“Wherever there is a man who exercises authority, there is a person who resists authority” –Oscar Wilde, this quote shows how throughout history there is always an individual who will stand up against a tyrant. This is also a feature of literature as well which is shown by: Brutus in ‘Julius Caesar’ who is fighting because of his ideals for a perfect life of liberty, Winston Smith in ‘1984’ who is fighting against a brutal totalitarian regime and Sir Thomas More in ‘A man for all seasons’ who is fighting due to his conscience being able to rule over his loyalty to King Henry. All three of these characters are in positions of power within the states they will later fight against: Brutus is one of Caesar’s key advisers who is described as patriotic as shown by the quote “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more” and is frequently referred to as an honourable man, Winston Smith is a technician within the Ministry of Truth and his job is to destroy any parts of history which disagree with the official party line and is described as having a “varicose ulcer above his right ankle” which forces him to “rest several times” on his way home and finally Sir Thomas More is Henry’s Chancellor of the Exchequer and is described as a kind and generous man who “would give anything to anyone” and very importantly he is a staunch Catholic, but what drives each of these men to strike out against the state they themselves are a part of?
“Wherever there is a man who exercises authority, there is a person who resists authority” – Oscar Wilde, This quote shows that throughout history whenever a tyrant emerges, there will be an individual or group of individuals who will take it upon themselves to oppose this tyrant. This theme can be found throughout literature as a means of documenting this struggle: most famously in William Shakespeare’s play ‘Julius Caesar’ with the character of Brutus who leads a band of government officials to attack their Emperor in order to stop their life of freedom turning into a cruel dictatorship, This theme was carried on by George Orwell in his novel ‘1984’ which is a dystopic view of a future where England is ruled by a cruel faceless dictator who uses his secret police to destroy any means of attacking him and most recently in Robert Bolt’s play ‘ A Man for all seasons’ which depicts Sir Thomas More trying to oppose Henry VIII’s Act of supremacy which took all power away from the Pope as the head of the church within England.
Two of these main figures are arguably in key positions of power within the states they are fighting against: Brutus is one of Caesar’s key advisers with a deep seated love for his city “I loved Rome more” and is referred to by the “many of the best respect” wishing that “noble Brutus had his eyes” so that he could see how honourable he is in their eyes. The other character in a arguable position of power is Sir Robert More who was King Henry’s Chancellor of the Exchequer and good friend and is described by the Common Man as a generous man “who would give anything to anyone” but it is important to recognise that he is a staunch catholic who would disapprove of Henry’s reforms in religion at least in private and as a privy councillor for Henry ordered the burning of protestant reformers. Despite both of these characters being “honourable men” and advisers to their rulers they realistically have no control over their states. However, Winston Smith unlike the other focused characters: who are political figures in their states, is a lowly technician in the Ministry of Truth, who’s only role in helping the state is the destruction of anything which goes against the party version of history, which guarantees them control over their subjects and is described as a feeble specimen with a “varicose ulcer above his right ankle” which affects his ability to even complete basic actions such as walking as he has to “rest several times” on the way home from his work.

Brutus’ reason for committing an act of treason against the rule of the Roman Emperors is primarily focused on ending the reign of Julius Caesar due to his apparent change of power as put forward by Cassius who radicalises Brutus into thinking about committing an act of regicide with the line “ This man has become a God” which Cassius believes a gross misdeed as him and Brutus were born as “free as Caesar” and will have to suffer “the winters cold” just the same as Caesar will so what gives Caesar the right to preside over Brutus and the people of Rome “Like a colossus “ which suggests that they believe Caesar feels he is totally different and he is like a god controlling the affairs of men. This idea of the leader being god- like is similar to the way in which Big Brother is portrayed in ‘1984’ which is based on the ‘high Stalinist’ period in Russia which took place in between 1945 to 1953 which is where the leader of the regime becomes a god like figure who is to be revered, this is achieved by the placing of his posters “on every floor opposite the elevator” in Winston’s apartment block and “gazing down from every commanding corner” this combined with the telescreens in every room which allows the regime total control over their members lives and allows them to monitor them for anti-party rhetoric. However, in Bolt’s ‘A man for all seasons” we see a portrayal of Henry VIII’s reign specifically focusing on his Act of Supremacy which allowed him to take total control of the Church of England, this is shown by the splitting of the two acts which allows for a gap of 4 years between them within which this law change has been solidified by his government and to highlight the tensions which Roman Catholics such as More felt against this shocking act of an autocratic ruler taking absolute control over every aspect of his society.
Brutus’ primary reasons for his radicalisation in his belief of Caesar attempting to change his position of power to an absolute ruler, which ultimately leads to him planning to “purge him”. Shakespeare puts evidence to support this belief in Marrullus’ (a plebeian) monologue in the first scene where he attacks the citizens of Rome for being “cruel men” for supporting Caesar’s attack on Pompeii which takes place before the play which cements Caesar’s ambitions for ruling over Rome and Italy “like a colossus” through acts of genocide. Cassius adds to these feelings of resentment against Caesar by believing that “this man has become a god” in the eyes of the majority of the plebeians even though they were born as “free as Caesar”. These feelings show that the leader of Brutus’ state is changing from the democratic republic Brutus loved to a cruel autocratic regime which is unafraid of using violence to put down opposition against their rulings. This brutal and god like tyrant is similarly portrayed in ‘1984’ where Big Brother is idolised by many party members and proles through the use of propaganda posters “on every floor opposite the elevator” in the accommodation blocks and “gazing down from every commanding corner” in the streets of London, this combined with the tele screens and adaptation of historical facts allow the regime of the ominous Party complete control over their members and citizens and also allows them to monitor for anti-party thinking. This terrifying portrayal of the Soviet Union in the period 1945 to 53 known by many as “high Stalinism” is used in the modern day by many modern political thinkers as a description of the CCTV states we inhabit and the masses of corporate propaganda which is shown to us every day.