Question

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

CAESAR - Good friends, go in, and taste some wine with me; And we, like friends, will straightway go together. BRUTUS - [Aside] That every like is not the same, O Caesar, The heart of Brutus yearns to think upon!

1. What are the ‘horrid sights’ that Calpurnia mentions in this scene? (Recalling)
2. Where are Caesar and Calpurnia now? (Recalling)
3. What does Calpurnia mean by “ceremonies”? What is the main cause of her fear? (Understanding)
4. How does Caesar react to Calpurnia’s warnings? What does he ask his servants to do? (Understanding & Analysis)
5. How does Caesar show his arrogance about fearing death? (Analysis)

Answer 1

1. The ‘horrid sights’ mentioned by Calpurnia include a lioness giving birth in the streets, graves opening and giving up the dead, fierce warriors fighting in the clouds, blood falling on the Capitol, and ghosts shrieking in the streets.
2. Caesar and Calpurnia are at Caesar’s house in Rome, early in the morning on the Ides of March.
3. By ‘ceremonies’, Calpurnia means omens and supernatural signs. Her main fear is caused by her terrible dream and the strange events reported during the night, which she believes warn of danger to Caesar.
4. Caesar initially dismisses Calpurnia’s fears and says that such signs concern the whole world, not only him. However, he asks his servants to send the priests to perform a sacrifice and find out whether the omens are favourable.
5. Caesar shows his arrogance by declaring that ‘Cowards die many times before their deaths;/The valiant never taste of death but once.’ He presents himself as fearless and believes that death should not be feared because it is unavoidable.