1 Answer | Add Yours
Several Roman senators are plotting to kill Julius Caesar. They believe that he has too much power and is becoming dangerous. Brutus is asked to participate in the murder plot. He is torn between his friendship with Caesar and his love of Rome. He wants to protect Rome from Caesar’s ambition but doesn’t want to see Caesar killed.
In Act Two, Scene One Brutus is pacing in his garden after speaking with the conspirators. His wife Portia comes out to speak with him. She asks him what is wrong but he does not want to tell her. He says that he is feeling sick. Portia knows he is lying and is upset that Brutus won’t confide in her. She calls on her position as his wife to convince him to confide in her. She insists that marriage is more that just sharing meals and a bed. It is about sharing confidences. If he refuses to speak to her she might as well be a harlot because he is denying her the prime component of marriage.
This shows that Brutus and Portia’s marriage has been one of companionship and trust. She is used to him sharing his thoughts and feelings with her and is upset when he stops. She is not content just to keep his house; she wants a relationship with the man she married.
We’ve answered 319,622 questions. We can answer yours, too.Ask a question