Act III, Scene 7

This short scene, set in Rome, shows the preparations being taken for the war against Britain. Two Senators and two Tribunes discuss the declaration of war and their roles in it. Since the commoners or volunteers were away fighting wars of rebellion elsewhere, and since the forces in Gallia were too weak to take Britain, Caesar has appealed to the gentry to rise to the occasion under Lucius, who is the new general of the forces.

This brief scene only serves to show the preparations for war, as Caesar prepares to fight the British insolence. There are indications that Rome, under Augustus Caesar, was facing rebellion not only in Britain, but elsewhere too, among the Pannonians and the Dalmatians. It, therefore, helps the audience to understand the political situation that forms the background of the play. This short scene is introduced here only with a view to make the Roman invasion a greater reality and to remind the audience that a threat to Britain is not only internal with the disappearance of first Posthumus and now Imogen but also external.

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