Thesis: When one tries to live up to their own romantic self-image, it ultimately leads to self-destruction.
             Shakespeare first demonstrates this fact with his depiction of Caesar. He wants to show us the private side of a public man to remind us that behind the fame, he is, like the rest of us, only human, having the same physical handicaps, hopes, and fears. In public, Caesar is worshipped like a god. However, in private, he is superstitious, deaf, and epileptic. His public image hides his weaknesses from others and from himself. For example, when the Soothsayer tells Caesar to "Beware the Ides of March" (1.2.17), he asks to "...see his face" (1.2.20) and for him to "...speak once again" (1.2.22). Caesar the private individual is obviously concerned, but Caesar the public figure refuses to acknowledge his fear and dismisses the Soothsayer as "a dreamer" (1.2.24). Caesar thus reveals his two sides: the private self and the fanciful self he would like to become. In addition, Caesar wishes to rise above all human emotions to satisfy both his own self-image and his public. Caesar states, "...The things that threaten me/ Ne'er looked but on my back; when they shall see/ The face of Caesar, they are vanishèd" (2.2.9-11). Conversely, Caesar proceeds to ask, "What say the augurers?" (2.2.38). Caesar goes back and forth from the private individual to the public figure. He succumbs to his private fears at one moment, and then hides behind his public-image the next, becoming the god he would like to be. Clearly Caesar is a frightened, superstitious man, asking for sacrifices to the gods. However, he believes the strength of his public-self will protect his private-self. Consequently, Caesar is doomed as a public man because he is too confident that he is unsusceptible to his fellow men. By hiding behind his public-image, he has adapted it into his personal...