Welcome back to The Daily Poem. I'm David Kern, and today is Tuesday, March 16th, 2021.

So yesterday, being March 15th, it was the Iads of March, and it was therefore the day

on which Julius Caesar was assassinated. That assassination and the fallout from that, of course,

shows up in William Shakespeare's

famous play Julius Caesar, which, if you've never read it, is a play that is wonderful,

you should read it. It's got political intrigue, battles, romance, great history. I mean,

it's a wonderful play full of wonderful monologues and speeches and some of Shakespeare's best language.

So what I want to do today is read a passage from that play. Read one of the monologues. In the past, I did Mark

Anthony's friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears speech. So what I want to do today is the speech

that immediately precedes that, which is Brutus talking about why he and his

cohort, why he and his associates assassinated Julius Caesar. And the monologue goes like this.

I'll read it once, as always, give you a little context for it and then read it again. It goes like this. Brutus says,

Be patient until the last Romans, countrymen and lovers, hear me for my cause and be silent that you may hear.

Believe me for mine honor and have respect to mine silent that you may hear. Believe me for mine honor and have respect to

my honor that you may believe. Centure me in your wisdom and awake your senses that you may be

the better judge. If there be any in this assembly, any dear friend of Caesar's, to him I say that Buddhist love to Caesar was no

less than his. If then that friend demand why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer. Not that I loved

Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more.

Had you rather Caesar was living and die all slaves than that Caesar were dead to live all

free men?

As Caesar loved me, I weep for him.

As he was fortunate, I rejoice at it.

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