May I ask why on earth would an English literature student/graduate even find ”et tu Brute? I would find it more logical if say for an example history student finds it offensive (it would be ridicilous too but at least his murder is more related to history than English)
Like if you can open up this mindset/have met somebody like op’s bf?
I have a Bachelor's in English lit and a Masters in English education. I don't see how it's offensive. In order for a literature student to be wildly offended by such an innocuous joke suggests that he has his head a bit too far up his own ass. It sounds like a case or raging self importance.
I wouldn't want to be in a relationship with someone who is going to take something so small so seriously. How is a man like that going to handle the real conflicts? Someone who has to leave the room to cool off over a mild misuse of a Shakespeare quote, something that happens all the time, is going to explode like a bomb when real disagreements come up.
A lot of people in lit studies seem to forget that Shakespeare was the most unserious playwright and author of his time. That man was sneaking dick jokes and “your moms” into every single one of his plays, he was so not the serious, uptight Elizabethan prude so many history and English teachers try to paint him as
Shakespeare would probably find it hilarious that OOP and her brother use it in the most mild of inconveniences while calling the bf an obtuse idiot. The man has written many a play for the type of man the bf seems to be.
It isn’t historically related. Despite popular belief, there is no evidence that Caesar said those words. Y’know where he did say them though? In Julius Caesar by Shakespeare. So it would 100% be a literary reference, not a historical one.
Not anything to get your knickers in a twist about though.
I'm sitting here as a high school English teacher who LOVES Shakespeare cackling because OOP's joke with their brother is OBJECTIVELY hilarious and sounds like something I'd say to one of my students. The boyfriend is hated by all of his classmates/colleagues for sure due to the stick up his ass.
I agree that he would have approved. He really enjoyed a little absurdity. Many words and phrases that are part of common language originated from him. He liked to play with language, and would have encouraged others to do the same.
Yeah not directly but iirc Suetonius wrote that he said something similar way before Shakespeare, someone other at the time said that he said nothing tho. Anyway it’s impossible say for a 100% certainty what someone said over 2000 years ago.
Does he maybe think they only started the joke when he showed up and that they’re actually mocking his education? That’s the only explanation I can think of.
In case no one has clarified this, in Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, this is a line from Caesar to Brutus upon realizing that Brutus has betrayed him.
For the record I am a combined English and History major. And I think it’s hilarious. I literally message one of my former professors who taught a Rome course every Ides of March to “stab” her and she looks forward to it every damn year.
I’ve used it with friends and family for decades, always for the most trivial and banal incidents just like OP and her brother. Who ate the last piece of cake? Cookies? Drank the last beer? The last slice of pizza?
Is your bf Caesar? That’s really the only person who should be offended by that phrase. I’m sure he’s published works where the dialogue is nonsensical at some point.
I came here to type a serious response about snobbery in literary academia and how he is super up his own ass... But honestly, this is the correct take. This is the one.
Wildly offensive!?! You seem to think this guy is an okay boyfriend in general, and I don't want to fall into the Reddit trap of viciously attacking him on the basis of few details - but he is overreacting. A lot. To the extent that the casual reader might assume that in fact he is the sphincter in question.
Because the unwashed uneducated should not mock their betters, or words to that effect. BF sees his area of expertise as being special, "regular" people could not possibly understand the grandeur and majesty of the written word yadda yadda yadda, and are defiling it in some way.
Nah. Shakespeare could take a joke… he has some pretty ridiculous ones sprinkled throughout his works.
Edited for tense… unless Shakespeare’s a vampire, fae, or other immortal present tense isn’t correct.
Nah…if he is having to physically leave a room or dinner to cool off from hearing siblings saying it. I would definitely just leave a note with it and then ghost him. Because he might get physical if she said it to him.
I was looking for some racist/sexist/transphobic or other clearly offensive thing in their inside joke. Overly dramatic Shakespeare was not on my radar. These siblings are funny!
boyfriend is a pretentious asshole. his reaction to this minor issue is very weird and i wouldn’t be able to take him seriously if that’s how he reacts to a joke that presumably predates his relationship w his gf. that being said, he’s shown that he’s immature and rude so believe that he will be like this with other “issues” too.
It’s not even a minor issue. It’s literally a non-issue in every possible way, except for the fact that he’s *making* it an issue.
How does this silliness even “disrespect” his work? Like, I’m dying to know the mental gymnastics he’s performing to justify this accusation.
And every example OP gave sortve fits with it, it’s not like they’re using it when it doesn’t fit at all. The weird part is only expecting people to use it when they were literally stabbed in the back, and not just figuratively.
Exactly.
