The Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra Contrasting Regions Quotes Page 3

Cleopatra thinks of the nobility of a Roman burial (which is a big deal, because she’s really serious about being Egyptian), but she also alludes to the fact that she’ll kill herself. Interestingly, she describes her suicide as a Roman death, characterized by honor, nobility, and sacrifice. It’s important that this is contrary to the relaxed Egyptian view: there’s a kernel of evidence here that Antony’s Roman-ness might have affected Cleopatra, where all other evidence seems to indicate that Antony was only being changed by Egypt. This is especially cool if you think about it as the basis for an argument that Antony is a true representative of Rome. It makes sense that Egypt should impact Antony, because he lives there, but if Antony is able to spread Roman values, even when he’s out of Rome and surrounded by Egyptians, then his Roman values are strong indeed.

Cleopatra is loyal to Egypt until the end. It isn’t just her temperament, but her heart that’s Egyptian. She would rather die an ignoble death in Egypt than suffer through a victory parade for Rome that would signify Egypt’s submission to that empire.