Question

Read the excerpt from act 3, scene 2, of Julius Caesar.

BRUTUS. Be patient till the last.
Romans, countrymen, and lovers! Hear me for my
cause, and be silent, that you may hear. Believe me
for mine honour, and have respect to mine honour, that
you may believe. Censure me in your wisdom, and
awake your senses, that you may the better judge.
If there be any in this assembly, any dear friend of
Caesar’s, to him I say that Brutus’ love to Caesar
was no less than his. If then that friend demand
why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer:
not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved
Rome more.

ANTONY. Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me
your ears.
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interrèd with their bones.
So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you Caesar was ambitious.
If it were so, it was a grievous fault,
And grievously hath Caesar answered it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest—
For Brutus is an honourable man,
So are they all, all honourable men—
Come I to speak in Caesar’s funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me.

How does Brutus’s reason for giving his monologue compare to Antony’s reason for giving his?

Both Brutus and Antony explain that they are there to discuss why Caesar’s death benefits the people of Rome.
Brutus explains that he wants to talk about Caesar’s honor, while Antony says that he wants to talk about Caesar’s misgivings.
Both Brutus and Antony say that they feel compelled to speak about Caesar because he was their friend, and they both loved him dearly.
Brutus announces that he wants to explain why he killed Caesar, while Antony says that he is simply there to give Caesar a proper burial.

Answer 1

In the excerpt from act 3, scene 2, of Julius Caesar. Brutus's reason for giving his monologue compares to Antony's reason for giving his in that Brutus announces that he wants to explain why he killed Caesar, while Antony says that he is simply there to give Caesar a proper burial.

Brutus exposes himself in front of all the people of Rome, telling them to be the judge of his actions. He declares that he devoted himself to Rome and that is why he did what he did (he killed Caesar), even though that, according to him, he loved Caesar as much as them.

On the other hand, Antony declares that he was not there to praise Caesar, but as a good friend of him, he wanted to give him a proper burial. He considers that Caesar's actions must be judged as they were, and that if a man has done harm in life, it stays with his memory after his departure, whereas good actions vanish in time.

Answer 2

The answer is:

Brutus announces that he wants to explain why he killed Caesar, while Antony says that he is simply there to give Caesar a proper burial.

In the excerpt from "Julius Caesar," Brutus intends to justify himself for assassinating Caesar. In that matter, he claims to be a man of honor and that he killed him because he loves Rome. The reason he gives is that Caesar would be dangerous for everyone and would make the people slaves.

Antony, on the other hand, expresses his sorrow over his friend's death and makes use of irony to describe Brutus and the conspirators as honorable men.