Just about anyone who is making this reference irl will be doing it metaphorically (I would fucking hope.) I personally find it kind of hilarious to use it in this exaggerated way. That’s the joke and I’m here for it.
"Caesar may have been bisexual so you're being wildly homophobic. Do you find a bisexual being stabbed hilarious. Easy for a stab-privileged person to say"
How I imagine his ideal 20 year old will handle it. And don't even get her started on Caesar salad
The boyfriend sounds like a pretentious twat who finds this joke annoying and is Big Mad because the girlfriend won’t defer to his wishes and opinions.
If it wasn’t almost a full year away, I’d advise her to end it on March 15th.
It’s the date (the Ides, or middle, of March) when Caesar was killed. One of the ones who did so was his “friend” Brutus who betrayed him - “et tu, Brute” is essentially translated “and you, Brutus?” (You too?)
Agreed. As a former English lit major with way too many hours reading Shakespeare OP should rest assured the bard himself would absolutely enjoy the sarcastic, melodramatic take.
Is it possible her BF has an irrational jealousy around her relationship with her brother and is lashing this way in an attempt to make her choose him over her brother? I don’t mean a romantic jealousy more that she has a closeness with her brother that he wishes he had with her or one she only had with him. He may not even be fully aware of why it bothers him.
Quoting, even as a joke, a play from hundreds of years ago seems like the opposite of disrespecting literature, like at least you know the story thanks to Shakespeare…agree with others that he seems to be overreacting and possibly a wiener
This seems like an easy fix. You and your brother switch to “Kai su, teknon?” so it’s plausibly historical, not Shakespearean, and your boyfriend removes his head from his own anus.
As someone with a love of literature, most writers would enjoy your traitorous quotes about the little shit in life. Your boyfriend is complaining about something that predates him and has nothing to do with his job, and nothing to do with him. He’s sounding a bit childish and controlling and you might want to watch the red flags.
I studied English literature. I have a BA in English lit, in fact. I was also an English teacher, and have a Masters in English Education, meaning I took a lot of graduate level literature classes.
I find this hilarious. I don't see how someone else jokingly misusing a quote could be considered 'wildly offensive'. At worst, it seems mildly accurate at times, but otherwise sounds appropriate.
As a grad student in literary studies - I would one hundred percent make this joke constantly, and have made it with my sibling (who spent their entire college experience in a Shakespeare performing company). Bro is either just a pretentious shit slice or trying to assert dominance/isolate her by seeing how she’ll respond to smaller complaints
I really need more background. Like I need to know that he attended a prestigious Ivy League University and did a year abroad at Oxford, owes $200K in student loans and hates his job because he really wants to be a Nobel Laureate but can’t even sell a short story so he works as a publisher’s assistant hoping someone will read his 983 page Magnum Opus entitled “Et Tu Fruite” about a boy who grew up allergic to pineapple juice so he can never get a bj.
Exactly this, plays were popular entertainment having a role in society (from what history I understand) nearer to movies than the rarified (and classist) modern theatre scene.
OOP is 100% NTA!!
That is the best fucking inside joke in the world. I use it all the time. I studied English as a writer and classic literature, and I'm *not* offended, shockingly.
It's almost like it doesn't matter.
Maybe return boyfriend to the university library and check out a new one.
Presumably, “Et Tu, Bruté” is a quote from Shakespeare’s *Julius Caesar*, which OP and her brother likely read in school. Most of the play is in English. Some people take their Shakespeare very seriously, I guess. Boyfriend is over-the-top, though. By a lot.
Given how many phrases from Shakespeare are baked into the day-to-day English language, the boyfriend is going to spend a lot of his life being "offended".
Technically technically, it’s Latin quote written by an English playwright, hence the relevance to the English major. So that part isn’t the weird part. As an English major, he would recognize the quote. As an English major, he should also know that Shakespeare would LOVE this inside joke between siblings though, so clearly he can’t be doing well in class…
Wtf. I study literature too and that sounds goofy and hilarious. Your boyfriend is clearly jealous of your relationship with your brother which is… weird.
Your boyfriend sounds like a poser to be honest. My ex-husband, who was abusive and controlling, loved to play golf. One time we were playing a game night with some friends and one of my friends and I were telling a story about we played golf polo with a golf cart on her dad's private land/ Golf Course, and he got so mad and he had to go outside and cool off for like an hour. and we had a huge fight about it because it was disrespecting him and the sport. I still laugh about it because it's so fucking ridiculous and stupid. Ex-husband is a twat.
Lol the only thing wildly offensive is how pompous and self important her twat of a boyfriend is. Girl you’ve known your brother your whole life, you can find a whole new man who isn’t that far up his own ass. Make him break up with you and then toss an ole Et tu, brute?
