Cinna the poet — not the conspirator — enters a street. He had dreamt that he feasted with Caesar, and "things unlucky charge my fantasy" (his imagination is full of ill omens). He has no wish to go out, "Yet something leads me forth" — to Caesar's funeral.
A group of citizens surrounds him and fires questions: What is your name? Where are you going? Where do you live? Are you married or a bachelor? Answer "directly", "briefly", "wisely", "truly". Cinna answers with a little wit ("Wisely I say, I am a bachelor"), which a citizen takes as an insult to married men. He says he goes to the funeral "as a friend" to Caesar, and lives "by the Capitol".
When he gives his name — "Truly, my name is Cinna" — the mob cries, "Tear him to pieces; he's a conspirator." He protests: "I am Cinna the poet, I am Cinna the poet." "Tear him for his bad verses," one shouts. "I am not Cinna the conspirator." "It is no matter, his name's Cinna: pluck but his name out of his heart, and turn him going." They kill him and rush off with fire-brands to burn the houses of Brutus, Cassius, Decius, Casca and Ligarius.
The scene shows the senseless cruelty of a mob: it no longer cares about truth or justice. The death of Cinna is tragic and unnecessary — the first innocent victim of the "havoc" Antony prophesied. (2027 specimen Q1(v).)
Foundation first: two men, one name
Rome has two men called Cinna. One is Cinna the conspirator, who helped to kill Caesar and who cried "Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!" in the last scene. The other is Cinna the poet, who has nothing to do with the plot. Scene 3 is built on the mob's mistake of taking one for the other. Keep them apart: the conspirator is guilty; the poet is innocent.
The scene also changes the mood. After the great speeches, the audience sees what the speeches have produced on the street. It is short, but it is one of the most terrible scenes in the play.
Worked examples
Example 1 (MCQ with a twist, 1 mark). Which words best describe the death of Cinna the poet? (a) tragic and unnecessary (b) jealous and selfish (c) accidental and unintentional (d) justified and essential.
Solution. (a). He is innocent and killed only for his name. It is not accidental, since the mob acts with deliberate cruelty. (Compare the 2027 specimen, Q1(v), in 8.1.)
Example 2 (short answer, 3 marks). Why do the citizens attack Cinna the poet?
Model answer. The citizens are full of rage after Antony's speech and want to find and punish the conspirators. When Cinna says his name, they cry, "Tear him to pieces; he's a conspirator." He protests that he is the poet, but one answers, "It is no matter, his name's Cinna." They do not care about the truth.
Why this scores: the mob's anger (1 mark), the mistaken name (1 mark), their refusal to listen (1 mark).
Example 3 (irony question, 3 marks). One citizen shouts, "Tear him for his bad verses." What does this show?
Model answer. It shows the mob's senselessness. Even after learning he is a poet, they find a new reason to kill him. The words are grimly comic but they hide a real cruelty: they will say anything to justify violence. The line shows that the mob has lost all sense of justice.
Why this scores: the meaning (1 mark), the mood of dark humour (1 mark), what it shows about the mob (1 mark).
Example 4 (long answer, 4 marks). Why do you think Shakespeare included Scene 3?
Model answer. Scene 3 shows the human cost of Antony's speech. After the speeches we see what the mob does with the freedom to act, and an innocent man is killed. It also fulfils Antony's prophecy of "Havoc" in the last scene, and it shows that the freedom Brutus promised has turned into violence. Finally, it adds a note of dark comedy and horror that deepens the tragedy.
Why this scores: the human cost (1 mark), the link to the prophecy (1 mark), the contrast with Brutus's promise of freedom (1 mark), the mood (1 mark).
Doubts cleared
Q. Why does Cinna the poet have a dream? He says he dreamt that he feasted with Caesar, and "things unlucky" fill his mind. It is a warning, like Calpurnia's dream, and it adds to our sense that his death is fated.
Q. Is the scene meant to be funny? Partly. The citizens' quick questions and Cinna's witty reply ("Wisely I say, I am a bachelor") make us smile, and then the laughter turns to horror. The mixture is deliberate.
Q. Is Cinna killed on the stage? The scene ends as the citizens rush off with him, crying for fire-brands to burn the conspirators' houses. His death is understood, not shown.
Mistakes to avoid
- Mixing up the two Cinnas. The 2025 paper offered "Cinna the conspirator" as a wrong option; the mob kills Cinna the poet.
- Saying that Antony ordered the killing. The mob acts on its own, in the heat of the moment, though Antony's speech has set it loose.
- Missing the dark irony: a poet is killed for his name, and then for his "bad verses".
Check yourself
- Who is killed by the mob in Scene 3?
- Why do the citizens attack him?
- What do the citizens say they will do next?
Answers: 1. Cinna the poet. 2. He shares his name with Cinna the conspirator. 3. Burn the houses of Brutus, Cassius, Decius, Casca and Ligarius.