One aspect of Julius Caesar that I find quite enthralling is the role of women in the play. There are only two main female roles, but they are both important and influential.

Calpurnia, Caesar's wife is a strong character who is introduced early to the play's plot. She is barren and looked down upon for that reason, yet she is behind the power of the most important man of the play. It is Calpurnia, who upon waking from a bad dream in which she dreamt that Caesar's blood flowed from a fountain in Rome, persuades him to not attend the senate on the ides of March. Caesar is nearly taken by this suggestion. He almost avoids his death and nearly changed history, but decided to go to the senate after Decius interprets the dream as being a good dream prophesying that Rome "...shall suck reviving blood" from Caesar after he is appointed counsel for life. Caesar decides to go to senate because Decius says that simply not going because Calpurnia met with bad dreams would destroy Caesar's honor. Caesar is then stabbed to death on the ides of March.

Yet another influential female character in Julius Caesar is Portia. Portia is Brutus' wife and she too is responsible for the outcome of events in no small way. She begs with Brutus to tell her the reason for his depression and his late night meeting with the conspirators. He almost does. Surely Portia would have been able to dissuade him from his plans and consequently his death would not have occurred. He leaves before he has the opportunity to tell her of his intentions and before she has the knowledge to protect him from himself.

Both women had influential parts in the play and were almost given the ability to prevent Caesar's death and Rome's collapse. They almost changed history, but at the last moment, they were unable to stop their husbands from their fatal mistakes.