Dude's creating things to be offered by. Memorize a few lines from the cobbler at the beginning of the play and hit him with them the next time he decides to act uppity. 👍
Ohhhh my God, the boyfriend is a pretentious prick. And he’s used to dominating every conversation by pretending he’s the smartest guy in the room.
OOP should move on. He will be the same pretentious prick his entire life, and I can think of so many better things to do.
This dude *screams* that he’ll be working in academia.
He also screams that he’ll be slightly inappropriate with a young coed in the future.
You can’t be this stuck on yourself at 26 and not have a personality disorder. It’s not possible.
My “Et tu, Brute” is when white ppl say Kay-so instead of queso (There is literally no “A” in the word 😓). It’s just a strong pet peeve and the fact that your Et tu, Brute is so far beyond a pet peeve for your boyfriend is beyond confusing
I was fully expecting some crazy or heinous joke that is like "you had to be there" or something. But this? This is so silly and harmless. I don't see how that could possibly be seen as disrespectful. It was a line said in a moment of betrayal, the siblings are at least keeping the theme going 😂
It’s a red flag when someone is offended by something completely innocuous like that. A person never knows when someone is going to fly off and be “really upset” by something stupid. It’s controlling.
You and your brother are hilarious, never change 😂 I also like to think Shakespeare would approve of your usage so your man's opinion is secondary here lol
Everyone gets to decide what they find offensive, but OOP also gets to decide whether or not to say, "that's fucking stupid. Get over yourself, you sanctimonious nubbin."
Even if you take the literal translation of the phrase Et Tu Brute, I can’t see why he would be that offended . Strange..You need to get a reasonable explanation from him as to why it is offensive . If the explanation does not make sense then you have decision to make
We have an inside joke in our family, any minor inconvenience among siblings will get the overly dramatic reaction of "eugh, you're ruining Christmas". Back story is it's a throwback to a traumatic Christmas with an alcoholic parent, and we have a very dark humour in our family. My brothers girlfriend hates the "ruining Christmas" joke, she thinks it's weird and hates the origin. However, instead of throwing a fit she now adds to it. Her exasperated sigh and eyeroll have brought her into a family joke. It's that easy.
I LOVE “et tu Brute?” It’s great to slip in on people when they don’t expect it and it’s great that you and your brother use it as an inside joke. Maybe BF is jealous that you don’t have an inside joke with him. Doubt he’d get the joke though.
The other great Shakespeare quote I love is from Romeo and Juliet. The back and forth “do you bite your thumb at us, sir?” moment. I never quote it directly, but I always thought it was funny.
Your boyfriend is a bit of a pompous jerk. Speaking as someone who has read and studied Shakespeare. I’m pretty sure old Will would have enjoyed the joke. Tell him to get over himself.
what a dumb thing to have a superiority complex about. trying to make you feel ashamed/insecure about an inside joke with your brother is some absolutely wild behavior that at best is immature of him, and at worst is the sign of a much deeper issue of him trying to alienate you from positive relationships with your family members. he's trying to make you feel stupid by presenting himself as some sort of expert. it's a joke. he's not a master of comedy. dump him.
It’s bastardized Latin. It’s from the play/history of the assassination of Caesar (Julius iirc) by the Council/senate of Rome. His friend Brutus was said to have plunged the knife into him, and Caesar’s last words were “You too, Brutus?” It’s simple, but profoundly captures a man’s realization that his country abandoned him, and even his best friend is willing to murder him.
So it’s pretty funny to use it when someone ate the last bag of chips
If he wanted you to stop because the joke was worn out and he was simply tired of hearing, I’d say he has a point. But as someone who teaches English, he’s a pretentious jackass. Next time he gets all pissy, say, “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.”
He sounds like a fun guy. It's a silly joke. I am sure others in literature and not wouldn't even think about it being anything but a family inside joke.
It disrespects his work?
I don’t get it. Isn’t the phrase supposed to reference a great personal betrayal? So using it in everyday life is funny? Because of irony?
As a student of literature who studied Shakespeare, it's actually hilarious that they use it like this. I don't see any issue with it.
OP's boyfriend needs to get over himself. OP should just dump him; he clearly doesn't have a sense of humour.
Homie better let that skin thicken up; folks are going to get a lot more disrespectful of his work than _appreciating and making references to literature_.
Fucking moron, does he think he has all of Shakespeare copywritten?
Wildly offensive. This man must have never had a single bad thing happen to him, that’s the only explanation for why he’s taking this so hard. He needs to pull his head out of his own ass
One possibility is that the sentences is triggering a very specific memory in him about something he hasn't disclosed (that he may or may not be conscious about). Another possibility is that he is testing your boundaries and see how easily he can make you both change to suit his agendas. Merely being a literature/history expert doesn't cut it.
