Antony and Cleopatra Pt. II

Antony and Cleopatra Acts 2 & 3

The feminist in me is almost angry at the plot in Antony and Cleopatra. The plot, albeit indirectly, assumes that women are responsible for the actions and flaws of the men in the story. For instance, the Romans see Cleopatra as the harlot that is distracting Antony from his Roman duties. Octavius Caesar believes that if Antony marries his sister Octavia, that this will somehow unite them and mend any sort of animosity. The burden lies on Octavia for bringing such balance. Why, I ask myself, must this pressure lie on Octavia, or the blame for Antony's actions be put on Cleopatra. The funny aspect of it is that the Romans still believe Antony to be a great war hero, which he probably is, but as much as they may reference his recent lack of devotion to Rome, they do not look down on him. Whereas with Cleopatra, the Romans see nothing but an exotic pleasure of Antony's. I believe Antony should be held fully responsible for his actions, as well as Caesar. Peace and loyalty between Antony and Caesar should be the responsibility of  the two instead of using a woman as a mediator. This only means that Octavia is forced to be a great wife, one who will support Antony and one who will look out for the good of the people... which I guess would be her way of being of service to Rome. Caesar tells his sister that she should not come to him plainly or display herself as common maid, rather she should make a spectacle as she parades the city. He links theatrics with power, and although he resents Cleopatra for her theatrics, he knows how powerful the representation of power can be.