Brutus as a Tragic Hero: Analysis Activity

Activity Overview

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar is full of important literary elements for students to explore. One of these elements is the tragic hero, a protagonist who seems to be ill-fated, and destined for doom. In this play, Brutus is the tragic hero as he leads himself and many others to their ruin and deaths.

The Greek philosopher Aristotle first articulated the specific attributes or principles of a tragic hero. For the storyboard above, students can use a template to storyboard the qualities that make Brutus a tragic hero. The finished product outlines each of Aristotle's principles with a detailed explanation of the specific attributes.

Brutus - Tragic Hero

ATTRIBUTE	DESCRIPTION	Example from Julius Caesar
Hamartia	Hero's Flaw that Causes Downfall	Brutus’s love of Rome demands he do anything required to preserve it.
Hubris	Excessive Pride	Brutus was so certain of his justness in killing Caesar, he didn’t anticipate that the people of Rome would follow Antony against him.
Peripeteia	Reversal of Fortune	Antony turns the crowd against him during Caesar’s eulogy.
Anagnorisis	Moment of Critical Discovery	He discovers that the people of Rome have turned on the conspirators and they must prepare for battle.
Nemesis	Fate that Cannot be Avoided	Once Caesar has been killed, it is inevitable that Brutus will go to war with Antony. Caesar’s ghost foreshadows this defeat.
Catharsis	Audience's Feeling of Pity or Fear After the Hero's Fall	Antony finds Brutus’ body and requests that he be buried as a hero. The audience is sad that a noble man, with good intentions, suffered such a tragic fate.

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Template and Class Instructions

(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)

Student Instructions

Create a storyboard that shows how Brutus can be considered a tragic hero.

Identify events of the play or characteristics of Brutus that fit into Aristotelian attributes of a tragic hero.
Illustrate examples for Hamartia, Hubris, Peripeteia, Anagnorisis, Nemesis, and Catharsis.
Write a short description below each cell that specifically relates Brutus as a tragic hero.

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Lesson Plan Reference

Grade Level 9-10

Difficulty Level 4 (Difficult / Complex)

Type of Assignment Individual

Type of Activity: Tragic Hero

Common Core Standards

[ELA-Literacy/RL/9-10/3] Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme
[ELA-Literacy/W/9-10/6] Use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or shared writing products, taking advantage of technology’s capacity to link to other information and to display information flexibly and dynamically
[ELA-Literacy/L/9-10/6] Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression

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Rubric

(You can also create your own on Quick Rubric.)

Tragic Hero Rubric Template

Create a storyboard that shows how the protagonist can be considered a tragic hero using Aristotle's Characteristics

	Proficient	Emerging	Beginning	Needs Improvement
Tragic Hero Characteristics	The six tragic hero characteristics are correctly identified and portrayed from the story. The explanation provided explains how the scenes depict each characteristic, and shows effective analysis.	Four or five tragic hero characteristics are correctly identified and portrayed from the story, or some of the elements may not be identified correctly. The explanations give context to the scene, but may be minimal, and there is some attempt at analysis.	Two or three tragic hero characteristics are correctly identified and portrayed from the story, or most of the elements are inaccurately depicted. The quotes and/or explanations are too minimal.	One or fewer tragic hero characteristics are correctly identified and portrayed from the story, or most of the elements are inaccurately depicted. The quotes and/or explanations are minimal or missing altogether.
Artistic Depictions	The art chosen to depict the scenes are accurate to the work of literature. Time and care is taken to ensure that the scenes are neat, eye-catching, and creative.	The art chosen to depict the scenes should be accurate, but there may be some liberties taken that distract from the assignment. Scene constructions are neat, and meet basic expectations.	The art chosen to depict the scenes is inappropriate. Scene constructions are messy and may create some confusion.	The art chosen to depict the scenes is too limited or incomplete.
English Conventions	Ideas are organized. There are few or no grammatical, mechanical, or spelling errors.	Ideas are mostly organized. There are some grammatical, mechanical, or spelling errors.	Ideas may be disorganized or misplaced. Lack of control over grammar, mechanics, and spelling reflect a lack of proofreading.	Storyboard text is difficult to understand.