A Noble Conflict

Casca: O, he sits high in all the people's hearts;
And that which would appear offense in us,
His countenance, like richest alchymy,
Will change to virtue and to worthiness.

Cassius: Him and his worth, and our great need of him,
You have right well conceited. Let us go,
For it is after midnight, and ere day
We will awake him and be sure of him. (1.3.157-64)

For Brutus, duty, honor and loyalty define life and action. And thus, when forced to choose between his love for Caesar and his wishes for Rome, a struggle ensues that places his beliefs on trial, forcing him to defend them from all sides.

He is devoted to what is right, but what happens when the preservation of the right means committing a wrong? Brutus is torn -

It must be by his death; and for my part,
I know no personal cause to spurn at him,
But for the general. He would be crown'd:>
How that might change his nature, there's the question. (2.1.10-3)

Once Caesar is killed, the guilt overwhelms Brutus because he cannot make sense of murder. He knows that problems cannot be fixed so easily. He believes in accountability. He wants to make amends to his friend, even though he knows in his heart that his actions were done for a higher purpose. Does that justify the action? For some men, perhaps, but for a character like Brutus, there is none. The act stays with him and his only way of apology is through his own death.

In short, Brutus' participation in the conspiracy is not the framework by which his life should be judged. Motive is far more important than the act itself, even though Brutus could not accept the reasoning himself. The conspirators may have all committed murder, but that is where the similarities end.

References: