What did Calpurnia's fears make her do?
What did Calpurnia's fears make her do?
Official answer
Calpurnia's fears, caused by her ominous dreams and the frightening omens in Rome, made her beg and plead with Caesar to stay at home and not go to the Senate that day.
Marking scheme
- 1.1 mark for stating that Calpurnia begged/pleaded with Caesar to stay home and not go to the senate.
Hint
Think about the specific action Calpurnia took after her terrifying dreams about Caesar's statue spouting blood.
Quick oral answer
Calpurnia's fears, triggered by her ominous dreams of Caesar's statue spouting blood, made her desperately beg Caesar to stay home and not go to the senate on the Ides of March.
Common mistakes
- 1.Confusing Calpurnia with Portia (Brutus's wife), who is a different character in the play with her own concerns about her husband.
- 2.Describing the content of Calpurnia's dreams in detail instead of answering what her fears made her DO, which was to beg Caesar to stay home.
- 3.Writing that Calpurnia stopped Caesar from going to the senate, when in fact she only temporarily succeeded before Decius reversed Caesar's decision.
Analysis and explanation
This is a direct-recall question from the Julius Caesar extract, testing whether students can identify the effect of Calpurnia's fear rather than describe the fear itself.
Concept
- Calpurnia is disturbed by ominous dreams and supernatural omens (including Caesar's statue "spouting blood").
- Her fear drives her to a single action: she begs/pleads with Caesar not to leave home and go to the Senate on the Ides of March.
Common mistakes
- Confusing Calpurnia (Caesar's wife) with Portia (Brutus's wife).
- Over-explaining the content of the dreams instead of answering what her fears made her do.
- Writing a vague answer like "she was scared" without naming the resulting action (begging/pleading).
Real-world connection
- The scene dramatizes intuition versus ambition — Calpurnia represents instinctive caution, while Caesar's dismissal of her shows how ambition can override sound judgement, foreshadowing his assassination.
Interesting facts
In Shakespeare's source material, Plutarch's 'Lives', Calpurnia actually grabbed Caesar's hand and begged him not to leave, which Shakespeare dramatized into the famous pleading scene in Act II, Scene 2.
The historical Calpurnia (Calpurnia Pisonis) was Caesar's third wife, married to him from 59 BC until his assassination in 44 BC. After his death, she handed over his personal papers and will to Mark Antony.
Shakespeare wrote Julius Caesar around 1599, and it was one of the first plays performed at the newly built Globe Theatre in London. The play draws heavily from Sir Thomas North's 1579 English translation of Plutarch.
Question details
Q37 of 47 questions
- Board
- CBSE
- Class
- Class 10
- Subject
- English (Communicative)
- Year
- 2025
- Section
- Section D
- Marks
- 1
- Type
- Short Answer
- Chapter
- Literature
- Topic
- Julius Caesar
- Bloom's level
- remember
- Syllabus topic
- Drama - Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (Act II, Scene 2: Calpurnia's fears and Caesar's decision)
- Updated
- 2026-02-19
- Author
- Padhantu
- Reviewed by
- Padhantu
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Frequently asked questions
What exactly did Calpurnia dream about that frightened her?
Calpurnia dreamt that Caesar's statue spouted blood like a fountain, with many smiling Romans bathing their hands in it. She also heard reports of fierce battles and ghosts shrieking in the streets.
Did Caesar initially agree to stay home because of Calpurnia?
Yes, Caesar initially yielded to Calpurnia's pleas and agreed not to go to the senate. However, Decius Brutus later reinterpreted her dream positively and convinced Caesar to change his mind.
How did Calpurnia try to convince Caesar apart from describing her dreams?
Calpurnia knelt before Caesar and begged him to stay, saying she had never stood on ceremonies but now the supernatural events genuinely terrified her. She asked him to send Mark Antony to say he was unwell.