Julius CaesarThe tragedy of Julius Caesar is a great pain, but could all this have been avoided? In William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar, characters were warned of their downfall through supernatural omens. Many of these characters refused or could not see them. All the events leading up to Caesar's death are predicted by characters such as his wife and a fortune teller. Cassius also received several warnings regarding the outcome of the assassination. Throughout the novel there are many omens of Caesar's impending death that he refuses to see. The first warning comes at the beginning of the play and is blatantly stated to Caesar by a fortune teller he meets on the street. The soothsayer warns him to: “Beware the Ides of March” (13). Caesar ignores the comment by saying that the man is a dreamer thus ignoring the warning. This caution recurs several times throughout the play, serving as a constant reminder of Caesar's impending death. This was not the only warning Caesar had of his impending death, for the night before his assassination Calpurnia, Caesar's wife, had a dream. Fearing evil, he tried to convince Caesar that his dream was a warning for him not to go to the Senate that day. Caesar, skeptical of his wife, demands an animal sacrifice to predict the course of the day, the animal's heart is nowhere to be found. These two omens describe something horrible, but Caesar once again refuses to see his fate and reverses the omens to have good intentions towards him. He says that the heart means that he is a coward if he stays at home and the dream that Rome will prosper thanks to his rule. Calpurnia declares that “your wisdom is consumed in trust” (77). Caesar's pride and blindness to omens and...... middle of paper...... will” (207). Not only does Brutus fear this supernatural event, but killing himself is actually something he wants to do more than he ever wanted to kill Caesar. Death will be Brutus' penance for his most serious deed. Not only did Caesar himself receive numerous warnings of his untimely end, but other figures also received similar omens. Many characters don't want to play omens that don't fit what they're doing. Cassius wanted to assassinate Caesar at any cost out of envy and Caesar would go to the capital at any cost out of pride and trust. There were numerous omens that showed Cassius the flaws in his decision to kill Caesar, but he did not heed them. Caesar had good reason to stay home on the Ides of March, yet he still goes. This inability to see what the signs actually meant ultimately led to their downfall.