Philo, one of Antony's loyal friend and partner in war, has seen Antony going from one respectable soldier to then abandoning his everything about the empire upon meeting Cleopatra. He is not confident into which category Antony fits into. (5.1) Many roles are played by Antony; therefore we see different sides of the argument. Antony can claim greatness for serving the needs of his country and his empire as fighter and as a leader. He can be seen as equal as Caesar, as he commits suicide, seen as a honourable thing to do. Antony's once loyal and heroic background all changes when he comes across Cleopatra. A once great military reader is now in decline due to her charm and bewitching nature. The first sign we see this occurring is when Philo says the temple pillar of the world transformed into the strumpet's fool (1.1). In differences between Roman and Alexandrian ways of life has a big influence on Antony's behaviour and each view of Antony's "taints and honours" very differently. Shakespeare could be seen as using shock tactics to challenge the audiences of the time such as Antony's suicide, which is a grave crime for the

Protestant religions of that period. Different audiences will tend to view Antony's behaviour differently.

There is still the question of what makes Antony honourable. For example, as Antony prepares to meet Caesar in battle, he determines that, "he will live/bathe his dying honour to death". The play bares out this assertion since although Antony and Cleopatra will kill themselves, but for different reasons. They both imagine that the act will invest them with honour. In death, Antony returns to his previous identity as a true, noble Roman, becoming, "a Roman by a Roman/valiantly vanquished"(4.16), while Cleopatra resolves to, "bury him and then what's brave, what's noble/let's do it after the high roman fashion"(4.16) Both Antony and Cleopatra both secure honourable deaths by refusing to compromise their identities. A further image of a "taint" can be seen of in Antony's death, the inadequacy of the sword could reflect the abandonment of his Roman role of soldier and world conqueror, "You [Cleopatra] were my conqueror, and that my sword made weak by my affection would obey it on all cause" (3.11) effectively blaming her influence over him for his loss at war and ultimate downfall.

Philo complains that Antony has abandoned the military endeavours. Antony was the military hero and disciplined statesman, but seems to have happily abandoned his reason in order to pursue his passion. He himself says, "here I am Antony, yet cannot hold this visible shape" (4.14). He, right after this, declares that, "let in Tiber melt and the wide arch of the ranged empire fall!"(1.1)

Some common words found in the essay are:
Antony Cleopatra, Caesar Antony, Roman Alexandrian, Philo Antony's, Julius Caesar, Cleopatra Fulvia, Rome Antony, Lepidus Antony, Rome Alexandrian, Octavia Jove, antony honourable, audience antony, antony cleopatra, julius caesar, caesar antony, makes antony honourable, past honours, honour death, antony's behaviour, alexandrian life, tiber melt,
Approximate Word count = 1807
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)