Cato

Roles

• Cato - Adult (36-50), Male

About this piece

Cato ponders about the immortality of the soul and suicide

Summary

The play is inspired by the last days of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticensis 95BC-46BC), a Roman politician in the late Roman Republic who became famous for his integrity, stubbornness and strong opposition to Julius Caesar's politics. He eventually joined Pompey and Scipio in a war against Caesar and lost. The story is set at Utica, where Cato and his troops are waiting for the arrival of Caesar, after Caesar crushes Scipio at Thapsus. Characters of the play include his sons Portius and Marcus who are in love with the same woman, Lucia, daughter of a Roman senator. The prince of Numidia, Juba, is in love with Marcia, Cato's daughter. Conspiring against Cato are Sempronius, a senator, and Syphax, general of the Numidians. This soliloquy opens the fifth act. Caesar's forces are approaching and Cato decides to commit suicide. Being Caesar's strongest enemy, Cato considers that by killing himself it will be easier for his troops to make peace with Caesar. In the monologue, inspired by Plato's dialogue of Phaedo, he ponders about the immortality of the soul and the thought of killing himself.

Tone

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