Shakespeare presents Cassius as a passionate man who is interested in the end, but not the means; he is jealous and hostile towards Caesar; and he is a manipulator who craves power. One can easily see the contrast in the passionate character of Cassuis compared to a Brutus who is both rational and philosophical.
He is passionate about getting rid of Caesar by masterminding the conspiracy and motivating the others to join. He displays a personal hatred for Caesar when he shows Brutus that Caesar is weak and inferior since he cannot swim in the River Tiber after he cries ”Help me, Cassius, or I sink!.” (1.2.111) More so; he hates him because Caesar is deaf in one ear; once had a fever and cried “As a sick girl”, (1.2.128) and suffers from epilepsy. The Irony that Shakespeare portrays here is not just that Cassius is jealous, but also, the fact that as much as he tries hard to demean and belittle Caesar, he ends up revealing his own envious and fickle mindedness..
Cassius is also a manipulator who uses different refined methods to get to his ultimate goal of assassinating Caesar. He is able to study his prey to figure out a suitable style of winning him over. For example, over a number of days, he plants forged letters (supposedly written by concerned Roman citizens) in Brutus home.He uses Cinna thus “lay it in the praetor’s chair, where Brtus may find it and throw this in at his window.” (2.3.142-145) In this clear manipulation, or dramatic irony, Brutus thinks that he has arrived at the correct decision to join the conspiracy, and so he decides that Caesar must die. Another example of his refined manipulation is when he deceives Casca by telling him that a fearful storm is a sign of displeasure over Caesar from the gods; he emotionally appeals to Casca to join him in taking immediate action against Caesar, before worse portents follow. In Act I Scene II, Caesar recognizes this manipulative quality in Cassius by merely observing him. Caesar states, "I do not know the man I should avoid So soon as that spare Cassius." (1.2.201) He realizes that Cassius is a cynical and dangerous man, who "looks quite through the deeds of men." Caesar recognizes Cassius' most important skill – his manipulating trait.
Cassius’ passionate hostility towards Caesar exposes his manipulative personality as well as becloud his poor judgment as a politician. After Brutus refuses to back off over the issue of his taking bribes and making an excuse for it, he does not resolve it, but quickly changes the subject. He also allows Antony to speak during Caesar’s funeral causing the mob to turn against him and the other conspirators. Finally, he also does not use judgment when he agrees with Brutus to fight the battle at Philippi. The result of his passionate hatred for Caesar, and manipulations is death because he chooses to kill himself like Brutus, instead of submitting to be captured by the Triumvirates and perhaps be dragged through the streets of Rome.
He is passionate about getting rid of Caesar by masterminding the conspiracy and motivating the others to join. He displays a personal hatred for Caesar when he shows Brutus that Caesar is weak and inferior since he cannot swim in the River Tiber after he cries ”Help me, Cassius, or I sink!.” (1.2.111) More so; he hates him because Caesar is deaf in one ear; once had a fever and cried “As a sick girl”, (1.2.128) and suffers from epilepsy. The Irony that Shakespeare portrays here is not just that Cassius is jealous, but also, the fact that as much as he tries hard to demean and belittle Caesar, he ends up revealing his own envious and fickle mindedness..
Cassius is also a manipulator who uses different refined methods to get to his ultimate goal of assassinating Caesar. He is able to study his prey to figure out a suitable style of winning him over. For example, over a number of days, he plants forged letters (supposedly written by concerned Roman citizens) in Brutus home.He uses Cinna thus “lay it in the praetor’s chair, where Brtus may find it and throw this in at his window.” (2.3.142-145) In this clear manipulation, or dramatic irony, Brutus thinks that he has arrived at the correct decision to join the conspiracy, and so he decides that Caesar must die. Another example of his refined manipulation is when he deceives Casca by telling him that a fearful storm is a sign of displeasure over Caesar from the gods; he emotionally appeals to Casca to join him in taking immediate action against Caesar, before worse portents follow. In Act I Scene II, Caesar recognizes this manipulative quality in Cassius by merely observing him. Caesar states, "I do not know the man I should avoid So soon as that spare Cassius." (1.2.201) He realizes that Cassius is a cynical and dangerous man, who "looks quite through the deeds of men." Caesar recognizes Cassius' most important skill – his manipulating trait.
Cassius’ passionate hostility towards Caesar exposes his manipulative personality as well as becloud his poor judgment as a politician. After Brutus refuses to back off over the issue of his taking bribes and making an excuse for it, he does not resolve it, but quickly changes the subject. He also allows Antony to speak during Caesar’s funeral causing the mob to turn against him and the other conspirators. Finally, he also does not use judgment when he agrees with Brutus to fight the battle at Philippi. The result of his passionate hatred for Caesar, and manipulations is death because he chooses to kill himself like Brutus, instead of submitting to be captured by the Triumvirates and perhaps be dragged through the streets of Rome.