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[[Alternate Character Interpretation|Alternately]], the protagonist is Marcus Brutus, a self-centered patrician whom Cassius flatters into betraying his former patron Caesar. Take your pick.
 
In either case, Brutus is intended to be the most sympathetic character in a cast of villains. The title character? An [[Ambition Is Evil|Ambitious]] [[Decoy Protagonist]]. His other closest friend, Mark Antony? Uses his oratory skills to help woo the crowds to handing Caesar power, and when it comes to [[Avenging the Villain]] he really gets nasty, all while acting the part of the [[Faux Affably Evil]] [[Villain Withwith Good Publicity]]. Octavian/Octavius/Augustus Caesar? Just as ambitious as his dear old uncle, but even smarter, smart enough infact to maintain his [[Villain Withwith Good Publicity|good publicity]] throughout the events of the play so that it takes a knowledge of what actually happened afterwords historically (or in [[Antony and Cleopatra]]) to realize his [[Xanatos Planned This Index|villainy.]] Our actual protagonists other best friend, Cassius? [[The Resenter]] to Caesar's power who gets Brutus involved in the conspiracy in the first place by being a [[Manipulative Bastard]], with plans to set himself up as [[The Man Behind the Man]] where Brutus is [[Puppet King|The Man]] whether he wants the job or not, in fact the less Brutus actually want the job the easier he thinks it will be. The rest of the conspirators all have their own selfish motivations as well. Oh and the rest of Rome? Anyone who isn't just a victim of one of the villains, ends up in the mob formed due to Mark Antony's speech due to their [[Powder Keg Crowd|fickle nature]].
 
Following the assassination, Rome is plunged into civil war, and a number of characters from the first several acts of the play die during the conflict, mostly through suicide.
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* [[Anachronism Stew]]: The characters refer to many things that didn't exist in Ancient Rome, but did exist in Elizabethan England.
* [[Anti-Villain]]: Brutus -- consider how honorable and idealistic Brutus is in the play; then remember, the widespread idea used in Dante's ''Inferno'' which considered him the worst traitor in history along with Cassius and Judas.
* [[Antagonist in Mourning]]: After Brutus dies, Antony calls him "the noblest Roman of them all" and says that the others conspired against Caesar out of jealousy, but Brutus did it because he thought it was the right thing. He and Octavian agree to give him [[Due to Thethe Dead|a respectful burial]].
* [[Arbitrary Skepticism]]: Caesar accepts superstition regarding the Lupercalia festival as fact, and then refuses to believe a soothsayer warning him to beware the Ides of March.
* [[Arc Words]]: "Beware the Ides of March..."
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** [[Truth in Television]]: This was fairly common among patrician Romans.
* [[A Birthday, Not a Break]]: Cassius before the battle of Phillipi.
* [[Blood Onon the Debate Floor]]
* [[Cassandra Truth]]: The soothsayer's warning.
** Lampshaded by Caesar as he meets the soothsayer on the Ides of March. The soothsayer [[Foreshadowing|reminds him the day isn't over yet]].
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* [[Dramatic Irony]]: It's very ironic to see Antony as a [[Magnificent Bastard]] in the play as well as the seeds of his disagreement with Octavian, as both in history and in Shakespeare's own ''Antony and Cleopatra'', Octavian proved to be the greater [[Magnificent Bastard]] of the two.
* [[Driven to Suicide]]: Several characters after everything [[It Got Worse|gets worse]] following the assassination.
* [[Due to Thethe Dead]]: Brutus's burial.
* [[Dumb Is Good]]: Brutus is portrayed as far-and-away the best-intentioned of the conspirators, but every time he overrules Cassius it's for something [[Honor Before Reason|mind-bogglingly stupid]].
* [[Empathic Environment]]: Crazy things happen in Rome during this time of turmoil.
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* [[Famous Last Words]]: ''See'' [[Et Tu, Brute?]]'', above.''
* [[Green-Eyed Monster]]: Though the trope name comes from elsewhere in Shakespeare, it's in full force in this play. Every conspirator except (maybe) Brutus is motivated by this.
* [[Guilt Byby Coincidence]]: Cinna the Poet gets killed by the Mob because he unfortunately shared a name with one of Caesar's murderers. An added irony which Shakespeare likely didn't know was that the murdered Cinna was a good friend of Caesar.
* [[Honor Before Reason]]: Brutus' downfall comes from this, especially in regards to Antony
* [[I Cannot Self-Terminate]]: Brutus' philosophy will not let him directly kill himself, so he gets someone to help. Cassius likewise.
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We are two lions littered in one day,<br />
And I the elder and more terrible. }}
* [[Leaning Onon the Fourth Wall]]
{{quote| '''Cassius''': How many ages hence shall this our lofty scene be acted over in states unborn and accents yet unknown!}}
* [[Manipulative Bastard]]: Depending on portrayal, Cassius can easily be this. It is left ambiguous whether Cassius is merely jealous of Caesar's new found power even though both Brutus and himself are just as honourable, and has contracted the world's most traitorous form of tall poppy syndrome:
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** Dammit, Titinius!
* [[Portent of Doom]]: Calpurnia urges Caesar not to go to the Senate because of the various omens she's either witnessed or heard about from reliable sources. Caesar poo-poos it and goes anyway.
* [[Powder Keg Crowd]]: They start out angry at the assassination. Within 5 minutes they're cheering Brutus. [[Unaccustomed Asas I Am to Public Speaking|15 minutes of Antony later]], they're rioting.
* [[Pride]]: Caesar is so assured of his invincibility that he ignores numerous unambiguous warnings of death and destruction and walks straight into the conspirators' trap.
* [[Prophecies Are Always Right]]
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* [[Tragic Hero]]: Brutus
* [[Trouble Entendre]]: Caesar orders that the two tribunes who criticize him at the beginning of the play be "put to silence". While the actual people were banished, Shakespeare's phrase definitely suggests murder.
* [[Unaccustomed Asas I Am to Public Speaking]]: "[[Blatant Lies|I am no orator]], [[Stealth Insult|as Brutus is]]..."
** Cassius does this more subtly to Brutus in Act I, Scene II, when he expresses pleasure that his "weak words have struck but thus much show of fire from Brutus".
* [[Vigilante Execution]]
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