Home > Julius Caesar Text > Act II, Scene I - Page 2

CASSIUS:

But what of Cicero? Shall we sound him?
I think he will stand very strong with us.

CASSIUS:

But what about Cicero? Shall we check him out?
I think he’ll stand with us very strongly.

CASCA:

Let us not leave him out.

CASCA:

Let’s not leave him out.

CINNA:

No, by no means.

CINNA:

No, by no means.

METELLUS:

O, let us have him, for his silver hairs(150)
Will purchase us a good opinion,
And buy men's voices to commend our deeds.
It shall be said his judgement ruled our hands;
Our youths and wildness shall no whit appear,
But all be buried in his gravity.(155)

METELLUS:

O, let’s have him! Because his silver hairs
Will also give us a good opinion with the people
And buy men's votes to commend our deeds.
It shall be said that his judgment ruled our hands;
Our youths and wildness won’t appear at all,
But all be buried in his seriousness.

BRUTUS:

O, name him not; let us not break with him,
For he will never follow anything
That other men begin.

BRUTUS:

O, don’t ask him! Let’s not break with him,
Because he’ll never follow anything
That other men begin.

CASSIUS:

Then leave him out.

CASSIUS:

Then leave him out.

CASCA:

Indeed he is not fit.(160)

CASCA:

Indeed, he’s not fit.

DECIUS:

Shall no man else be touch'd but only Caesar?

DECIUS:

Shall any other man be killed besides Caesar?

CASSIUS:

Decius, well urged. I think it is not meet
Mark Antony, so well beloved of Caesar,
Should outlive Caesar. We shall find of him
A shrewd contriver; and you know his means,(165)
If he improve them, may well stretch so far
As to annoy us all, which to prevent,
Let Antony and Caesar fall together.

CASSIUS:

Decius, well asked.—I think it isn’t fair that
Mark Antony, whom Caesar loves so well,
Should outlive Caesar. We shall find that he is
A shrewd schemer, and you know his ways.
If he improves them, he may well stretch so far
As to annoy us all. To prevent this,
Let Antony and Caesar die together.

BRUTUS:

Our course will seem too bloody, Caius Cassius,
To cut the head off and then hack the limbs(170)
Like wrath in death and envy afterwards;
For Antony is but a limb of Caesar.
Let us be sacrificers, but not butchers, Caius.
We all stand up against the spirit of Caesar,
And in the spirit of men there is no blood.(175)
O, that we then could come by Caesar's spirit,
And not dismember Caesar! But, alas,
Caesar must bleed for it! And, gentle friends,
Let's kill him boldly, but not wrathfully;
Let's carve him as a dish fit for the gods,(180)
Not hew him as a carcass fit for hounds;
And let our hearts, as subtle masters do,
Stir up their servants to an act of rage
And after seem to chide 'em. This shall make
Our purpose necessary and not envious,(185)
Which so appearing to the common eyes,
We shall be call'd purgers, not murderers.
And for Mark Antony, think not of him,
For he can do no more than Caesar's arm
When Caesar's head is off.(190)

BRUTUS:

Our plan will seem too bloody, Caius Cassius,
To cut off the head, and then hack off the arms and legs,
Like anger in death and jealousy afterwards,
Because Antony is but a limb of Caesar.
Let’s be sacrificers, but not butchers, Caius.
We all stand up against the spirit of Caesar,
And, in the spirit of men, there is no blood.
O, that we could come by Caesar's spirit then
And not dismember Caesar! But, alas,
Caesar must bleed for it! And, gentle friends,
Let's kill him boldly, but not angrily.
Let's carve him as a dish fit for the gods,
Not chop him into pieces as a carcass fit for hounds;
And let our hearts, as subtle gentlemen do,
Stir up their servants to an act of rage,
And after seem to scold them. This shall label
Our purpose as necessary and not jealous,
Which appearing to be respectful to common eyes,
We shall be called purgers, not murderers.
And for Mark Antony, don’t think abut him,
Because he can do no more than Caesar's arm can do
When Caesar's head is cut off.

CASSIUS:

Yet I fear him,
For in the ingrafted love he bears to Caesar—

CASSIUS:

I still fear him,
Because in the acquired love he bears to Caesar—

BRUTUS:

Alas, good Cassius, do not think of him.
If he love Caesar, all that he can do
Is to himself, take thought and die for Caesar.(195)
And that were much he should, for he is given
To sports, to wildness, and much company.