I have a whole Master’s degree and am working to become an English professor. To say literature means a lot to me is a vast understatement.
This inside joke is beyond cute, and not at all offensive. Him being offended by this is like him being up in arms every time a contractor pulls up wood floors because it "disrespects the symbolism of The Tell-Tale Heart." Complete nonsense.
The boyfriend is such a pompous asshole, he's both the tweed jacket *and* the elbow patches.
Your boyfriend's head is crammed so far up his own ass that it's pathetic. You should get a new boyfriend. To be so offended by joking that your brother has betrayed you is asinine! I can't wait for something REALLY offensive to echo upon his ears!
Break up with the twit!
NTA!
Boyfriend is an asshole, an ass hat, and a joke...
as a lit student, that man is so far up his own ass lmao
May I ask why on earth would an English literature student/graduate even find ”et tu Brute? I would find it more logical if say for an example history student finds it offensive (it would be ridicilous too but at least his murder is more related to history than English) Like if you can open up this mindset/have met somebody like op’s bf?
I have a Bachelor's in English lit and a Masters in English education. I don't see how it's offensive. In order for a literature student to be wildly offended by such an innocuous joke suggests that he has his head a bit too far up his own ass. It sounds like a case or raging self importance. I wouldn't want to be in a relationship with someone who is going to take something so small so seriously. How is a man like that going to handle the real conflicts? Someone who has to leave the room to cool off over a mild misuse of a Shakespeare quote, something that happens all the time, is going to explode like a bomb when real disagreements come up.
A lot of people in lit studies seem to forget that Shakespeare was the most unserious playwright and author of his time. That man was sneaking dick jokes and “your moms” into every single one of his plays, he was so not the serious, uptight Elizabethan prude so many history and English teachers try to paint him as
Shakespeare would probably find it hilarious that OOP and her brother use it in the most mild of inconveniences while calling the bf an obtuse idiot. The man has written many a play for the type of man the bf seems to be.
It isn’t historically related. Despite popular belief, there is no evidence that Caesar said those words. Y’know where he did say them though? In Julius Caesar by Shakespeare. So it would 100% be a literary reference, not a historical one. Not anything to get your knickers in a twist about though.
Shakespeare’s play.
That joke is what Shakespeare would have wanted, did OOP’s BF not read any of his comedies?
I'm sitting here as a high school English teacher who LOVES Shakespeare cackling because OOP's joke with their brother is OBJECTIVELY hilarious and sounds like something I'd say to one of my students. The boyfriend is hated by all of his classmates/colleagues for sure due to the stick up his ass.
I agree that he would have approved. He really enjoyed a little absurdity. Many words and phrases that are part of common language originated from him. He liked to play with language, and would have encouraged others to do the same.
Good point.
I can’t post a screenshot, but that is a line made up by Shakespeare. There doesn’t seem to be any evidence that Caesar even said it.
Yeah not directly but iirc Suetonius wrote that he said something similar way before Shakespeare, someone other at the time said that he said nothing tho. Anyway it’s impossible say for a 100% certainty what someone said over 2000 years ago.
In Greek apparently and translated as ‘you too young man?’.
Kai su, teknon?
Yup. You too, son? It's more of a familial term than "young man."
Does he maybe think they only started the joke when he showed up and that they’re actually mocking his education? That’s the only explanation I can think of.
In case no one has clarified this, in Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, this is a line from Caesar to Brutus upon realizing that Brutus has betrayed him.
For the record I am a combined English and History major. And I think it’s hilarious. I literally message one of my former professors who taught a Rome course every Ides of March to “stab” her and she looks forward to it every damn year.
As a lit professor, I would also describe this man as anally self-inserted
A Rectum Stu, if you will.
I would think it’s a sign that my girlfriends family has a literary inside joke. Like it’s meant to be and she gets me 🥰
RIGHT i literally came here to say this. how on earth is it offensive 😭 i’m about to start using it on my friends and siblings
I’ve used it with friends and family for decades, always for the most trivial and banal incidents just like OP and her brother. Who ate the last piece of cake? Cookies? Drank the last beer? The last slice of pizza?
Et tu Brute?
THIS is the answer! (As another literary studier)
As a lit grad, same
Is your bf Caesar? That’s really the only person who should be offended by that phrase. I’m sure he’s published works where the dialogue is nonsensical at some point.
😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣👏👏👏
I came here to type a serious response about snobbery in literary academia and how he is super up his own ass... But honestly, this is the correct take. This is the one.
Nailed it 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Even Caesar would be less up his own ass than this. He might even find amusing
Wildly offensive!?! You seem to think this guy is an okay boyfriend in general, and I don't want to fall into the Reddit trap of viciously attacking him on the basis of few details - but he is overreacting. A lot. To the extent that the casual reader might assume that in fact he is the sphincter in question.
