Yet, countrymen, O, yet hold up your heads!
Yet, countrymen, O, yet hold up your heads!
Yet, countrymen, O, yet hold up your heads!
yet, countrymen, o, yet hold up your heads
What bastard doth not? Who will go with me?
I will proclaim my name about the field.
I am the son of Marcus Cato, ho!
A foe to tyrants, and my country’s friend.
I am the son of Marcus Cato, ho!
What bastard does not? Who will go with me? I will proclaim my name about the field. I am the son of Marcus Cato, ho! A foe to tyrants, and my country’s friend. I am the son of Marcus Cato, ho!
What bastard doesn't? Who will go with me? I will proclaim my name about the field. I'm the son of Marcus Cato, ho! A foe to tyrants, and my country’s friend. I'm the son of Marcus Cato, ho!
what bastard doth not
And I am Brutus, Marcus Brutus, I;
Brutus, my country’s friend; know me for Brutus!
And I am Brutus, Marcus Brutus, I; Brutus, my country’s friend; know me for Brutus!
And I'm Brutus, Marcus Brutus, I; Brutus, my country’s friend; know me for Brutus!
and i am brutus, marcus brutus, i; brutus, my country’s friend; know me for brutus
O young and noble Cato, art thou down?
Why, now thou diest as bravely as Titinius,
And mayst be honour’d, being Cato’s son.
O young and noble Cato, are you down? Why, now you diest as bravely as Titinius, And mayst be honour’d, being Cato’s son.
O young and noble Cato, are you down? Why, now you diest as bravely as Titinius, And mayst be honour’d, being Cato’s son.
o young and noble cato, art thou down
Yield, or thou diest.
Yield, or you diest.
Yield, or you diest.
yield, or thou diest
Only I yield to die:
There is so much that thou wilt kill me straight;
Only I yield to die: There is so much that you will kill me straight;
Only I yield to die: There is so much that you will kill me straight;
only i yield to die: there is so much that thou wilt kill me straight;
Lucilius's decision to announce himself as Brutus Marcus is one of those moments Shakespeare doesn't explain and doesn't need to. No one tells him to do it. He sees the soldiers closing in, sees Cato fall, and steps forward and makes the claim. The risk is absolute: if they believe him, he'll be killed or tortured as the prime conspirator. He's not Brutus and gains nothing from pretending to be him except time — time for Brutus to escape, to die on his own terms, 'like himself,' as Lucilius says. When Antony discovers the ruse, his response is unexpectedly generous: 'a prize no less in worth.' This is Antony at his best — recognizing that real loyalty is rarer and more valuable than captured enemies. He keeps Lucilius safe. And historically, Lucilius did serve under Antony after Philippi. Shakespeare honors the fact. Some loyalty survives the wars that test it.
We must not. A noble prisoner!
We must not. A noble prisoner!
We must not. A noble prisoner!
we must not
Room, ho! Tell Antony, Brutus is ta’en.
Room, ho! Tell Antony, Brutus is ta’en.
Room, ho! Tell Antony, Brutus is ta’en.
room, ho
I’ll tell the news. Here comes the General.
I’ll tell the news. Here comes the General.
I’ll tell the news. Here comes the General.
i’ll tell the news
Where is he?
Where is he?
Where is he?
where is he
Safe, Antony; Brutus is safe enough.
I dare assure thee that no enemy
Shall ever take alive the noble Brutus.
The gods defend him from so great a shame!
When you do find him, or alive or dead,
He will be found like Brutus, like himself.
Safe, Antony; Brutus is safe enough. I dare assure you that no enemy Shall ever take alive the noble Brutus. The gods defend him from so great a shame! When you do find him, or alive or dead, He will be found like Brutus, like himself.
Safe, Antony; Brutus is safe enough. I dare assure you that no enemy Shall ever take alive the noble Brutus. The gods defend him from so great a shame! When you do find him, or alive or dead, He will be found like Brutus, like himself.
safe, antony; brutus is safe enough
This is not Brutus, friend; but, I assure you,
A prize no less in worth. Keep this man safe,
Give him all kindness. I had rather have
Such men my friends than enemies. Go on,
And see whether Brutus be alive or dead;
And bring us word unto Octavius’ tent
How everything is chanc’d.
This is not Brutus, friend; but, I assure you, A prize no less in worth. Keep this man safe, Give him all kindness. I had rather have Such men my friends than enemies. Go on, And see whether Brutus be alive or dead; And bring us word unto Octavius’ tent How everything is chanc’d.
This isn't Brutus, friend; but, I assure you, A prize no less in worth. Keep this man safe, Give him all kindness. I had rather have Such men my friends than enemies. Go on, And see whether Brutus be alive or dead; And bring us word unto Octavius’ tent How everything is chanc’d.
this is not brutus, friend; but, i assure you, a prize no less in worth
The Reckoning
This brief scene captures something essential about how wars end: the officers go first, and the loyal subordinates fight on in their names. Young Cato dies announcing his own name. Lucilius announces he is Brutus, which he is not, to buy his general time. Antony's response — 'this is a prize no less in worth' — is one of the play's most gracious moments: the winner recognizing what real loyalty looks like, even in the enemy's camp.
If this happened today…
A startup's CTO gets cornered in the lobby when the company is being raided by investors. The junior developer steps forward and tells them he's the CTO. He gets detained. The actual CTO escapes. When the head investor figures out the ruse, instead of being furious, he says: 'I want to hire this person. Anyone who's that loyal to a cause is worth having.'