BRUTUS:

Alas, good Cassius, don’t think of him.
If he loves Caesar, all that he can do
Is what he can do to himself — think and die for Caesar.
And that’s as much he should do, because he’s given
To sports, to wildness, and to having a lot of company.

TREBONIUS:

There is no fear in him, let him not die,
For he will live and laugh at this hereafter.

TREBONIUS:

There nothing to fear from him. Don’t let him die,
Because he’ll live, and laugh at this dead later.

Clock strikes.

BRUTUS:

Peace, count the clock.(200)

BRUTUS:

Quiet! Listen to the clock.

CASSIUS:

The clock hath stricken three.

CASSIUS:

The clock has struck three.

TREBONIUS:

'Tis time to part.

TREBONIUS:

It’s time to leave.

CASSIUS:

But it is doubtful yet
Whether Caesar will come forth today or no,
For he is superstitious grown of late,(205)
Quite from the main opinion he held once
Of fantasy, of dreams and ceremonies.
It may be these apparent prodigies,
The unaccustom'd terror of this night,
And the persuasion of his augurers(210)
May hold him from the Capitol today.

CASSIUS:

But it is still doubtful
Whether Caesar will come out today or not,
Because he’s grown superstitious lately,
Quite a distance from the main opinion he once held
About fantasy, dreams, and ceremonies.
It may be these apparent signs,
The unaccustomed weather of this night,
And persuasion of his men who tell the future
May keep him from the Capitol today.

DECIUS:

Never fear that. If he be so resolved,
I can o'ersway him, for he loves to hear
That unicorns may be betray'd with trees,
And bears with glasses, elephants with holes,(215)
Lions with toils, and men with flatterers;
But when I tell him he hates flatterers,
He says he does, being then most flattered.
Let me work;
For I can give his humor the true bent,(220)
And I will bring him to the Capitol.

DECIUS:

Don’t be afraid of that. If he decides not to come,
I can change his mind, because he loves to hear
That unicorns may be betrayed with trees,
And bears with glasses, elephants with holes,
Lions with toils, and men with flatterers.
But when I tell him he hates flatterers,
He says he does, being then most flattered.
I’ll work on this,
Because I can give his state of mind true purpose,
And I’ll bring him to the Capitol.

CASSIUS:

Nay, we will all of us be there to fetch him.

CASSIUS:

No, we’ll all be there to go get him.

BRUTUS:

By the eighth hour. Is that the uttermost?

BRUTUS:

By eight o’clock. Is that the latest?

CINNA:

Be that the uttermost, and fail not then.

CINNA:

Let that be the latest, and be on time.

METELLUS:

Caius Ligarius doth bear Caesar hard,(225)
Who rated him for speaking well of Pompey.
I wonder none of you have thought of him.

METELLUS:

Caius Ligarius doesn’t like Caesar,
Who berated him for speaking well of Pompey.
I wonder why none of you’ve thought about him.

BRUTUS:

Now, good Metellus, go along by him.
He loves me well, and I have given him reasons;
Send him but hither, and I'll fashion him.(230)

BRUTUS:

Now, good Metellus, go ask him.
He likes me very well, and I have given him cause to;
Just send him here, and I'll train him.

CASSIUS:

The morning comes upon's. We'll leave you, Brutus,
And, friends, disperse yourselves, but all remember
What you have said and show yourselves true Romans.

CASSIUS:

The morning is coming. We'll leave you, Brutus;—
And, friends, scatter yourselves, but all remember
What you’ve said, and show yourselves to be true Romans.

BRUTUS:

Good gentlemen, look fresh and merrily;
Let not our looks put on our purposes,(235)
But bear it as our Roman actors do,
With untired spirits and formal constancy.
And so, good morrow to you every one.

Exeunt [all but] Brutus.

Boy! Lucius! Fast asleep? It is no matter.
Enjoy the honey-heavy dew of slumber;(240)
Thou hast no figures nor no fantasies,
Which busy care draws in the brains of men;
Therefore thou sleep'st so sound.

