Friday, December 12, 2008

You've Got a Friend in Me

Through out one of his many plays, William Shakespeare weaves the theme of friendship throught his many stanzas and lines.

By reading Julius Caesar, I can honestly tell you dear old Bill Shakespeare taught me quite a lesson. Marc Antony was a loyal and genuine friend to the murdered Shakespeare. At the final battle between Antony and Brutus and Co., Marc Antony triumphs. I believe this to be a reward for his dedication to Caesar.
"That I did love thee, Caesar, O, 'tis true!" - Marc Antony
Act 3, Scene 1, Line 213
Antony professes his love for Caesar
However, many of the conspirators in the plot to kill Caesar lay dead at the play's end. I take this to be a punishment for such betrayal. While no one killed them, they died at their own hand.
"Caesar, thou art revenged
Even with the sword that killed thee."- Cassius
Cassius had his servant stab him.

Monday, December 8, 2008

The Antony of Today?

It is well known that Mark Antony, a proven public speaker, possessed a multitude of leadership skills. In a single speech delivered at Julius Caesar's funeral, he rallied a crowd of plebeians. Turning them away from new found allegiance to Brutus, he spoke with enough fire to stir a sloth.
"Have patience, gentle friends. I must not read it.
It is not meet you know how Caesar loved you.
You are not wood, you are not stones, but men.
And, being men, hearing the will of Caesar,
It will inflame you; it will make you mad.
'Tis good you know not that you are his heirs,
For if you should, O, what would come of it?"
-Mark Antony
"Read the will! We'll hear it Antony."
-Fourth Plebeian
Act 3, Scene 2, Lines 150-159
This portion of Mark Antony's speech at Caesar's funeral illustrates the turning point in the attitude of the plebeians formerly revering Brutus Cassius.

Possessing the same skill, Barack Obama could easily be compared to Mark Antony. If you were one who listened to Senator Obama's , it is easy to 'hear' that the president-elect is a talented speaker. And as made clear by his election, the senator shares the same leadership skills possessed by Antony himself.