Do you think that Shakespeare presents Cassius as a strong or weak character in Julius Caesar?

Shakespeare realized  he could not have too many strong
characters. Caesar and Antony are both strong characters, and Cassius’s partner Brutus
is obviously the stronger of those two men. In order to differentiate Cassius,
Shakespeare has characterized him as a selfish and greedy miser—although no doubt he is
brave, intelligent, and proud. He is a shrewd judge of men because he judges them by
himself and knows himself to be selfish, cunning, and treacherous. That is why he is
opposed to letting Antony speak at Caesar’s funeral. That is why he foresees that Caesar
could become a tyrant. That is why Caesar is afraid of
him.

There are several interesting bits of dialogue in
which Cassius reveals his character.

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CASSIUS    Will you sup with me tonight,
Casca?

CASCA       No, I am promised
forth.

CASSIUS    Will you dine with me
tomorrow?

CASCA       Ay, if I be alive, and your mind
hold, and   your dinner worth the
eating.

Casca has known
Cassius since school days. He knows what kind of food and wine to expect. Cassius first
invites him to supper, which is a light meal consisting of a little cheese, bread and
wine and would not cost him much. Then Cassius ups the ante (judging Casca by himself)
and invites him to dinner, which would of course be more elaborate and expensive. Casca
obviously doesn’t like Cassius and feels pressured, as his reply indicates. He doesn’t
expect Cassius’s dinner to be worth the eating. He has probably had bad previous
experiences.

Another interesting exchange occurs just after
the heated argument between Brutus and Cassius in Act 4, Scene 2. Brutus asks Lucius to
bring him a bowl of wine and says, “In this I bury all unkindness, Cassius.” Evidently
both men drink out of the same bowl. Cassius says

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My heart is thirsty for that noble
pledge.

Fill, Lucius, till the wine o’erswell the
cup.

I cannot drink too much of Brutus’
love.

This is an unmistakable
sign of a true miser. He cannot drink too much—as long as someone else is providing the
wine. And he knows that Brutus provides good wine, whereas he himself serves his
guests—as Casca knows-- the cheapest stuff he can buy. No doubt Cassius is just as
frugal with his own consumption, like misers generally, which would help to explain what
Caesar calls his “lean and hungry look.” A miser always gets more than he
gives.

Another subtle sign of Cassius’s character can be
detected when he and Brutus meet with Antony and Octavius on the battlefield. Cassius
says

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Antony,

The posture of your blows are yet
unknown;

But for your words, they rob the Hybla
bees,

And leave them
honeyless.

Such outrageous
flattery just before a major battle! Cassius is obviously trying to curry favor with
Antony for some selfish reason--probably hoping for favorable treatment should he be
captured, or even hinting that he might be open to negotiating a separate peace with
Antony and Octavius. This latter suggestion is not too far-fetched, considering that he
didn’t want to fight this battle and probably doesn’t expect to win. Would he sell
Brutus out? Maybe he would, after that humiliating tongue-lashing he received in
Brutus’s tent, and after the way he has been consistently overruled by his partner and
forced into a subordinate position when he was the one who orchestrated the entire plot
against Caesar in the first place.