Cicero: The Great Orator Who Stays Out of the Conspiracy
First appears: Act 1, Scene 2
Cicero appears twice and has very few lines, but his absence from the conspiracy matters more than his presence. Cassius considers recruiting him. His name would give the plot credibility across Rome. Brutus refuses: Cicero 'will never follow anything / That other men begin.' He is right. Cicero is too independent, too senior, and too careful to be useful to a group that needs followers, not rivals.
In Act 1, Scene 3 he meets Casca during the storm and is notably calm where Casca is rattled. His response to the night's strange omens is the play's most measured: 'Men may construe things after their fashion, / Clean from the purpose of the things themselves.' He says it and leaves.
He is put to death on Antony's orders after the assassination, which is reported in Act 4, Scene 3. His decision to stay out of the conspiracy did not protect him. The historical Cicero wrote a series of speeches attacking Antony, which is the real reason Antony had him killed. Shakespeare does not dramatise this, but it is the context behind his death.
Key Scenes
Famous Quotes
“Indeed, it is a strange-disposed time. But men may construe things after their fashion, clean from the purpose of the things themselves.”
Cicero — Act 1, Scene 3