Julius Caesar: Act 2, Scene 4

This scene takes place outside Brutus's house on the tense morning of the planned assassination. It highlights the immense stress and anxiety felt by his wife, Portia.

• 1. Portia's Frantic State Portia is pacing outside her house in a state of extreme panic. She urgently commands her servant, Lucius, to run to the Senate House. However, her mind is so clouded by worry that she initially forgets to tell the poor boy what his actual mission is, leaving him completely confused.
• 2. The Struggle to Keep a Secret Portia is burdened by the knowledge of her husband's conspiracy to kill Caesar. She speaks to herself, praying for the "strength of purpose" to keep this massive secret. She famously laments that she has the strong mind of a man, but only the emotional strength and self-control of a woman, making the secret incredibly hard to bear.
• 3. Clear Instructions to Lucius Finally gathering her thoughts, she tells Lucius to go to the Capitol and observe two things carefully: first, whether Brutus looks healthy and well; and second, how Caesar is behaving and which people are crowding around him.
• 4. Paranoia and Imagined Noises Portia's severe anxiety makes her paranoid. She suddenly believes she hears a massive uproar—like a violent fight or riot—blowing in the wind from the Capitol. She asks Lucius to listen, but he honestly replies that he hears nothing at all.
• 5. Meeting the Soothsayer A Soothsayer (fortune teller) arrives on the street. Portia asks him the time (it is about nine o'clock) and nervously questions if he knows of any harm planned against Caesar. The Soothsayer replies that he doesn't know of any specific plot, but he deeply fears that something terrible is about to happen.
• 6. The Soothsayer's Warning Plan The Soothsayer explains that the street is too narrow and crowded with senators and commoners. He decides to move to a more open, empty place so he can speak directly to Caesar as he passes by, hoping to beg him to take care of himself.
• 7. A Desperate Prayer and Final Message Overwhelmed to the point of feeling physically faint, Portia prays for the heavens to help Brutus succeed in his "enterprise" (the plot). Realizing Lucius might have overheard her suspicious prayer, she quickly covers it up. She sends Lucius off with a brave face, telling him to give her love to Brutus and to tell him she is happy ("merry"), asking the boy to return quickly with Brutus's reply.