G10U5_ST_Shakespeare II_114-117.fm Page 114 Wednesday, March 26, 2008 12:06 AM
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The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act II, by William Shakespeare
Literary Analysis: Blank Verse
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar is written in blank verse. Blank verse is a poetic form that has
unrhymed lines written in iambic pentameter.
• An iamb is a foot (unit of rhythm) in which an unstressed syllable is followed by a stressed
syllable: da-DUH.
• Pentameter refers to a rhythmic pattern in which each line has five feet.
• In iambic pentameter, the typical line has five iambs, or five stressed syllables each preceded by an unstressed syllable. The symbol [ ˘ ] is used to show unstressed syllables. The
symbol [´ ] is used to show stressed syllables.
˘ SHALL
˘ FESS
˘ YOU
˘ BOTH
˘ CEIVED.
´ / con
´ / that
´ / are
´
´
Example: You
/ de
In Shakespeare’s plays, the characters representing the nobility (who have most of the lines)
speak in iambic pentameter. The commoners speak in prose. Sometimes, Shakespeare changes
the rhythmic pattern in a line to capture the sound of speech or to add contrast or emphasis.
A. DIRECTIONS: In the following lines spoken by Artemidorus in Act II, mark the unstressed and
stressed syllables, using [ ˘] and [´]. When you are done, put a [+] in front of each line that is
perfect iambic pentameter. Put a [−] in front of each line that is not perfect iambic pentameter.
Here will I stand till Caesar pass along,
And as a suitor will I give him this.
My heart laments that virtue cannot live
Out of the teeth of emulation.
If thou read this, O Caesar, thou mayest live;
If not, the Fates with traitors do contrive.
(Act II, Scene iii, ll. 8–13)
B. DIRECTIONS: Answer the following questions about the blank verse in the passage that you
have just read.
1. Which line breaks from iambic pentameter the most? With what words does it break,
and why?
2. How does the meter of the final line hint that this is the closing line of the speech?
Unit 5 Resources: Drama
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