It Is Not In The Stars

This is a loose paraphrase of a line spoken by Cassius to Brutus in Act I, Scene 2 of Julius Caesar (c. 1599). The exact line is "Men at some time are masters of their fates: / The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, / But in ourselves, that we are underlings." Cassius delivers it as part of a calculated speech to draw Brutus into the conspiracy against Caesar, arguing that their subservience is a choice rather than destiny. The source attribution "(paraphrased)" in the database correctly flags that the popular condensed version omits "Men at some time are masters of their fates."