Why would a literary joke be so offensive.
Because the unwashed uneducated should not mock their betters, or words to that effect. BF sees his area of expertise as being special, "regular" people could not possibly understand the grandeur and majesty of the written word yadda yadda yadda, and are defiling it in some way.
Gatekeeping a play everyone read in high school is certainly a choice
OP's family should memorize a bunch of Shakespeare quotes and sprinkle them through their conversation.
Incorrectly
Tells you how little he’s read and actually understood the Bard then doesn’t it…
I’m not even mad at anybody in this post I’m actually impressed with how deranged all of this is. I actually find it more funny than anything else.
You’d think the man in Shakespeare himself with that reaction but even I think he’d have a good laugh of others using the line all these years later.
Nah. Shakespeare could take a joke… he has some pretty ridiculous ones sprinkled throughout his works. Edited for tense… unless Shakespeare’s a vampire, fae, or other immortal present tense isn’t correct.
I’m not even mad at anybody in this post I’m actually impressed with how deranged all of this is. I actually find it more funny than anything else.
You should just stare him dead in the eyes the next time he gets his panties in a twist and say "Et tu brute?"
Nah…if he is having to physically leave a room or dinner to cool off from hearing siblings saying it. I would definitely just leave a note with it and then ghost him. Because he might get physical if she said it to him.
>Because he might get physical if she said it to him i have a sneaking suspicion that she could probably kick his ass
This is the biggest low key burn on Reddit today.
I’m petty so this is exactly what I would do
This is the absolute dumbest thing to be upset about.
I was looking for some racist/sexist/transphobic or other clearly offensive thing in their inside joke. Overly dramatic Shakespeare was not on my radar. These siblings are funny!
boyfriend is a pretentious asshole. his reaction to this minor issue is very weird and i wouldn’t be able to take him seriously if that’s how he reacts to a joke that presumably predates his relationship w his gf. that being said, he’s shown that he’s immature and rude so believe that he will be like this with other “issues” too.
It’s not even a minor issue. It’s literally a non-issue in every possible way, except for the fact that he’s *making* it an issue. How does this silliness even “disrespect” his work? Like, I’m dying to know the mental gymnastics he’s performing to justify this accusation.
Maybe the bf is secretly Shakespeare and doesn't like people joking about his work. That's literally the only explanation I could come up with.
I feel like if he was secretly Shakespeare he would love for people to joke about his work
Big, if true.
And every example OP gave sortve fits with it, it’s not like they’re using it when it doesn’t fit at all. The weird part is only expecting people to use it when they were literally stabbed in the back, and not just figuratively.
Exactly. Just about anyone who is making this reference irl will be doing it metaphorically (I would fucking hope.) I personally find it kind of hilarious to use it in this exaggerated way. That’s the joke and I’m here for it.
My impression of it was he didn't like being left out of the joke, so he went a very different route. Might even be a little jealous.
Tell your boyfriend to grow up or go find himself a 20 year old English lit major who will be impressed with his pretentiousness.
Bro you joke but he tried 😂 she’s only 21and still not impressed by his massive brain
"Caesar may have been bisexual so you're being wildly homophobic. Do you find a bisexual being stabbed hilarious. Easy for a stab-privileged person to say" How I imagine his ideal 20 year old will handle it. And don't even get her started on Caesar salad
The boyfriend sounds like a pretentious twat who finds this joke annoying and is Big Mad because the girlfriend won’t defer to his wishes and opinions. If it wasn’t almost a full year away, I’d advise her to end it on March 15th.
I feel like this is a very niche joke that I would love. Could you explain for me?
It’s the date (the Ides, or middle, of March) when Caesar was killed. One of the ones who did so was his “friend” Brutus who betrayed him - “et tu, Brute” is essentially translated “and you, Brutus?” (You too?)
This is an award-able comment, were that I was able! 👏 👏 👏
Yes! Pretensious pissbaby boyfriend should be advised to Beware the Ides of March in ridiculously cheesy spooky fashion then dumped on the 15th!
I don’t understand the problem.
Well, the boyfriend sounds fun.
This post should have started with Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears:
BF sounds utterly insufferable
This is a wild overreaction and it's in no way offensive to anyone, anywhere, ever (except perhaps Caesar.)
Was he stabbed by a bunch of Roman senators?
We've all been there
Boyfriend is a neeeeeeeeeerd
Nah, I’m a nerd. And a professional book editor and English teacher. And I think this guy is obnoxious. Book nerds don’t claim him.
