Original: But yesterday the word of Caesar might
Modern: Just yesterday, Caesar’s command could

Original: Have stood against the world; now lies he there.
Modern: Have defied the entire world; now he lies dead there.

Original: And none so poor to do him reverence.
Modern: And no one is lowly enough to show him respect anymore.

Original: O masters, if I were disposed to stir
Modern: Oh citizens, if I wanted to provoke

Original: Your hearts and minds to mutiny and rage,
Modern: Your hearts and minds to rebellion and anger,

Original: I should do Brutus wrong, and Cassius wrong,
Modern: I would be doing wrong to Brutus and Cassius,

Original: Who, you all know, are honourable men:
Modern: Who, as you all know, are honorable men:

Original: I will not do them wrong; I rather choose
Modern: I will not wrong them; I would rather choose

Original: To wrong the dead, to wrong myself and you,
Modern: To wrong the dead, to wrong myself and you,

Original: Than I will wrong such honourable men.
Modern: Than to wrong such honorable men.

Original: But here’s a parchment with the seal of Caesar;
Modern: But here’s a document with Caesar’s official seal;

Original: I found it in his closet, ‘tis his will:
Modern: I found it in his private room—it’s his will:

Original: Let but the commons hear this testament—
Modern: If only the common people could hear this will—

Original: Which, pardon me, I do not mean to read—
Modern: Which, forgive me, I don’t intend to read aloud—

Original: And they would go and kiss dead Caesar’s wounds
Modern: And they would go and kiss Caesar’s dead wounds

Original: And dip their napkins in his sacred blood,
Modern: And soak their handkerchiefs in his holy blood,

Original: Yea, beg a hair of him for memory,
Modern: Yes, they’d beg for even a strand of his hair as a keepsake,

Original: And, dying, mention it within their wills,
Modern: And when they die, they’d mention it in their own wills,

Original: Bequeathing it as a rich legacy
Modern: Passing it down as a precious inheritance

Original: Unto their issue.
Modern: To their children.

In Act III, Scene 2 of Julius Caesar, Brutus addresses the Roman citizens in the Forum to explain why he and the other conspirators assassinated Caesar. Speaking in prose, Brutus appeals to the crowd’s reason and patriotism, arguing that while he loved Caesar, he loved Rome more. He claims that Caesar’s ambition would have led to the enslavement of all Romans, and that his death was necessary to preserve their freedom. The citizens initially respond positively to Brutus’s speech, declaring him a noble Roman and even suggesting he should be crowned Caesar’s successor.

After Brutus departs, Mark Antony arrives with Caesar’s body and requests permission to speak at the funeral. Despite Cassius’s objections, Brutus grants this request. Antony then delivers his famous funeral oration, repeatedly referring to Brutus and the conspirators as “honorable men” while systematically undermining their justification for the murder. He presents Caesar’s will, revealing that Caesar left money to every Roman citizen and donated his private gardens to the city for public use. Antony’s skillful rhetoric gradually turns the crowd against the conspirators, transforming their anger from Caesar to Brutus and his fellow assassins. By the end of the scene, the citizens are calling for revenge against Caesar’s killers and have been incited to riot.

Julius Caesar opens in Rome as Caesar returns triumphantly from his victory over Pompey’s sons. Despite warnings from a soothsayer to “beware the Ides of March,” Caesar proceeds with his plans. A group of Roman senators, led by Cassius and including the noble Brutus, grows concerned about Caesar’s increasing power and popularity with the common people. Cassius manipulates Brutus into joining their conspiracy by appealing to his sense of duty to the Roman Republic, convincing him that Caesar’s ambition threatens Rome’s democratic traditions.

On the Ides of March (March 15th), the conspirators successfully assassinate Caesar in the Senate house, with Brutus delivering the final blow. Following the murder, Brutus addresses the Roman citizens, explaining that Caesar’s death was necessary to preserve their freedom. However, Mark Antony, Caesar’s loyal friend, delivers a powerful funeral oration that turns public opinion against the conspirators through his skillful rhetoric, repeatedly calling them “honorable men” while undermining their justifications.

The assassination triggers a civil war as Antony forms the Second Triumvirate with Octavius Caesar (Caesar’s heir) and Lepidus. They pursue the conspirators, who have fled Rome and raised their own armies. The opposing forces meet at the Battle of Philippi, where Cassius and Brutus, leading the republican forces, face defeat. Both conspirators die by suicide—Cassius after mistakenly believing Brutus has been defeated, and Brutus after recognizing their cause is lost. The play concludes with Antony and Octavius honoring Brutus as the one conspirator who acted from noble motives rather than personal envy.