Das Brütus: A Tragic HeroIn The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, Brutus is the epitome of a tragic hero. Webster's Dictionary defines a tragic hero as "any person, especially a man, admired for courage, nobility, etc....in a serious play whose ending is unhappy" (277-626). This textual definition is, however, useless in an analytical essay. The idea of ​​a tragic hero comes from Aristotle, who believed that a tragic hero involved a high-ranking character suffering a downfall caused by one or two character flaws. In this story, Brutus is a trusted friend of Caesar, but through a series of bad choices, he betrays that trust by witnessing Caesar's assassination, even going so far as to deliver the death blow. Brutus realizes his mistake in his final moments and the audience feels sympathy for this renegade protagonist. The specific sets of attributes that define a tragic hero (character flaw, downfall, moment of clarity, etc.) culminate in Brutus, who Shakespeare used to send a clear message about people. The characterization of a tragic hero should not be a disastrous assortment of social ills. ; he or she should be a good person with only one imperfection. In Julius Caesar, Brutus has poor reasoning skills. When asked if he would like Caesar to be king, he replies, “I would not, yet I like him” (Shakespeare 892). Caesar is a demanding character, even among his friends, so we can assume that Brutus is regularly influenced by Caesar. Conversely, Brutus does not want the people to be victims of Caesar's will. Brutus justifies the murder of his friend by saying, “Consider him then as a serpent's egg/that would hatch, grow as his kind grew mischievous/and kill him in his shell” (Shakespeare 911). Bru...... middle of paper ...... not only makes him seem kind and noble; he would seem to be such an ideal citizen that most men would not meet those standards. Brutus' final downfall by one or two negative traits would have shocked the intended audience and perhaps affected the way they viewed themselves, making Brutus a very effective character. Shakespeare created a slightly flawed character with a moment of clarity followed by a violent death, and he did this to inform the audience of a major problem with the ethics of his time. The noble Brutus was destroyed by a handful of minute details in his own character. This alarming message is why this piece is still being studied. Works Cited “Heroes”. Def. 5b. Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989.Shakespeare, William. Julius Caesar. Austin: Holt, 2007, “Tragedy.” Def. 5b. Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary. 2nd edition. 1989.