We were asked to come up with a reason for reading "Julius Caesar" and how the play related to life as we know it now. I feel that we read Julius Caesar because there were themes in the play that are still present today. For instance, the play "Julius Caesar" dealt with the concept of instinct and thinking that you're doing the right thing, when really what you're doing is only going to cause distruction. For instance, there have been people in modern times who have caused destruction for a cause which they thought was perfectly sound and reasonable. Charles Manson, for instance, felt that murdering people was what he was supposed to do and thought nothing else of it. Instead, no good came of what Manson did. The same thing happened for Brutus. Brutus felt honorable when he slew Caesar because he felt that Caesar had to be stopped because he was ambitious. Brutus even loved Caesar! However, Brutus felt that it was his duty to slay Caesar just as Brutus's ancestors did away with the last kings of Rome. No good came of Brutus slaying Caesar as well. Instead of the people following Brutus in thinking what he did was right, they revolted against him.

Another modern theme in "Julius Caesar" was the idea of betrayal. Betrayal is constantly going on in our society, wheter it be a spouse betraying the other, or a friend betraying a friend. In "Julius Caesar", it was a friend betraying a friend. As Caesar falls he looks to his friend and says "Et tu Bruté?", meaning "And you Brutus." Caesar was surprised to find his friend betray him. The same thing happens in modern times. If people are truelly friends, then they would never expect the other to betray them. I also think that it is important to understand that no good comes from betraying your friends, which is a lesson that can be learned from "Julius Caesar."

"Julius Caesar" relates to the way that people in modern times still follow their heart blindly and still betray their friends, but it also teaches us how no good comes from following these blind intentions.