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Act 3
Act 3 scene 1
Caesar reaches the senate but is surrounded by the conspirators.
Caesar is stabbed by all the conspirators, finally by Brutus.
Antony meets the murderers and is given permission to speak at the funeral of Caesar.
This is the pivotal scene of the play. The scenes in both previous Acts have been building to this moment and it provides the motives for the actions in the rest of the play.
Caesar is surrounded by the conspirators – Artemidorus and the soothsayer cannot get close to him to deliver their warnings. The staging of this opening part of the scene is interesting. There are two groups here – Caesar is at the centre of one and the conspirators form the other. As the dialogue continues the conspirators surround Caesar and slowly reveal their daggers.
Popilius Lena wishes the conspirators well and Brutus and Cassius exchange a few tense words – Cassius even worries that news of the assassination has got out.
As the conspirators close in on Caesar he makes two speeches – lines 35-48 & 58-74. He shows himself to be arrogant here. When Metellus Cimber kneels in front of Caesar, begging for his brother, Caesar upbraids him for begging. He says that he will ‘spurn thee like a cur out of my way’. He also says ‘Caesar doth no wrong’ – by...
