“Dire senza Dire” in Mark Antony’s funeral speech

The Communicative effect of “Dire senza Dire” in Mark Antony’s funeral speech in Julies Caesar by W. Shakespeare


The entire speech delivered by Mark Antony during the funeral of Julies Caesar has been constructed on the formal of “Dire Senza Dire” which had an enormous communicative impact on the audience and changed the entire situation of the Roman Empire.
In the very beginning of his speech Mark Antony said, “ Friends, Romans, country men lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him” which was not true because he came to praise Caesar and to proclaim his magnanimity which he revealed as he unfold the secret will, that which was written by Caesar himself for his fellow citizens.
During his speech he said, “Brutus is an honourable man” he repeated the same phrase for four times and he also called the conspirators as “honourable men” for four times during his speech but he actually meant the opposite. He made the public to say that “ they were traitors, they were villains, murderers”.
The most powerful technique used by Mark Antony to instigate the public against the conspirators was he showed each and every point of the stabbing on Caesar’s body “look, in this place ran Cassius’ dagger through: see what a rent the envious Casca made: though this the well beloved Brutus stabbed …” thus he created sympathy and pity for Caesar among the crowd.
At the end before revealing the will written by Caesar he said, “ Good friends, sweet friends, let me not stir you up. To such a sudden flood of mutiny” but actually he made this speech to stir the public against the conspirators. He humbled himself before the public saying “ I have neither wit, nor words, nor worth, action, nor utterance, nor the power of speech” but he made the public to say that he was a powerful and honouable man and leader.
Thus as we read the funeral speech of Mark Antony from the very beginning till the end the whole speech is formed on “Dire senza Dire” and had an powerful communicative impact on the public.