While Pascal’s Cleopatra may not be aware of her sexuality, the other characters certainly are. Cleopatra’s servant maid, named Ftatateeta, remarks not to perfume herself, as Caesar doesn’t like perfume. She also tells Cleopatra not to paint her lips, or else Caesar won’t kiss her. Cleopatra shrugs off her comments with a childlike, “Why would he want to kiss me?” epitomizing her character as a sensual creature desperately unaware of her sensuality.

By portraying Cleopatra in this way, Pascal gives the audience of Caesar and Cleopatra access to guileless, plausible deniability. She is alluring, but not really! She may seem sexual, but she doesn’t mean it! One cannot deny the power that this gives both Caesar and the viewers over Cleopatra. When she is presented as an ignorant child, Caesar can control the way that she rules her kingdom and herself. Cleopatra’s arrival in Rome with her lover, Caesar, caused quite a stir. In addition to the affair setting tongues wagging, Cleopatra became a fashion and beauty icon amongst Roman women. She wore the hairstyle of her Greek ancestors, with her hair braided into a bun. Upon her arrival, this hairstyle was adopted by Roman women along with Cleopatra’s makeup and signature pearl jewelry. Cleopatra first began her legendary love affair with the Roman general Mark Antony in 41 B.C. Their relationship had a political component—Cleopatra needed Antony to protect her crown and maintain Egypt’s independence, while Antony needed access to Egypt’s riches and resources—but they were also famously fond of each other’s company. According to ancient sources, they spent the winter of 41-40 B.C. living a life of leisure and excess in Egypt, and even formed their own drinking society known as the “Inimitable Livers.” The group engaged in nightly feasts and wine binges, and its members occasionally took part in elaborate games and contests. One of Antony and Cleopatra’s favorite activities supposedly involved wandering the streets of Alexandria in disguise and playing pranks on its residents. 8. She led a fleet in a naval battle.Anthony died in Cleopatra's arms after fatally stabbing himself, before she also committed suicide - reportedly by letting an asp bite her. Married to her brother Ptolemy XIII in her father's will, she united with Julius Caesar against him - famously having herself smuggled to see the Roman general inside a carpet so she could strike terms with him.

This caused a massive scandal, not only because of its heinous nature, but also because it was a gross violation of temple rules. Summer's started to drag, the heat is stale and promises no respite. With most of her friends out of town and nothing to do, Joan is desperate to kill time till school starts up again. After the death of Ptolemy XIII, there was just one heir eligible for the Egyptian throne left —another younger brother, this one named Ptolemy XIV. So, she married him—after all, it had worked with the last brother. But as we know, Cleopatra wasn't interested in sharing the throne with anyone, and one again, the wheels began turning in her mind.Doubts have been cast on the theory, however, as other experts believe Cleopatra was hastily buried in Alexandria itself - the city from where she ruled Egypt until her death, believed to have been caused by snake venom. It's a good thing that Cleopatra had this experience under her belt because when her father Pharaoh Ptolemy XII died, she was more than prepared. In his will, he made 18-year-old Cleopatra and her 10-year-old brother joint rulers. More than a little annoying, since she'd already been working alongside her father for years, but that wasn't the worst part.