Question

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

CASSIUS - Messala, This is my birthday, as this very day Was Cassius born. Give me thy hand, Messala:

1. After the extract, Cassius narrates two contradicting sights he saw. What were they? What does he feel the sights symbolize? (Recalling & Understanding)
2. Give the meanings of the lines that follow the extract' As we were sickly prey their shadows seem/A canopy most fatal (Understanding)
3. What character traits of Cassius are seen? How does he appear to have a different bent of mind from what he had earlier in the play? (Understanding & Analysis)
4. What philosophy had Cassius followed earlier? Why does he discard this philosophy? What does this show of Cassius? (Recalling, Understanding & Analysis)
5. State the reasons for Cassius' downfall. (Analysis)

Answer 1

1. Cassius says that earlier two mighty eagles followed their army from Sardis and fed from the soldiers’ hands. Later, the eagles disappeared and were replaced by ravens, crows and kites. He feels that these birds of prey symbolize approaching death and defeat.
2. ‘As we were sickly prey their shadows seem/A canopy most fatal’ means that the birds circle over the soldiers as if they are waiting for them to die. Their shadows seem like a deadly covering over the army.
3. Cassius appears anxious, superstitious and fearful. Earlier in the play, he was bold, practical and sceptical of supernatural signs. Now, before the battle, he begins to interpret omens seriously.
4. Earlier, Cassius followed the Epicurean philosophy and did not believe that signs and omens controlled human life. He discards this belief because the strange events before the battle disturb him deeply. This shows that fear and pressure have weakened his earlier confidence.
5. Cassius’ downfall is caused by several factors: his involvement in Caesar’s murder, the failure of the conspiracy, poor military decisions, the growing power of Antony and Octavius, and his own loss of confidence. His decision to accept Brutus’ strategy of marching to Philippi also contributes to his defeat.