Nick Jansa

PAP English II
4/14/16

Julius Caesar Portfolio #1

Et tu, Brute? These are probably the most famous words from
Shakespeares play, Julius Caesar that symbolize Brutus ultimate betrayal of
his friend Caesar moments before killing him. Caesars hand-picked Senate
betrayed his trust; maybe out of jealousy, cruelty or simply fear of the
unknown. The people that he had known and trusted with his life ultimately
betrayed him by ending his life. Where there signs of the impending
murder? Perhaps, but Caesars invincible ego would not allow him to believe
anything bad would ever happen to him. When the day of his murder
approached, his wife Calpurnia told him he should not go to the Senate
meeting fearing for his safety from her visions of his death. Did Caesar have
a hand in his own death by dismissing Calpurnias visions? One could say
yes, but Caesar never believed his friends and countrymen could perform
this final betrayal to him.
In todays society, acts of betrayal could have a similar meaning as in
Ancient Rome. Betrayal can be considered a type of jealousy and comes in
many forms, such as getting backstabbed (theoretically) by your most
trusted friend with a secret that was meant for their ears only. Resentment of
someones success and your attempt to downplay their rewards can be
considered a form of betrayal. Betrayal also branches from a sense of
entitlement; when one person feels they are more deserved than another
and will go to great lengths to get what they want, even at the expense of a
friendship. Also when unfaithfulness works its way into a relationship by
either cheating on the other person or breaking up with them, whichever
way, its an act of betrayal. Young children feel heavily betrayed when they
are abused by their parents, because parents are supposed to love, support,
and protect the child.
Betrayal can happen in the political system when a government official
betrays another government official just to move up in the ranks. For
instance during Presidential elections, any (and probably most) politicians
will tell possible half-truths and lies to the people about certain candidates
and betray the peoples trust, leading them to believe a certain version of
the truth and not what is in the best interest of those people. Making people
fearful of something different by twisting the truth to make it more beneficial
to your own outcome is also a form of betrayal. People tend to gravitate to
what they know and if their loyalty is tested, those same people feel
betrayed, angry and hurt about being misled.
Jealousy, mistrust and fear can all relate to betrayal in one form or
another. Todays society, as in almost all previous generations, have

Nick Jansa
PAP English II
4/14/16

experienced such betrayal. It is human nature to feel more worthy than

others at certain times of your life; but how you accomplish this worthiness
should not be at the expense of others. Everyone at one time or another
knows to expect a betrayal; accepting the act requires courage to move
ahead and away from those who will ultimately deceive you.
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