TLT Grade VIII - Quote Identification & Analysis Act II Scene i-ii
1. Find the quotes to identify the speaker and support the meanings and write them in the given lines.
a. It's in broad daylight when things seem safest that snakes come out and one must be careful when
walking, just as we must be most careful in proceeding in this matter.
Speaker: Brutus
Analysis: Brutus warns that dangers, like snakes, often emerge when least expected. He emphasizes the
need for caution in dealing with Caesar's rising power.
b. It’s a common observed fact that humility serves as a ladder for young ambitious men. But once
they’ve reached the top rung, they turn their backs on the ladder, looking only upward to the
clouds, and have nothing but scorn for the lower levels which have helped them make their way
up.
Speaker: Brutus
Analysis: Brutus reflects on Caesar’s ambition, likening it to a ladder that is discarded once power is
achieved.
c. Think of him as a snake's egg, which, while not dangerous as it is, will inevitably become deadly
as all snakes are. So it would be better to kill him I the shell.
Speaker: Brutus
Analysis: Brutus justifies preemptive action against Caesar by comparing him to a snake's egg that must
be destroyed before it hatches into a threat.
d. Oh, conspiracy, are you too ashamed to show your dangerous face even at night when evil is most
free to walk about? Then where will you find a dark enough cave in the daytime to mask your
monstrous face? Don't look for a cave, conspiracy.
Speaker: Brutus
Analysis: Brutus personifies the conspiracy, lamenting its need to hide its true nature even in darkness.
e. If we cut off the head of evil and then hack of the limbs in what would seem a fury of killing and
cruelty, for Antony is just an arm of Caesar's. Let's be seen as making a sacrifice to the gods for
the welfare of Rome, not bloody butchers, Caius. We're attacking the spirit of Caesar, and that
spirit doesn't consist of blood.
Speaker: Brutus
Analysis: Brutus argues for a noble assassination of Caesar, sparing Antony to avoid appearing barbaric.
f. I'll grant you I am a woman, but I'm the woman that Brutus chose for his wife, a woman well
regarded, the daughter of the most honourable Cato. Do you think I'm no stronger than the
average woman given my father and husband?
Speaker: Portia
Analysis: Portia appeals to her lineage and marriage to Brutus to prove her strength and seek his trust.
g. “Cannot” is not true, and “dare not” is even less true. Just I will not come today - tell them so,
Decius.
Speaker: Caesar
Analysis: Caesar asserts his will by choosing not to attend the Senate, reflecting his arrogance and
confidence.
