tapestry. What he does, what he plans, what he thinks and who he is are constantly on people's minds, and even after his death he is a powerful presence in the memories of the living.
And Shakespeare cooks up a dialogue-heavy play that is a bit on the slow side, but whose speeches are so powerful and intense that you don't quite notice. There's a lot of those speeches here -- not only Antony's famous speech to the Roman people ("The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones"), but Brutus' impassioned argument with Portia ("You have some sick offence within your mind") and Cassius' oily slanted editorials about Caesar.
Shakespeare's depiction of Brutus is also a beautifully nuanced one -- Antony calls him the "noblest Roman of them all" at the very end, despite the fact that Brutus calmly murdered his friend and leader. He's basically a gullible guy who follows his passions rather than his brain, and bounces into the conspiracy rather than trying to find out the truth about Caesar. You feel sorry for him, and at the same time you want the much smarter Antony to kick him like a soccer ball.
"Julius Caesar" is rather slow-moving, but Shakespeare's powerful writing and nuanced depiction of Brutus more than make up for that. Friends, Romans, countrymen...
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
A wonderful introduction covering the many aspects of how and why Shakespeare's Julius Caesar has been staged through time; insight into Shakespeare's motives in writing the play set in context of the Elizabethan court and much more. The play itself is clearly set out with footnotes and further information at the back of the book. For study or purely personal interest it is well worth paying a bit extra for this publication.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Seven stars for Wordsworth cheap paperback Shakespeares
REVIEW of the Wordsworth edition of "Julius Caesar" (in fact, all the Wordsowrth paperback editions) NOT the play itself
If readers want a review of this great play,... Read more
If readers want a review of this great play,... Read more
Published 6 months ago by RR Waller
A clever presentation
I bought this book for my 15 year old son, for school. He particularly appreaciates the notes which are on the side of the text, so there are easy to find and he doesn't lose his... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Sardine
My first exposure to western politics, political killing and bad luck!
I first read this book as part of a required reading in my teenage years way back in 1979 - some 32 years ago! Read more
Published 11 months ago by JAO Esq -
emperor
This product arrived in good time and in excellent condition. Since I send the Arden Shakespeare individual plays to a friend in France who is a Shakespeare buff, she particularly... Read more
Published 14 months ago by K. Archer
Wonderful!
Ok, so you wouldn't exactly pass a history exam if you based your knowledge of Julius Caesar only on Shakespeare's play - he manipulates historical material and sources, so... Read more
Published on 31 July 2006 by Catfish
a stage-friendly edition
What is most recommendable about this New Penguin Shakespeare edition is the introduction's emphasis on the many-sided texture and elaborate plot of this play (especially when... Read more
Published on 1 Oct 2004 by rm
Interesting history but poor resolution
Having read much historically about the the Roman emperors, I was very excited to be reading JULIUS CAESAR. Read more
Published on 8 Oct 1998
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