The Tragic Fall of a HeroIn The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, Brutus is depicted as a tragic hero. He believes he can change the Roman Empire by killing Caesar and granting the Romans freedom from a potential monarchy. Cassius comes to Brutus with the intention of preventing Caesar from ascending the throne. At first, Brutus is against it. Then Cassius changes his mind by lying to him and persuading him with false letters supposedly from other Romans. Ultimately, Brutus is the tragic hero because his actions cause him to lose any higher status; they also put him on the path to his downfall and death. Brutus has serious flaws, he loses power and respect, and his readers eventually show sympathy for him. The first characteristic of Brutus that makes him a tragic hero is his flawed personality. Brutus is an honorable and trustworthy man, even to the most respectable Romans. However, it is easily manipulated. Caesar was a friend to him and never believed that his kind friend would literally stab him in the back. Brutus never wanted to participate in the duplicity of the assassination. Unfortunately, he is a flexible man and Cassius knew how to make him the leader of the conspiracy. “Brutus and Caesar: What must this “Caesar” contain? / Why should this name be more pronounced than yours? / … On what meat does our Caesar feed, / That he has become so great? (893). Brutus listens to Cassius, who only wants Caesar murdered because he envies him. Cassius has no legitimate reason to truly hate Caesar. Brutus does not realize this. He also doesn't see how much Cassius is deceiving him. “If I were Brutus and he Cassius, / He should not please me. I will do it this night, / In many hands, at his windows throw, / As if...... in the middle of a paper ...... all the slaves, that Caesar had died, to live all / Free men? » (948). Brutus' horrible act was reprehensible but selfless. He would never have killed a friend, or anyone else, if he didn't believe his intentions were noble. “He, only in an honest general thought / And good common to all, made one. / His life was sweet, and the elements / So mingled with him that Nature could rise up / And say to the world: “He was a man! » » (998). In conclusion, Brutus is the tragic hero of the play. He causes his own downfall and disappearance by participating in the plot. His flaws, his fall and his understandable reasoning make him the tragic hero. Ultimately, although he did not deserve scorn, Brutus deserved to pay the ultimate price for such a horrible and noble act. Orlando: Holt, Winston, Rinehart, 2007.