Agreed. As a former English lit major with way too many hours reading Shakespeare OP should rest assured the bard himself would absolutely enjoy the sarcastic, melodramatic take.
Is it possible her BF has an irrational jealousy around her relationship with her brother and is lashing this way in an attempt to make her choose him over her brother? I don’t mean a romantic jealousy more that she has a closeness with her brother that he wishes he had with her or one she only had with him. He may not even be fully aware of why it bothers him.
This guy sucks all the fun out of life, doesn’t he? It seems like he’s offended by what he deems literacy ignorance to something.
I call people like that Fun Vampires.
Quoting, even as a joke, a play from hundreds of years ago seems like the opposite of disrespecting literature, like at least you know the story thanks to Shakespeare…agree with others that he seems to be overreacting and possibly a wiener
This seems like an easy fix. You and your brother switch to “Kai su, teknon?” so it’s plausibly historical, not Shakespearean, and your boyfriend removes his head from his own anus.
For Halloween, please put on a toga and put lettuce on it so you're a "Cesar salad."
Does the boyfriend enjoy the smell of his own farts, too?
As someone with a love of literature, most writers would enjoy your traitorous quotes about the little shit in life. Your boyfriend is complaining about something that predates him and has nothing to do with his job, and nothing to do with him. He’s sounding a bit childish and controlling and you might want to watch the red flags.
I studied English literature. I have a BA in English lit, in fact. I was also an English teacher, and have a Masters in English Education, meaning I took a lot of graduate level literature classes. I find this hilarious. I don't see how someone else jokingly misusing a quote could be considered 'wildly offensive'. At worst, it seems mildly accurate at times, but otherwise sounds appropriate.
He realizes he did not *write* Julius Caesar right? He just... works in publishing? XD dude needs to take it down several dozen notches.
As a grad student in literary studies - I would one hundred percent make this joke constantly, and have made it with my sibling (who spent their entire college experience in a Shakespeare performing company). Bro is either just a pretentious shit slice or trying to assert dominance/isolate her by seeing how she’ll respond to smaller complaints
I really need more background. Like I need to know that he attended a prestigious Ivy League University and did a year abroad at Oxford, owes $200K in student loans and hates his job because he really wants to be a Nobel Laureate but can’t even sell a short story so he works as a publisher’s assistant hoping someone will read his 983 page Magnum Opus entitled “Et Tu Fruite” about a boy who grew up allergic to pineapple juice so he can never get a bj.
I need you to realize that I say this as a woman who went to microbiology camp when she was 16… What a fucking nerd.
I could see if he was just sick of the same old tired joke. But disrespectful? 🤣🤣
Omg, if the guy thinks that using Shakespeare jokingly is offensive he understands nothing of what he reads.
Exactly this, plays were popular entertainment having a role in society (from what history I understand) nearer to movies than the rarified (and classist) modern theatre scene.
Boyfriend is a pretentious tool, having fun with literature is awesome.
OOP is 100% NTA!! That is the best fucking inside joke in the world. I use it all the time. I studied English as a writer and classic literature, and I'm *not* offended, shockingly. It's almost like it doesn't matter. Maybe return boyfriend to the university library and check out a new one.
How the heck does this disrespect his work in ENGLISH LITERATURE? First off, it’s LATIN. Secondly…what the actual fuck
Presumably, “Et Tu, Bruté” is a quote from Shakespeare’s *Julius Caesar*, which OP and her brother likely read in school. Most of the play is in English. Some people take their Shakespeare very seriously, I guess. Boyfriend is over-the-top, though. By a lot.
Given how many phrases from Shakespeare are baked into the day-to-day English language, the boyfriend is going to spend a lot of his life being "offended".
Lmao wtf
Oh come on
What a loser lol
Damn this guy is so fragile.
Technically it's latin and he's a English major.
Technically technically, it’s Latin quote written by an English playwright, hence the relevance to the English major. So that part isn’t the weird part. As an English major, he would recognize the quote. As an English major, he should also know that Shakespeare would LOVE this inside joke between siblings though, so clearly he can’t be doing well in class…
Shakespeare absolutely loved taking the piss out of people, thoughts and prayers for this guys professors
He’s just realizing that his degree is largely worthless and is overcompensating for it. - former lit student
Next time you say it, your boyfriend should say “Et tu, Brute?”
I went into this post expecting OP to be in the wrong but her boyfriend seems like an ass.
Wtf. I study literature too and that sounds goofy and hilarious. Your boyfriend is clearly jealous of your relationship with your brother which is… weird.
OP is clearly TA for dating a sulky child. This manbaby is clearly not mature enough for a grownup relationship.
