Mojo, The Bard, & Me

 

MESSALA

Believe it not so.

CASSIUS

I but believe it partly;

For I am fresh of spirit, and resolved

To meet all perils very constantly.

 

-Messala and Cassius

Julius Caesar                  Act V Scene i, Line 90

The army of Brutus and Cassius is about to face off against the army of Octavius Caesar and Marc Antony. In the lines previous to today’s Totally Random lines Cassius talks of seeing eagles the day previous but

        This morning are they fled away and gone;

And in their steads do ravens, crows, and kites,

Fly o’er our heads, and downward look on us,

As we were sickly prey: their shadows seem

A canopy most fatal, under which

Our army lies, ready to give up the ghost.

In today’s lines Messala is saying not to believe this omen, and based on Cassius’s response it sounds like maybe he won’t. So that’s good. You can’t go letting a bunch of stupid birds determine your future for you. You’ve got to make your own way. Right? Atta boy, Cassius.

Though, speaking of birds – spoiler alert –, the omen is actually correct: Cassius’s goose is cooked (pun intended). This is a Shakespearean tragedy after all. You should have known it. 

This colorful little guy is a malachite kingfisher. What do you suppose Cassius would have done if he saw these guys circling? Perhaps he would've said, "What the heck are those malachite kingfishers doing here. We're not in southern Africa."