Thursday, March 15, 2007

The Ides of March

Today is the Ides of March, made famous to us moderns by William Shakespeare in his play Julius Caesar. The Ides of March is the day when Caesar's was assassinated in 44BC.
Caesar: Who is it in the press that calls on me?
I hear a tongue, shriller than all the music
Cry "Caesar!" Speak. Caesar is turn'd to hear
.

Soothsayer: Beware the ides of March.
Historically, it is the date by which debts were usually settled (including, apparently, Caesar's).

Perhaps it was the ancient version of our present-day ides of April.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Perhaps there is a debt to be settled in my life? I'll keep you posted, as always.

Anonymous said...

oops, that last anonymous is me! Sorry. It's early.

Anonymous said...

dag, did it again

Dymphna's favorite quotes


"Slavery ended in medieval Europe only because the church extended its sacraments to all slaves and then managed to impose a ban on the enslavement of Christians (and of Jews). Within the context of medieval Europe, that prohibition was effectively a rule of universal abolition. "— Rodney Stark

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