Brief About The Writer: Character List

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Brief about the writer:

This play Antony and Cleopatra is written by William Shakespeare, who was an English poet, playwright
and an actor. He is often called England’s national poet and nicknamed the Bard of Avon, because he is
considered to be the greatest poet that ever lived, since that time. The three types of plays Shakespeare
wrote are tragedies, comedies and histories but he also wrote poems. Shakespeare made a great
contribution through his work to the English literature. His plays depicts the culture and traditions around
that time. Shakespeare’s plays were composed of blank verses (verse without rhyme), but there were
passages in his plays. He used to write to make his living. He wrote what his audience wanted to watch.
Between 1590 to 1613 he wrote at least 37 plays. The famous among his tragedies are Macbeth, hamlet,
King Lear, Othello. His 17 comedies include the merchant of Venice. Among his ten plays of history are
henry 5 and Richard 3. The exact cause of Shakespeare’s death is unknown but some scholars believe that
he dies on his 52nd birthday on 23rd April, 1616.
Antony and Cleopatra:

Antony and Cleopatra is written around 1606. Antony and Cleopatra belongs surely to the greatest of his
tragedies, which covers the entire Roman Empire and the men who ruled it. Only a genius could apply
such beauty of poetry and philosophy to match the powerful events. This play was first performed by, the
king’s Men at a theater in around 1607. Antony and Cleopatra has a special place in Shakespeare’s work.
This play is at a borderline between two types of plays. It belongs to a roman play but it is also considered
a s a tragedy.
Plot of Antony and Cleopatra:
Character list:
Major characters:
 Antony:
A passionate and stormy soldier who rules the Roman Empire along with Octavius Caesar and Lepidus.
When the play opens, Antony has ignored his duties as a ruler in order to live in Egypt, where he carries
apparent love affairs with Cleopatra. He is madly in love with Cleopatra, but he also feels the need to
renew the honor that has made him the Roman hero. He is torn between his desire for Cleopatra and
demand of his position as a world ruler.
 Cleopatra:
She is an attractive queen of Egypt and Antony’s lover. Cleopatra favors high drama, her emotions are
very volatile. She is aware of her duties as queen of Egypt. Antony and Cleopatra are defeated and she
chooses to die in Egypt, rather than going to Rome as a captive. This shows her bravery and heroic
courage.
 Octavius Caesar:
The nephew and the adopted son of Julius Caesar. His only goal is to acquire and maintain power.
Relations between Caesar and Antony are strained throughout the play. Octavius is determined to be the
only ruler of the Roman Empire.
 Lepidus:
He is the third member of triumvirate. He has no real power of his own,but he serves as a mediator
between Antony and Caesar . He is the weakest both politically and personally. He tries to keep peace
between Antony and Caesar but fails when Caesar imprisons him after the defeat of Pompey.
 Pompey:
The son of a general who was one of the Julius Caesar’s partner in power. He is young and popular and
possess his own military to stand as a threat to the triumvirs. He attempted to form his own kingdom
and to cause the triumvirate trouble by plundering their ships.
 Octavia:
Caesar’s sister, who is engaged to Antony in order to cement a political and military alliance between
Antony and Caesar.
 Enobarbus:
Antony’s trusted and close friend and his most loyal supporter. He is friendly with both Pompey and
Caesar but he remains faithful and loyal to his master Antony.
Minor characters:
 Ventidius:
A roman soldier under Antony’s command. He is brave, capable general, competent fighter and very
loyal to Antony. He stopped his troops from battle for being fear that winning too much glory would
disturb his relations with antony.
 Scarus:
A brave and competent soldier under Antony’s command. He serves as an Antony’s aide after
Enobarbus deserts his general.
 Dercetas:
One of Antony’s soldier, who was the first to find Antony after Antony has tried to kill himself.
 Proculeius:
one of Caesar’s soldier, who proves untrustworthy.
 Diomedes:
Cleopatra’s servant. She brings the message to Antony that Cleopatra has not committed suicide but is
still alive.
 Clown:
an Egyptian, who brings a basket of figs carrying poisonous snakes to Cleopatra.
 Menas:
an ambitious young soldier under Pompey’s command. He wants to kill Antony, Caesar and Lepidus so
that the world would fall into his master’s hand.
 Dolabella:
a man of Octavius Caesar, who is assigned to guard the captive Cleopatra.
 The soothsayer:
an Egyptian fortune-teller who follows Antony to Rome who foretells that his destiny will always be
faded in comparison to Caesar’s.
 Agrippa:
one of Caesar’s officers who leads the retreat from Antony’s unexpectedly powerful forces.
 Charmian and iras:

