### Julius Caesar: Extract Discussion

#### Extract from Act 1, Scene 1

*Flavius: Hence! home, you idle creatures, get you home. Is this a holiday? What, know you not, Being mechanical, you ought not walk Upon a labouring day without the sign Of your profession? Speak, what trade art thou?*

*First Citizen: Why, sir, a carpenter.*

*Marullus: Where is thy leather apron and thy rule? What dost thou with thy best apparel on? You, sir, what trade are you?*

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#### Questions & Answers

**1) Who are Flavius and Marullus? Where are they and what are they doing there? Why?**  

- Flavius and Marullus are Roman officials. They're on the streets, asking why commoners aren't working. They're upset that people are celebrating Caesar's return instead of working.

**2) Who are the "idle creatures"? Why are they called so? What makes the speaker ask if it is a holiday?**  

- The "idle creatures" are the commoners not working. They're called "idle" because they aren't doing their jobs. The speaker wonders if it's a holiday since people are usually off work on special days.

**3) Give the meaning of the following:**  

  - **a) Being mechanical**: Being a laborer or worker  

  - **b) A labouring day**: A regular workday  

  - **c) Sign of your profession**: Something that shows what your job is, like a tool or uniform  

**Example from Extract:** Leather apron is a sign of a carpenter's profession.

**4) Whom does Marullus address in the last line of the extract? What reply does he get? How does he react to the reply?**  

- Marullus talks to a citizen and learns he's a carpenter. He reacts by questioning why the man isn't in his work clothes.

**5) Giving an example each, show how Flavius and Marullus are men in authority. Who among them do you think exercises greater authority? Why?**  

- Both Flavius and Marullus show authority by questioning and scolding the commoners. It's hard to say who has more authority, but both are clearly in positions of power.

Contextual Questions and Analysis on Five Key Passages from Act 1, Scene 1 of 'Julius Caesar

 Below are five longer passages from Act 1, Scene 1 of "Julius Caesar," each accompanied by five contextual questions and their answers.

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### Passage 1:

"You blocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things!  

O you hard hearts, you cruel men of Rome,  

Knew you not Pompey?"

#### Questions:

1. Who is speaking these lines?

2. To whom are these lines directed?

3. What is the speaker’s emotional state?

4. Why does the speaker mention Pompey?

5. What metaphor is used for the crowd?

#### Answers:

1. Marullus

2. The commoners

3. Angry and frustrated

4. To criticize the crowd’s fickle loyalty

5. Blocks and stones

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### Passage 2:

"If you do find them deck'd with ceremonies.  

...  

These growing feathers pluck'd from Caesar's wing  

Will make him fly an ordinary pitch,  

Who else would soar above the view of men  

And keep us all in servile fearfulness."

#### Questions:

1. Who is speaking?

2. What is meant by "deck'd with ceremonies"?

3. What is the implication of "growing feathers"?

4. What does "fly an ordinary pitch" mean?

5. What is the speaker’s intent?

#### Answers:

1. Flavius

2. Decorated for the celebration

3. Caesar's growing power

4. Be reduced to a normal level of influence

5. To diminish Caesar's growing influence

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### Passage 3:

"Go, go, good countrymen, and, for this fault,  

Assemble all the poor men of your sort;  

Draw them to Tiber banks, and weep your tears  

Into the channel, till the lowest stream  

Do kiss the most exalted shores of all."

#### Questions:

1. Who is speaking these lines?

2. What "fault" is being referenced?

3. What does "Tiber banks" symbolize?

4. Why should they "weep your tears"?

5. What is meant by "most exalted shores"?

#### Answers:

1. Marullus

2. The commoners’ fickleness

3. A place for contemplation or remorse

4. To atone for their fickle loyalty

5. The greatness of Rome

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### Passage 4:

"Is this a holiday? What! know you not,  

Being mechanical, you ought not walk  

Upon a labouring day without the sign  

Of your profession?"

#### Questions:

1. Who is speaking?

2. To whom are these questions asked?

3. What does “mechanical” refer to?

4. What does “labouring day” mean?

5. What does “sign of your profession” signify?

#### Answers:

1. Flavius

2. The commoners

3. Working-class people

4. A regular working day

5. Tools or symbols representing their trade

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### Passage 5:

"Wherefore rejoice? What conquest brings he home?  

What tributaries follow him to Rome,  

To grace in captive bonds his chariot-wheels?"

#### Questions:

1. Who is asking these questions?

2. Who are these questions directed at?

3. What is being questioned?

4. What is meant by "captive bonds"?

5. What is the tone of the speaker?

#### Answers:

1. Marullus

2. The crowd

3. The reasons for celebrating Caesar’s return

4. Prisoners taken in war

5. Sceptical and confrontational

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Exploring Key Passages in Act 1, Scene 1 of Julius Caesar: A Brief Analysis

 1. Passage: "You blocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things!"

Explanation: Marullus is expressing his frustration with the commoners for their fickleness. He compares them to inanimate objects to emphasize their lack of judgment in celebrating Caesar, whom he considers a threat to Roman liberty.

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2. Passage: "O you hard hearts, you cruel men of Rome,
Knew you not Pompey?"
Explanation: Marullus scolds the crowd for forgetting Pompey, their former hero, so quickly. He is pointing out their inconsistency in loyalty and questioning their sense of history and respect.

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3. Passage: "When could they say till now, that talk'd of Rome,
That her wide walls encompass'd but one man?"
Explanation: Marullus indicates that Rome has never been about just one man, aiming a criticism at those who are making Caesar into a single focal point of Roman life.

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4. Passage: "Go, go, good countrymen, and, for this fault,
Assemble all the poor men of your sort;
Draw them to Tiber banks, and weep your tears
Into the channel, till the lowest stream
Do kiss the most exalted shores of all."
Explanation: Marullus is using irony to instruct the commoners to weep at the Tiber River, suggesting that their foolishness is so great that even their tears could raise the river's level.

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5. Passage: "Disrobe the images
If you do find them deck'd with ceremonies."
Explanation: Flavius instructs to remove the decorations from statues of Caesar. This is a rebellious act against Caesar's rising power and an attempt to diminish the celebrations and public affection for him.

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These passages capture the tension and diverging attitudes towards Caesar's growing influence in Rome.