Q. Describe the storm scene and state its dramatic significance.
Ans. Scene Background: It is a stormy night. In a street in Rome, Casca meets Cicero by chance. Casca
regards the night as very dreadful, Cicero however, does not feel frightened. He asks Caesar if he
saw anything unusual on that night. Casca tells him that he saw a slave who held up his hand which
shone like twenty torches shining together. He also saw a lion near the Capital which started angrily
at him. He met Women who were so much stricken with fear that they imagined and saw men
walking through fire. Casca opined that all these events portended evil as these were ominous signs,
Cicero takes everything lightly. He does not subscribe to the view that these ominous signs portend
some impending calamity.
Cassius Enters: When Cicero retires, Cassius enters. Cassius is not in the least distracted by the fury
of the elements. He takes Casca to task for his dullness of spirit. He believes the gods are not
indifferent to the affairs of men and they want them to accomplish their task of doing away with
Caesar. In the opinion of Cassius, Caesar is a dreadful tyrant and while he reigns in Rome, every
Roman would be a slave. Casca tells Cassius that he is with him and he would join in the conspiracy
against Caesar.
Cinna Comes: At this moment, Cinna steps in to tell Cassius that Some of the conspirators are
waiting for him in Pompey's porch. Cassius asks Cinna to help him in throwing letters in the house of
Brutus against against Caesar. The letter are written in different hands to convey the impression that
they come from different citizens, all of whom have a great regard for Brutus, Casius then takes
Casca with him and goes to meet Brutus at his place.
Dramatic significance: sets the Tone. The importance of this scene lies in the fact that it puts the
audience in the right frame of mind. It prepares the audience for the events to come. The events
which follow are as bloody, fierce and dreadful as in the tempest. The murder of Caesar- a holding a
prominent position in Rome should have been preceded by some dreadful natural phenomena. As
has been rightly said in the next Act:-
‘’ When beggars die, there are no comets seen. Heaven themselves blaze forth the death of princes.'
The appropriateness of the scene is, therefore, beyond question.
Characters are Revealed The storm scene serves another purpose also. It reveals the characters of
Casca, Cassius and Cicern..
The mental reaction of Casca to the tempest makes it abundantly clear that he is essentially a timid
and superstitious person He feels much depressed on such a night and is, therefore, reprimanded by
Cassius for the dullness of his spirit. Cicero's attitude towards the stormy night is quite different. He
does not attach any importance to what Casca says. He regards the roughness of the weather as an
ordinary natural phenomenon. Cassius sees in the thunder of the clouds and in the flash of lightning
the sanction of the gods to the conspiracy he is out to hatch. He regards the house and the weather
as most opportune. He wants the conspirators to be as brisk and smart in accomplishing the tasks in
hand as are the heavens. This scene reveals to us the fact that Cassius mind Is observer with the idea
of conspiracy and he cannot afford to waste his time in discussing the weather.
