Julius Caesar Project
Ben Swanner, Scott Griffin, Nick Taylor
Unstoppable
Rascal Flatts
Unstoppable besides being an inspiring song to heartbroken folks everywhere, relates both literally and emotionally to the play. It relates to how Antony felt right after Caesar's death, when it says “when the cold hard rain just won’t quit and you can’t see your way out of it” this can be correlated with the Ides of March. On a more emotional level, Antony feels that his “heart is in the coffin there with Caesar, and I must pause until it come back to me.” in my opinion that directly correlates with the line from the song “find your faith has been lost and shaken, you take back what's been taken.” Antony wants to avenge what was taken from him by the conspirators when his faith/love was lost. Antony’s love for Caesar was unstoppable even at the idea of being killed by the conspirators or hated by the crowd, the theme of the song “love is unstoppable” coincides with this well.
Ben S.
Spirits In The Material World
The Police
“Spirits in the Material World” is an anthem that connects to Julius Caesar on a political level. In the first verse, the singer sings “There is no political solution to our troubled evolution. Have no faith in constitution. There is no bloody revolution.” In the play, Rome is politically unstable and the citizens are unsure of the course Roman politics will take. Sting sings from the point of view of a commoner, warning his fellow citizens about politics and politicians. He says that governments won't stop human corruption. Also, because Sting is a known open critic of government, his take on politics is more believable as being similar to one a plebeian might've had during the time of Julius Caesar.
Positively 4th Street
Bob Dylan
I chose this song, because of the verse, “You’ve got a lotta nerve to say you are my friend, when i was down you just stood there grinnin’, you’ve got a lotta nerve to say you got a helping hand to lend, you just want to be on the side that’s winnin.” This verse describes the scene when Caesar is being murdered by his own friends, especially Brutus. The verse is from Caesars point of view, as he probably feels extremely betrayed by Brutus stabbing him last. Brutus is also feeling guilty as he does this to his friend, but its too late for him to switch sides. The conspiracy had already take over, which ties back to the last line of that verse. With Caesar dead, they believe all the control of Rome is in their hands. But, as time would tell, they were wrong.
-Nick Taylor