Literary Elements

Wed Aug 02 2023

Kieran Klukas
Carrie Klukas
Writing

Act I:

  1. A pun is a play on words with similar sounds but more than one spelling or meaning. In Act I scene i of Julius Caesar, the cobbler says he is “a mender of bad soles,” referring only to the soles of shoes but also to the spiritual force some think distinguishes humans from animals.
  2. Foreshadowing refers to hints in the text about what will occur later in the plot. In the second scene of the play you are about to read, a soothsayer, or fortune-teller, warns: “beware the Ides of March.” Because the “ides” were the 15th day of the month, we can expect something bad to happen in the play on March 15.
  3. A simile is a comparison of two unlike things using like, or as. In act I, Cassius uses a simile that shows Caesar’s power over others: “Why, man, he doth bestride the narrow world / Like a Colossus, and we petty men / walk under his huge legs and peep about / To find ourselves dishonorable graves.”
  4. Conflict is what creates tension and drama and literature. External conflict refers to a struggle between humans and an outside force, such as nature or another individual. In Julius Caesar, conflict exists between the ordinary citizens and those who plot to kill Caesar. Internal conflict refers to a mental struggle in the individual. Portia’s love for her husband clashes with her anger of being kept from his secret plans.

Act II:

  1. A soliloquy is a speech that reveals the innermost thoughts and feelings of the character who speaks it. The speech is for the benefit of the audience, not the other characters. The most famous example from Shakespeare is the “to be or not to be” soliloquy by the title character in Hamlet.
  2. Irony refers to the distance between appearance and reality. In Act I, it is ironic when the crowd cheers Caesar for turning down the crown because he is power hungry and trying not to show it.
  3. A character’s motivation is the combination of forces that make that person act as he or she does. In Act I, we learned that Casca and Cassius are both motivated to convert Brutus to their point of view, so that he will help them get rid of Caesar.
  4. A theme is a major idea or message enough of a play. One of the major themes of Julius Caesar is the effect of power on rulers and those whom they rule.

Act III:

  1. Plots develop through cause and effect, or why things happen and what the results are. In Acts I and II, we see that the hatred Cassius and Casca feel for Cesar causes them to seek his downfall, so they send persuasive letters to Brutus. The effect is that Brutus joins them and the assassination plan begins.
  2. And inference is a reasonable conclusion that the readers can draw based upon clues, given in a work of literature. In Act I, Scene iii, Cassius says, “Poor man, I know that he would not be a wolf / But that he sees the Romans are but sheep.” We can infer that Cassius believes Cesar takes a vantage of the Romans’ – and here, Casca’s – submissive attitude.
  3. Rhetoric is the art of communicating effectively, either in writing or in speech. It uses persuasive techniques such as repetition, strong imagery, rhythm, dictation (word choice), and emotional appeals, in addition to others. Look at the strongly worded letter –- “speak, strike, redress!” – Brutus receives in Act II, Scene i lines, 46-48, for an example.
  4. Shakespeare often uses repetition to stress characters’ emotions, or traits or lend urgency to a theme or idea. In the beginning of Act I, Marullus scolds the cobbler for switching allegiance so rapidly from Pompeii to Cesar. He harshens the rebuke by demanding, “And do you now put on your best attire? / And do you now cull out a holiday? And do you now strew flowers in his way…?”

Act IV:

  1. A tragedy is a serious work of literature that narrates the events leading to the downfall of a tragic hero, who in almost every way displays noble qualities. This person’s downfall is the result of a tragic flaw or fatal character weakness. In Julius Caesar, for example, the title character is a tragic hero whose fatal flaw is blind ambition.
  2. Conversation between characters is dialogue. Good dialogue moves the plot forward and conveys clues about the characters’ motivations and feelings. In Act III, scene i of Julius Caesar, Portia tells Brutus to tell her what is troubling him in a dialogue filled with love and signs of mutual respect.
  3. Imagery is a highly descriptive language that appeals to one or more of the five senses – touch, taste, hearing, smell, and sight. In Act III, Brutus used powerful imagery to urge the Roman senators to celebrate their liberation from Caesar’s tyranny. “Stoop, Romans, stoop / And let us bathe our hands in Caesar’s blood / Up to the elbows and besmear our swords.”
  4. A metaphor is a figure of speech that makes a comparison between things that are not truly alike. An extended metaphor is a complex comparison that goes on for several lines, comparing the unlike things point by point. In Act I, Scene i, lines 71-74, Caesar is likened to a bird and his followers to feathers.

Act V:

  1. As you may recall, dramatic conflict is the struggle between opposing forces within a play. In Act III, Mark Antony’s display of Caesar’s corpse leads to more dramatic conflict between the angry citizens and the conspirators. Enraged, the citizens march on the homes of Brutus and his allies.
  2. Personification means attributing human characteristics to nonhuman things. In Act I, Casca personifies the ocean by saying, “ … I have seen / Th’ ambitious ocean swell and rage and foam …”
  3. Mood, or atmosphere, refers to the feelings the audience has towards the events of the play. The mood in Act I becomes ominous during the stormy night when Cassius and Casca plot to destroy Cesar.
  4. A word or phrase that could mean more than one thing, or to be taken two ways is a double entendre. In Shakespeare’s time, the medical condition of epilepsy was called the “falling sickness.” When Brutus speculates in Act I that Cesar has this, Cassius tells him, “No, Cesar hath it not, but you, and I, and honest Casca, we have the falling sickness.” Cassius means that he and the others are too willing to fall down before Cesar, therefore, giving him too much power.