Public vs private

GCSE · English Literature · AQA · P1.A.JC — *Julius Caesar* — power, persuasion, republicanism; the assassination, the funeral orations, Philippi; Brutus, Cassius, Mark Antony

Question

How does Shakespeare present the conflict between public duty and private feeling? Use Act 2 Scene 2 (Calpurnia and Caesar) as a starting point. (30 + 4 marks)

Mark scheme guidance:

Calpurnia's warnings dismissed as feminine fear; Caesar performs masculinity at the cost of life.
Brutus's sleepless soliloquy 2.1 — duty over love for Caesar.
Portia's wound 2.1 — wife demanding inclusion in husband's political life.
Brutus's restrained response to Portia's offstage death (4.3).
Context: Roman virtus — public over private; Renaissance debate on women in politics.
Top answers see the play as critique of public/private separation.

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Generated by TopMyGrade AI · cross-check official sources before relying on the mark-scheme phrasing.