Name______Date______Hour______
Act II
Study Guide
Julius Caesar
Part I: Vocabulary
Directions: Predict what the italicized words mean based on the word’s context.
1. Brutus: “And let our hearts, as subtle masters do,
Stir up their servants to an act of rage,
And after seem to chide em.”
2. Portia: “Is Brutus sick? And is it physical
To walk unbraced and suck up the humors
Of the dank morning?”
3. Calphurnia: “Let me upon my knee prevail in this.”
4. Caesar: “And these does she apply for warning and
portents
And evils imminent; and on her knee
Hath begged that I will stay at home today.”
Directions: Using a dictionary, define the following vocabulary words.
5. chide
6. dank
7. prevail
8. Taper
9. To spurn
10. Base
11. Augmented
12. Insurrection
13. Affability
14. Redress
15. Constancy
16. Imminent
17. Visage
Directions: Based on the context and definitions of the four vocabulary words for Act II, write one paragraph (5-8) sentences predicting the events of Act II.
Part II: Reading Questions
Scene I:
Brutus’ orchard in Rome.
It is a few hours before dawn on March 15—the ides of March. Brutus, unable
to sleep, walks in his garden. He faces a crucial decision: accept Caesar’s growing
power or kill Caesar and thus end his rule. While considering the problem,
Brutus receives an anonymous letter (from Cassius) suggesting that Brutus take
action against Caesar. Shortly after, Cassius and the conspirators visit Brutus, and
they all agree to assassinate Caesar that day. After the conspirators leave, Brutus’
wife, Portia, asks him to confide what has been troubling him
18. Paraphrase the metaphor used by Brutus to describe Caesar in lines 21-27.
19. What does Brutus fear will happen if Caesar is crowned?
20. According to Brutus, in his metaphor who is like a serpent’s egg and why?
21. How does Lucius further the plot?
22. Internal Conflict: What factors seem to be shaping Brutus’ conscience when he decides that Caesar must die?
23. Brutus says that he has no hard evidence that Caesar is becoming the kind of person who would harm Rome. Given that, do you think that Brutus is being fair? Why or why not?
24. Why do the conspirators cover their faces with their cloaks? What does Brutus think about this?
25. Why does Brutus disagree about taking an oath?
26. Why does Metellus think it would be a good idea for Cicero to join the conspiracy?
27. “He will never follow anything that other men begin” describes which character?
28. Who seems to be in charge of the conspiracy in lines 78-160, Brutus or Cassius? Cite details to support your answer?
29. Line 191: What do Brutus, Cassius, and Trebonius think of Antony?
30. Line 211: According to Decius what sort of man is Caesar? What do YOU think of people like Decius?
31. How is Lucius able to sleep, but Brutus is not? What might Lucius’ability to sleep suggest about his conscience?
32. Why is Portia, Brutus’s wife, worried about him? Cite details to support your answer.
33. How does she prove her strength to Brutus? Cite details to support your answer.
Scene II
Caesar’s house in Rome.
It is now past dawn on March 15. Like everyone else in Rome, Caesar and his wife
have slept badly because of the storm. There is still some lightning and thunder.
Caesar prepares to go to the Capitol; but because of the many threatening omens,
his wife, Calpurnia, insists that he stay home. Caesar agrees, for Calpurnia’s sake.
He changes his mind, however, when Decius, one of the conspirators, persuades
him that he must not seem swayed by his wife’s superstitions. Although Caesar
doesn’t know it, the other conspirators are on their way to his house to make sure he
does not decide to stay at home.
34. Why doesn’t Calphurnia want Caesar to go to the senate?
35. What is Calpurnia’s dream? What does she interpret as the meaning?
36. How does Decius Brutus interpret Calphurnia’s dream?
37. What advice does Calpurnia give Caesar?
38. What does Caesar mean when he says to Calphurnia
“What can be avoided
Whose end is purposed by the mighty gods?”
“Cowards die many times before their deaths’
The valiant never taste of death but once…”
Paraphrase these lines from Caesar.
39. Do you agree with Caesar’s attitude about death? Why or why not?
40. Line 54: “Let me upon my knee, prevail in this” What is Calpurnia doing?
41. Line 99: What reaction from Caeasar is Decius seeking when he refers to “Caesar’s wife”? How is Decius playing on Caesar’s fears?
42. How are lines 126-127 an example of dramatic irony?
Scene III
A street in Rome near the Capitol.
In this brief scene, Caesar has still another chance to avoid the path that
leads to his death. Artemidorus, a supporter of Caesar, has learned about
the plot. He reads a letter he has written to warn Caesar, and then waits
in the street for Caesar to pass by on his way to the Capitol.
43. What does Artemidorus plan to do?
Scene IV
In front of Brutus’ house.
Brutus’ wife, Portia, feels anxious about the conspiracy. She nervously orders
the servant Lucius to go and see what is happening at the Capitol. She next
meets the Soothsayer, who makes her even more anxious as he continues to
predict danger for Caesar
44. Why is Portia so nervous?
45. What does Portia want Lucius to do?
46. What does the soothsayer tell Portia?