f whether or King 3not a moral end justifies immoral means, nor does he consider that his actions may be met with public disapproval. Brutus overcomes his natural sense of shame over the idea of conspiracy and murder. As demonstrated in his soliloquy, he convinces himself that Caesar will ultimately become a dictator: And since my quarrel with Caesar cannot be justified by what he actually is, I must work it out in this way: that what he is, developed and extended, Is likely to reach such and such extremes... so that I must kill Caesar... (2.1. 29-34).Brutus is convinced that the souls of free men suffer by the potentiality of Caesar’s coronation, and that the conspirators are all honest Romans, concerned only with the good of the state. He believes in their cause, but his nobility and self-conflict prevents him from leading the conspiracy. Finally, Brutus conceives of Caesar’s death as a religious sacrifice rather than a human slaughter. He is blind to the possibility that his sacrifice may, in fact, be sacrilege, because the gods have ordained Caesar’s rule. Although Brutus is too weak and too conflicted to assume leadership of the conspiracy, Shakespeare weaves the recurrent motif of honor and honesty around his gentle characterization of Brutus. In so doing, he undoubtedly confirms that the corruption and instability of human nature does, in fact, have a negative impact on the noblest plans. King 4 Works CitedRoberts, J.M. A Conc...