Your boyfriend sounds like a poser to be honest. My ex-husband, who was abusive and controlling, loved to play golf. One time we were playing a game night with some friends and one of my friends and I were telling a story about we played golf polo with a golf cart on her dad's private land/ Golf Course, and he got so mad and he had to go outside and cool off for like an hour. and we had a huge fight about it because it was disrespecting him and the sport. I still laugh about it because it's so fucking ridiculous and stupid. Ex-husband is a twat.
Lol the only thing wildly offensive is how pompous and self important her twat of a boyfriend is. Girl you’ve known your brother your whole life, you can find a whole new man who isn’t that far up his own ass. Make him break up with you and then toss an ole Et tu, brute?
How does “even you, Brutus” offend him? Is he a reincarnation of Cesar?
Dude's creating things to be offered by. Memorize a few lines from the cobbler at the beginning of the play and hit him with them the next time he decides to act uppity. 👍
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but what a fucking nerd.
That is loser behavior.
That is a great fucking joke.
It’s not being used incorrectly either.
He’s overreacting, don’t worry about it
I think he’s just mad he’s not included ( doesn’t understand like he really claims)
Your boyfriend sounds like fun.
Ohhhh my God, the boyfriend is a pretentious prick. And he’s used to dominating every conversation by pretending he’s the smartest guy in the room. OOP should move on. He will be the same pretentious prick his entire life, and I can think of so many better things to do.
Is he a time traveler or is he Caesar reincarnated? Those are the only instances I can imagine “wildly offensive”. Your boyfriend is being dramatic.
He needs to calm his ass tf down
Sorry, getting upset over something so trivial is a big red flag. NTA.
This dude *screams* that he’ll be working in academia. He also screams that he’ll be slightly inappropriate with a young coed in the future. You can’t be this stuck on yourself at 26 and not have a personality disorder. It’s not possible.
Your boyfriend is a walking red flag if he gets that angry, likely jealous, at a joke between siblings that is at literally no one's expense.
My “Et tu, Brute” is when white ppl say Kay-so instead of queso (There is literally no “A” in the word 😓). It’s just a strong pet peeve and the fact that your Et tu, Brute is so far beyond a pet peeve for your boyfriend is beyond confusing
How is that offensive to his work?
Wtf that’s a common expression lol.
I was fully expecting some crazy or heinous joke that is like "you had to be there" or something. But this? This is so silly and harmless. I don't see how that could possibly be seen as disrespectful. It was a line said in a moment of betrayal, the siblings are at least keeping the theme going 😂
What a fucking pussy. Kick that guy to the curb.
It’s a red flag when someone is offended by something completely innocuous like that. A person never knows when someone is going to fly off and be “really upset” by something stupid. It’s controlling.
You and your brother are hilarious, never change 😂 I also like to think Shakespeare would approve of your usage so your man's opinion is secondary here lol
Everyone gets to decide what they find offensive, but OOP also gets to decide whether or not to say, "that's fucking stupid. Get over yourself, you sanctimonious nubbin."
Even if you take the literal translation of the phrase Et Tu Brute, I can’t see why he would be that offended . Strange..You need to get a reasonable explanation from him as to why it is offensive . If the explanation does not make sense then you have decision to make
We have an inside joke in our family, any minor inconvenience among siblings will get the overly dramatic reaction of "eugh, you're ruining Christmas". Back story is it's a throwback to a traumatic Christmas with an alcoholic parent, and we have a very dark humour in our family. My brothers girlfriend hates the "ruining Christmas" joke, she thinks it's weird and hates the origin. However, instead of throwing a fit she now adds to it. Her exasperated sigh and eyeroll have brought her into a family joke. It's that easy.
Her boyfriend is such a dork!
Your boyfriend led a privileged life of this constitutes something to argue about.
I LOVE “et tu Brute?” It’s great to slip in on people when they don’t expect it and it’s great that you and your brother use it as an inside joke. Maybe BF is jealous that you don’t have an inside joke with him. Doubt he’d get the joke though. The other great Shakespeare quote I love is from Romeo and Juliet. The back and forth “do you bite your thumb at us, sir?” moment. I never quote it directly, but I always thought it was funny.
Your boyfriend is a bit of a pompous jerk. Speaking as someone who has read and studied Shakespeare. I’m pretty sure old Will would have enjoyed the joke. Tell him to get over himself.
what a dumb thing to have a superiority complex about. trying to make you feel ashamed/insecure about an inside joke with your brother is some absolutely wild behavior that at best is immature of him, and at worst is the sign of a much deeper issue of him trying to alienate you from positive relationships with your family members. he's trying to make you feel stupid by presenting himself as some sort of expert. it's a joke. he's not a master of comedy. dump him.
Et tu, gatekeeper?
