Question

Read the excerpt from act 2, scene 1, of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. BRUTUS. It must be by his death: and for my part I know no personal cause to spurn at him But for the general. He would be crowned: How that might change his nature, there's the question. It is the bright day that brings forth the adder, And that craves wary walking. Crown him that, And then I grant we put a sting in him That at his will he may do danger with. Th' abuse of greatness is when it disjoins Remorse from power. And to speak truth of Caesar, I have not known when his affections swayed More than his reason. But 'tis a common proof That lowliness is young ambition’s ladder, Whereto the climber-upward turns his face; But when he once attains the upmost round, He then unto the ladder turns his back, Looks in the clouds, scorning the base degrees By which he did ascend. So Caesar may. Then lest he may, prevent. And since the quarrel Will bear no colour for the thing he is, Fashion it thus: that what he is, augmented, Would run to these and these extremities; And therefore think him as a serpent's egg Which, hatched, would as his kind grow mischievous, And kill him in the shell. What moral dilemma does this excerpt express?

Answer 1

Answer: C. Brutus must decide whether to help in the plot to kill Caesar.

In this excerpt, Brutus is deciding whether to help in the plot to kill Caesar. On the one hand, Brutus argues that he likes Caesar, and that he believes him to be competent and responsible. He has never seen him be unreasonable. On the other hand, Caesar wants more power, and this power could corrupt him and turn him into a tyrant. He concludes that it is better to get rid of Caesar before he gets more power and begins to cause harm to Rome.