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영어

This paper aims to analyze Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar in terms of political psychology. Political psychology has contributed to our understanding of the political behavior of both political leaders and ordinary people. This play is a political tragedy that deals with the assassination of Julius Caesar by Brutus and his party. Why did Brutus kill Julius Caesar who thinks that Brutus is his favorite? What caused Brutus to conspire with Cassius against Caesar? Was it his idealistic and moral beliefs and character or the political situation with which he was confronted? The theories of political psychology provides us with the available clue to the question. Even though he decided to kill Caesar not for the personal cause but the general good of Rome, he betrays his inner desire to be powerful. Brutus and his party intended to keep a republican form of government in Rome by getting rid of Caesar. However, they did succeed temporarily. The most decisive reasons why the conspiracy failed in the end were not only Brutus’s personality but also his mistake to cope with the political situation. When he took the role of the leader he made a decisive blunder that he permitted Antony to speak the funeral address in front of the plebeians. Since Antony has a good grasp of the attribute of commons he manipulates them into mutinying against Brutus’ party with his political rhetoric. Brutus party lost the support of the commons. As a result the political situation was reversed, so Brutus killed himself. By using concepts of political psychology I attempted to show how and why Brutus’s political behavior has been done. Both his idealistic personality and the political situation account for his political action which led to his tragedy.