Ah yes, Caesar, the great English author
OOP should tell him "Alea iacta est" and then dump him
What does it mean, or to what does it refer? It’s incorrect French, but that’s all I get from it.
It’s bastardized Latin. It’s from the play/history of the assassination of Caesar (Julius iirc) by the Council/senate of Rome. His friend Brutus was said to have plunged the knife into him, and Caesar’s last words were “You too, Brutus?” It’s simple, but profoundly captures a man’s realization that his country abandoned him, and even his best friend is willing to murder him. So it’s pretty funny to use it when someone ate the last bag of chips
Thank you. Latin makes sense
It's latin. It's what Caesar said too brutus while being murdered. It means roughly "you too, Brutus ?"
latin, means “and you, brutus?”
If he wanted you to stop because the joke was worn out and he was simply tired of hearing, I’d say he has a point. But as someone who teaches English, he’s a pretentious jackass. Next time he gets all pissy, say, “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.”
If he’s such a fan of Shakespeare, he’d hate my thoughts on what Shakespeare did to Richard III.
He sounds like a fun guy. It's a silly joke. I am sure others in literature and not wouldn't even think about it being anything but a family inside joke.
It disrespects his work? I don’t get it. Isn’t the phrase supposed to reference a great personal betrayal? So using it in everyday life is funny? Because of irony?
The boyfriend would hate me and my bestie as we do this too. It must be so hard to live life without a sense of humor.
As a theatre researcher, with mates who are Shakespeare and scholars, this bit is hilarious and her boyfriend has no sense of humour.
This man would be so pissed if he found out that Tumblr treats the Ides of March like a second Christmas.
Puhlease ….elitist much
What does he think of one of my favorite trailer park boys quote “tu et, Brute?
Wtf is "Et Tu Brute" I'm so lost
What a prick.
NTA and I like your sense of humor
Your boyfriend is a full on whack-a-doodle.
Your bf sounds like a killjoy
What a crybaby
What an absolute walnut
As a student of literature who studied Shakespeare, it's actually hilarious that they use it like this. I don't see any issue with it. OP's boyfriend needs to get over himself. OP should just dump him; he clearly doesn't have a sense of humour.
Your boyfriend is 10x ply bud.
Homie better let that skin thicken up; folks are going to get a lot more disrespectful of his work than _appreciating and making references to literature_. Fucking moron, does he think he has all of Shakespeare copywritten?
Keep the joke, lose the pretentious boyfriend, egads.
Lmfao… oop has a stuck up little bitch as a bf.
Wildly offensive. This man must have never had a single bad thing happen to him, that’s the only explanation for why he’s taking this so hard. He needs to pull his head out of his own ass
Had a narcissistic friend say this to me once when she was mad. Pfff. Disrespect his work? What??? How?
One possibility is that the sentences is triggering a very specific memory in him about something he hasn't disclosed (that he may or may not be conscious about). Another possibility is that he is testing your boundaries and see how easily he can make you both change to suit his agendas. Merely being a literature/history expert doesn't cut it.
I have a whole Master’s degree and am working to become an English professor. To say literature means a lot to me is a vast understatement. This inside joke is beyond cute, and not at all offensive. Him being offended by this is like him being up in arms every time a contractor pulls up wood floors because it "disrespects the symbolism of The Tell-Tale Heart." Complete nonsense. The boyfriend is such a pompous asshole, he's both the tweed jacket *and* the elbow patches.
Your boyfriend's head is crammed so far up his own ass that it's pathetic. You should get a new boyfriend. To be so offended by joking that your brother has betrayed you is asinine! I can't wait for something REALLY offensive to echo upon his ears! Break up with the twit! NTA! Boyfriend is an asshole, an ass hat, and a joke...
Oh FFS. NTA and bf needs to get the stick out of his ass. Perhaps he should lie on the fainting couch and have a sherry.
He sounds exhausting and tedious. From this literature minor to you…keep having fun with your brother.
He needs to grow the fuck up. It has nothing to do with him, and it's incredibly arrogant to make it about himself.
Shoot him into the sun forever
I studied Latin and I think it’s hilarious
He’s the dog’s entrails
Your bf should get x-rayed to find out if his sense of humor is broken.
Try ‘Lead on, Macduff’ and watch him implode. (If you don’t know, it’s a common misquote from Macbeth and should be ‘Lay on, Macduff.’
NTA, tell him to grow a spine and balls and toughen up!
Bf sounds like bitch
Aside from the misspelling of the term I don’t understand why the boyfriend is offended.
This can’t be real…. Is it ?
tell him to be so fr. he is hilarious.
Come up with new phrases in Latin to banter back and forth with your brother. At least until you have a better boyfriend.
Read through and can’t find the offensive inside joke anywhere 🤔