Book Report: Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (Grade 4, Language Arts, August 10, 2023)

Summary:

 

            Julius Caesar, a Roman senator, returned to Rome after defeating Roman general Pompey. However, a soothsayer said to Caesar, “Beware the Ides of March!”^[1] A group gathered and plotted to kill Caesar on the very same day he had been warned about. 

 

            Brutus, one of Caesar’s friends, loved him, but felt like Caesar wanted to be king or dictator, even though Rome was a democracy. So he convinced his brother-in-law, Cassius, that killing Caesar would be good for Rome. Some other people joined the group. 

 

            On March 15, Caesar’s wife warned him not to go outside, because she had experienced weird dreams the previous night. But Caesar ignored her. The soothsayer said to him, “The Ides of March have come!” But Caesar ignored him, too. At a meeting, the conspirators stabbed Caesar. As Brutus was stabbing him, Caesar said, “Et tu, Brute?” Then, he died. 

 

            “Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead,” the conspirators cried out. A shocked Mark Antony, Caesar’s best friend, decided to speak at his funeral after Brutus. 

 

            Brutus spoke first at Caesar’s funeral, to make sure that the crowd would favor his speech. But when Antony spoke, the crowd got so angry at the conspirators, that they tore a man to pieces just because his name was Cinna(the same as one of the conspirators). 

 

            Antony, Caesar’s nephew Octavius, and a guy named Lepidus formed a triumvirate to try to avenge Caesar. They defeated Brutus and Cassius in a major war. Brutus later committed suicide. As he was running towards the same sword he used to stab Caesar, Brutus said, “Caesar, now be still!”

 

            Eventually, Octavius exiled Lepidus and defeated Mark Antony at a war. He later became emperor. 

 

My Opinion:

 

            As someone who enjoys studying history, I really like Julius Caesar. However, there were a few extra parts. 

 

According to a YouTube video, Caesar’s last words were not, “Et tu, Brute?” There are many sources, and I am not sure which one is true. 

 

Also, Octavius was NOT the real name of Caesar’s nephew. His full name is Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus.^[2] And, my history book, the Mystery of History, refers to Octavianus as Octavian. 

 

There were also some missing parts. The war between Octavian and Mark Antony was not only between them. Mark Antony was helping his wife Cleopatra win the war. 

 

Also, Lepidus’ full name was Marcus Lepidus. And, lastly, when Octavian became the emperor, he did not retain his name. He changed his name to Augustus Caesar.^[3]

 

I think I will give Julius Caesar an 8/10. I understand that Mr. Shakespeare was making a fictional version, and that he did not have to include everything, but I am still a bit disappointed. Still, I think it was a really good book. It comes with other Shakespeare books, too, so you can read those, if you want. 

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^[1] The Ides of March is March 15. 

^[2] Octavianus (Octavian) was Julius Caesar’s adopted son. 

^[3] He is referred to as Caesar Augustus sometimes. You can find his name in Luke 2:1. It reads, “And so a decree came from Caesar Augustus that all the world be registered.”