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| Character | Cato | |
|---|---|---|
| Gender | Male | |
| Age Range(s) | Adult (36-50) | |
| Type of monologue / Character is | Dying, Inspirational, Depressed, Lamenting | |
| Type | Dramatic | |
| Year | 1702 | |
| Period | 18th Century | |
| Genre | Tragedy, Drama, War | |
| Props | A book | |
| Description | Cato ponders about the immortality of the soul and suicide | |
| Location | ACT V, Scene 1 | |
Summary
The play is inspired by the last days of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticensis 95BC-46BC), a Roman politician in the late Roman Republic who became famous for his integrity, stubbornness and strong opposition to Julius Caesar's politics. He eventually joined Pompey and Scipio in a war against Caesar and lost.
The story is set at Utica, where Cato and his troops are waiting for the arrival of Caesar, after Caesar crushes Scipio at Thapsus. Characters of the play include his sons Portius and Marcus who are in love with the same woman, Lucia, daughter of a Roman senator. The prince of Numidia, Juba, is in love with Marcia, Cato's daughter. Conspiring against Cato are Sempronius, a senator, and Syphax, general of the Numidians.
This soliloquy opens the fifth act. Caesar's forces are approaching and Cato decides to commit suicide. Being Caesar's strongest enemy, Cato considers that by killing himself it will be easier for his troops to make peace with Caesar.
In the monologue, inspired by Plato's dialogue of Phaedo, he ponders about the immortality of the soul and the thought of killing himself.
The story is set at Utica, where Cato and his troops are waiting for the arrival of Caesar, after Caesar crushes Scipio at Thapsus. Characters of the play include his sons Portius and Marcus who are in love with the same woman, Lucia, daughter of a Roman senator. The prince of Numidia, Juba, is in love with Marcia, Cato's daughter. Conspiring against Cato are Sempronius, a senator, and Syphax, general of the Numidians.
This soliloquy opens the fifth act. Caesar's forces are approaching and Cato decides to commit suicide. Being Caesar's strongest enemy, Cato considers that by killing himself it will be easier for his troops to make peace with Caesar.
In the monologue, inspired by Plato's dialogue of Phaedo, he ponders about the immortality of the soul and the thought of killing himself.
Written by Administrator
| Excerpt |
|---|
| CATO [solus, sitting in a thoughtful posture: in his hand Plato's book on the Immortality of the soul. A drawn sword on the table by him] It must be so Plato, thou reason'st well! Else whence this pleasing hope, this fond desire, This longing after immortality? Or whence this secret dread, and inward horror, Of falling into naught? why shrinks the soul Back on herself, and startles at destruction? 'Tis the divinity that stirs within us; 'Tis heaven itself, that points out an hereafter, And intimates eternity to man. Eternity? thou pleasing, dreadful, thought! Through what variety of untried being, Through what new scenes and changes must we pass? The wide, th' unbounded prospect, lies before me; But shadows, clouds, and darkness rest upon it. Here will I hold. If there's a power above us, (And that there is all nature cries aloud Through all her works,) he must delight in virtue; And that which he delights in, must be happy. But when! or where! This world was made for Caesar. I'm weary of conjectures This must end them. [Laying his hand on his sword. Thus am I doubly arm'd: my death and life, My bane and antidote are both before me: This in a moment brings me to an end; But this informs me I shall never die. The soul, secured in her existence, smiles At the drawn dagger, and defies its point. The stars shall fade away, the sun himself Grow dim with age, and nature sink in years; But thou shalt flourish in immortal youth, Unhurt amidst the wars of elements, The wrecks of matter, and the crush of worlds. What means this heaviness that hangs upon me? This lethargy that creeps through all my senses? Nature oppress'd, and harass'd out with care, Sinks down to rest. This once I'll favour her, That my awaken'd soul may take her flight, Renewed in all her strength, and fresh with life, An offering fit for heaven. Let guilt or fear Disturb man's rest: Cato knows neither of them, Indifferent in his choice to sleep or die. |