Cleopatra’s loyal servants.
 Camidius:
A general in Antony’s army. After the battle camidius surrenders and defects to Caesar’s side.
 Eros:
Eros is one of Antony’s attendant. He is one of those who leads Cleopatra to Antony after the defeat at
Actium, in the hopes that she can comfort him. Eros love for his master compels him to refuse Antony’s
order that Eros kill him.
 Seleucus:
Cleopatra’s treasurer, who betrays his master.
Summary:
The play begins with one of the three rulers of Roman Empire, mark Antony, who is in love with
Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt and is spending his time in Egypt. He is neglecting his duties as a
statesman and is conducting an affair with Cleopatra when a message arrives that his wife, Fulvia, is dead
and Pompey is raising his army against them. Antony decides to return to Rome. Octavius ceasar and
Lepidus, Antony’s fellow triumvirs, worry about the Pompeys increasing and emerging strength.
The news of Fulvia’s death and the increasing power of Pompey reminds Antony his duty, and he feels
compelled to return to Rome. By his return to Rome, he and Caesar quarrel but Lepidus tries to cool them
down. For defeating Pompey, the most necessary thing was alliance. For this purpose Antony agreed that
he will marry Caesar’s sister, Octavia, who will solidify their loyalty. Enobarbus, a closest friend of
Antony predicts to Caesar’s men that Antony will return to Cleopatra, despite the marriage.
In Egypt, Cleopatra receives a message about Antony’s marriage but she becomes confident when she
receives that Octavia is a plan and unimportant. Antony, Caesar and Lepidus meet Pompey and told him
to leave the battle and settle their matters. Pompey demanded to rule over Sicily and Sardinia and in
exchange he will keep peace. That evening they all drink to celebrate their truce.one of Pompey’s solder
give him a plan to kill the triumvirs and to get the worlds power, but Pompey refused to accept the
scheme. Antony’s general wins a victory over the kingdom of Parthia.
Antony and Octavia went to Athens. As they departs, Caesar breaks his truce and starts a war against
Pompey and secure a victory. Caesar imprisons Lepidus, after using his army to secure a victory and takes
his land and possession and starts speaking out against Antony in public. This news angers Antony but
Octavia requested him to keep a peaceful relationship with Caesar. Antony sends Octavia to Rome on a
mission to maintain peace. Antony returns to Cleopatra. There in Egypt, he raises a large army to fight
Caesar. Antony decides to fight at sea at Actium. Cleopatra’s ships flee from the roman fleet, in the battle,
and Antony lose the battle.
Antony decides to fight Caesar on his land but after many defeats his army begins to lose faith in
Antony. Antony became sad due to facing the defeat from Caesar and when Enobarbus left him, but he
was not angry. Enobarbus in guilt of betraying Antony dies alone in this grief. At the battle, Cleopatra
leaves Antony and fearing from his anger, she takes shelter from her monument and spread a rumor of her
death. Antony is ruined by the news and decides to die himself. He falls onto his sword and is deadly
wounded but Cleopatra’s agent goes to notify him that Cleopatra is still alive. Antony is then taken up
into the tomb by Cleopatra where he dies in Cleopatra’s arms.
Caesae believes that cleopatra is their prisoner now where cleopatra cannot even think of being a
slave of the romans. Her felloe citizen brings her poisonous snakes in a basket. Her women dress her in a
cloak before she lays an asp on her bresast and dies, with her women. Caesar orders to burry antony and
cleopatra together, after discovering the bodies.
Themes of Antony and Cleopatra:

The struggle between choices:
In this play the two rulers, Antony of Rome and Cleopatra of Egypt are making choices throughout the
play. Every choice they made have some resuts, some known some unknown. This tells us about the
choices made by people and the way they make their choices, weather by reason or passion and the result
of those choices.

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E1343`q `

Brief about the writer:

Antony and Cleopatra:

Plot of Antony and Cleopatra:

 Charmian and iras:

Themes of Antony and Cleopatra:

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