BRUTUS:

Good gentlemen, look fresh and merry.
Don’t let our plan show in your faces,
But carry it as our Roman actors do,
With untired spirits and formal constancy.
And so, good morning to every one of you.—

Boy! Lucius!—Fast asleep? It’s not important;
Enjoy your honey-sweet sleep.
You haven’t got dreams or fantasies
Which busy care draws in the brains of men.
For that reason, you sleep so soundly.

Enter Portia.

PORTIA:

Brutus, my lord!

PORTIA:

Brutus, my lord!

BRUTUS:

Portia, what mean you? Wherefore rise you now?(245)
It is not for your health thus to commit
Your weak condition to the raw cold morning.

BRUTUS:

Portia, what are you doing? Why are you up now?
It isn’t healthy to expose
Your weak condition to the raw-cold morning like this.

PORTIA:

Nor for yours neither. Y'have ungently, Brutus,
Stole from my bed; and yesternight at supper
You suddenly arose and walk'd about,(250)
Musing and sighing, with your arms across;
And when I ask'd you what the matter was,
You stared upon me with ungentle looks.
I urged you further; then you scratch'd your head,
And too impatiently stamp'd with your foot.(255)
Yet I insisted, yet you answer'd not,
But with an angry wafture of your hand
Gave sign for me to leave you. So I did,
Fearing to strengthen that impatience
Which seem'd too much enkindled, and withal(260)
Hoping it was but an effect of humor,
Which sometime hath his hour with every man.
It will not let you eat, nor talk, nor sleep,
And, could it work so much upon your shape
As it hath much prevail'd on your condition,(265)
I should not know you, Brutus. Dear my lord,
Make me acquainted with your cause of grief.

PORTIA:

Not for you either. Brutus, you've stolen from my bed
Unkindly. Last night, at supper,
You suddenly arose, and walked about,
Musing and sighing, with your arms crossed;
And, when I asked you what the matter was,You stared at me with angry looks.
I asked you again, then you scratched your head,
And stamped your foot very impatiently.
Still I insisted; still you didn’t answer,
But, with an angry wave of your hand,
You gave me a sign to leave you. So I did,
Fearing that I might make you more impatient
When you seemed already fired up, and besides,
I was hoping it was just a bad mood,
Which sometimes hits every man.
It won’t let you eat, or talk, or sleep;
And, if it could affect your face and body
So much that it conquers your spirit,
I shouldn’t know you, Brutus. My dear lord,
Please tell me the cause of your grief.

BRUTUS:

I am not well in health, and that is all.

BRUTUS:

I’m not feeling well, and that’s all.

PORTIA:

Brutus is wise, and, were he not in health,
He would embrace the means to come by it.(270)

PORTIA:

Brutus is wise, and, if he were not in good health,
He would do something about it.

BRUTUS:

Why, so I do. Good Portia, go to bed.

BRUTUS:

Why, I do. Good Portia, go ahead to bed.

PORTIA:

Is Brutus sick, and is it physical
To walk unbraced and suck up the humors
Of the dank morning? What, is Brutus sick,
And will he steal out of his wholesome bed(275)
To dare the vile contagion of the night
And tempt the rheumy and unpurged air
To add unto his sickness? No, my Brutus,
You have some sick offense within your mind,
Which by the right and virtue of my place(280)
I ought to know of; and, upon my knees,
I charm you, by my once commended beauty,
By all your vows of love and that great vow
Which did incorporate and make us one,
That you unfold to me, yourself, your half,(285)
Why you are heavy, and what men tonight
Have had resort to you; for here have been
Some six or seven, who did hide their faces
Even from darkness.

PORTIA:

Is Brutus sick? And is it some kind of medicine
To walk undressed and inhale the vapors
Of a damp morning? What, is Brutus sick,
And will he steal out of his wholesome bed
To challenge the evil diseases of the night,
And tempt the thick and unclean air
To add to his sickness? No, my Brutus;
You’ve got some sick worry on your mind,
Which, by the right and virtue of my place,
I ought to know of, and, on my knees,
I order you, by my once commended beauty,
By all your vows of love, and that marriage vow
Which joined us and made us one,
That you tell me, yourself, your half of me,
Why you’re so depressed, and what men
Have come to you tonight, because there have been
Some six or seven here, who hid their faces
Even from darkness.