What Are the “Ides of March” and Should We Beware of Them?
If you notice the existential darkness that hangs over all of humanity today, be sure: it’s not because today is the Ides of March.
In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar , first staged in 1599, the soothsayer repeatedly warns the protagonist “Beware of the Ides of March”, a phrase that has since resonated in Western culture as a dire warning of a dark day. But what does it mean? And why, exactly, should we beware?
What are “ideas”?
In the Roman lunar calendar, the “ides” refer to the first new moon of the month, which usually falls between the thirteenth and fifteenth. However, the Ides of March refers specifically to March 15, regardless of when the new moon rises.
What’s the deal with the Ides of March?
Shakespeare’s play is based on political intrigues within the Roman Republic – Julius Caesar was indeed assassinated by a group of senators on March 15, 44 BC. BC, which marked the beginning of the civil war, which eventually led to the formation of the Roman Empire. The fortune-teller warned Julius to beware of the 15th (at least according to the account of the Roman historian Plutarch).
The seer’s warning was addressed to Julius Caesar, but not to everyone, so even if the seer could indeed see the future, we have no reason to fear the Ides of March more than any other day.
How do we celebrate the Ides of March?
In today’s world, we don’t do much to celebrate March 15th – it’s World National Shoes Day and International Day of Action Against Canadian Seal Slaughter , plus a host of other ” days “, but nothing is widely celebrated.
However, in ancient Rome, March 15th was an important day. These were the first ides of the New Year in the Roman calendar and the last day for paying debts, a bit like the ancient Roman version of April 15th. The murderous senators knew that Caesar would be in the Senate that day and stabbed him. to death on the day dedicated to the payment of debts and the meeting of the new year is a powerful symbolism.
Are the Ides of March really unlucky?
If you look in history for the bad events that occurred on March 15, you can find some – in 1360 the French made a particularly brutal raid on England, Germany occupied Czechoslovakia on March 15, 1939, SARS was first reported. in 2003, but on the other hand, March 15 was the release date for The Godfather in 1972, in 1965 Lyndon Johnson introduced the Voting Rights Act, and in 1933, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was born. So, ultimately, it’s a hoax – we say “Beware of the Ides of March” just because of Shakespeare’s play.
Other supernatural warnings about the assassination of Julius Caesar
The seer’s warning detailed by Shakespeare was not the only psychic prediction of Julius Caesar’s assassination. Virgil’s poem “Georgics ” reports that the political assassination was also preceded by the following death warnings:
- Malevolent dogs and birds conjuring mischief sent signs foreshadowing disaster.
- Germany heard the sound of battle blasting across the sky.
- In the gathering darkness, ghosts of unearthly pallor could be seen.
- Animals uttered human speech.
- Rivers stopped.
- In the temples, ivory images wept with grief, and sweat covered bronze statues.
- Never again did lightning fall from a cloudless sky; never before had the alarming glow of a comet been seen so often.