Caesar's Body in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar: Sacralization and De-sacralization of Power

In: Pólemos: journal of law, literature and culture, Band 9, Heft 2, S. 281-294

Abstract

Abstract
In Julius Caesar the wounds on the body of the "king" are like mouths that cry out the condemnation of the violation of power and of a cosmic order. The divine body of the king has a sacred hue as he represents God on earth, thus the killing of Caesar can be connected to the killing of Christ. Caesar in the text has many Christological connotations. The killing of Caesar has the emblematic character of a cry against the violation of legitimate power: the body is at first concealed (Caesar's mantel hides his corpse) then exhibited (when Antony uncovers it) and sacralized so as to make this catastrophe symbolic of an adhesion to legitimate power. Antony makes Caesar's body the voice of power: on one hand it has the function of stressing the persuasive power of Antony's words, on the other hand Antony transforms the body into a spiritual icon in order to reach his aim of denouncing the illegitimate subversion of the conspirators.