INTRODUCTION:

Shakespeare, like other authors, borrows from history as inspiration for his work. He takes many liberties with historical information and uses his poetical liscence to create his plays. In the process, the line between fact and fiction is blurred, and people begin to wonder if characters and events in Shakespeare's stories are fact or fiction. The only way to know if Shakespeare's plays are historically accurate is to research history!

TASK:

You and five other history professors have been asked to head a committee to research Shakespeare's work. As history professors, you are interested in uncovering the facts behind Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar. Your committee will research ALL of the following characters: Julius Caesar, Marc Antony, Brutus, Cassius and Calpurnia. Your committee will also be assigned ONE of the following events: Caesar's Death, Battles, Superstition, Speeches of Marc Antony and Brutus, and Caesar VS Pompey. Your goal is to discover if these characters and events are based on actual historical events or Shakespeare's imagination. You are also interested to know if Shakespeare changed aspects of characters and events to make his play more entertaining.

RESOURCES:

Your committee has access to the following documents to use as research:

1. Gaius Julius Caesar is a biographical web site. It has informtion about Caesar's young life and his involvement in the Gallic Wars.
   
   
2. Julius Caesar: Historical Background is also a biographical web site. It has detailed information on Caesar's life and accomplishments.
   
   
3. Gaius Julius Caesar (100-44) has information on Caesar's life and political career.
   
   
4. Marcus Brutus is a brief biographical web site.
   
   
5. The Comparison of Dion and Brutus contains Plutarch's opinions and descriptions of Brutus. You need only focus on those parts of the document that are relevent to Brutus.
   
   
6. Marc Antony has some biographical information about Marc Antony.
   
   
7. Marc Antony 43-33 BCE contains biographical information about Marc Antony, as well as some information about the speeches he made.
   
   
8. Cassius has some biographical information about Cassius.
   
   
9. Plutarch: The Murder of Caesar contains Plutarch's version of Caesar's murder. (Plutarch was a Greek historian who recorded and wrote about Greek and Roman history.) As well as talking about incidents leading up to and including the murder, Plutarch mentions Calpurnia.
   
   
10. Cleopatra VII: Last Queen of Egypt provides information on Caesar's relationship with Cleopatra.
    
    
11. Characters provides character sketches of Shakespeare's characters from his play Julius Caesar.
    
    
12. Julius Caesar: Characterization has a list of characters from the play and a brief description about each.
    
    
13. Julius Caesar contains information about Caesar's battles and his conflict with Pompey.
    
    

PROCESS:

Your committee received the following instructions:

1. You will join with five other history professors. In your committee you will research the following 5 characters:
   
   
   1. Julius Caesar
   2. Marc Antony
   3. Brutus
   4. Cassius
   5. Calpurnia
   
   
2. Your committee will be assigned ONE of the following events from the play:
   
   
   1. Caesar's Murder
   2. Battles
   3. Speeches of Marc Antony and Brutus
   4. Superstitian
   5. Caesar VS Pompey
   
   
3. Assign one group member to research one of the topics below:
   
   
   1. Caesar
   2. Marc Antony
   3. Brutus
   4. Cassius
   5. Calpurnia
   6. Assigned Event
   
   
4. Using the resources listed above, research your topic and answer the following questions:
   
   
   1. Which aspects of your character or event are true or based on fact?
   2. Which aspects of your character or event did Shakespeare embellish, fictionalize, or make up?
   3. Is your character or event an accurate representative of history, or one of Shakespeare's creations?
   
   
5. Produce a written summary of your research to take back to your committe. When your committee meets, every member will share their research and answers to the above questions. The committee will apply the research to answer the following questions:
   
   
   1. Is Shakespeare's play an accurate portrayal of history? Why or why not?
   2. Does Shakespeare have a right to "change" history? Why or why not?
   
   Your committee will produce a written copy of your answers.
   
   
6. As a class we will conduct a debate about question (b). Half the class will argue yes, Shakespeare does have a right to change history. The other half of the class will argue no, Shakespeare does not have a right to change history.
   
   Each side will have 15 minutes to prepare their argument. Each side will choose one person to present their argument, but everyone should be prepared to support their side.

EVALUATION:

Your committee will be evaluated on the following:

1. Classroom/Group Work
   1. I contributed positively and constructively to the group.
   2. I did my share of the work to the best of my abilities and met group expectations and deadlines.
   
   
2. Research Summary
   1. I used the resources provided.
   2. My research was thorough.
   3. My opinions were based on thoughtful examination of my research.
   4. My summary was neat, organized and mistake free.
   
   
3. Group Summary
   1. Every member contributed to the summary.
   2. Answers were based on thoughtful consideration of the research.
   3. Answers were well-written and well-explained.
   4. Write-up was neat, well-organized and mistake free.
   
   
4. Class Debate
   1. I contributed to the class discussion.
   2. My opinions and statements were based on thoughtful consideration of the research.

CONCLUSION:

By the completion of your work with your committee, you should have learned which parts of Julius Caesar are based on fact and which parts have been fictionalized. You should also have formed some opinions on whether or not Shakespeare had the right to "change" history to create his play.

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