Robert the
Bruce is one of the most famous people named
Bruce. When I think of him,
Bruce takes on a Scottish accent, dons a kilt, and raises a sword yelling "Freedom!" in the style of cinematic
William Wallace.
Unfortunately, I also associate the name with
Julius Caesar. Given some of
Julius Caesar's exploits, it isn't surprising that someone stabbed him, but the feelings of sadness and betrayal in the line "Et tu, Brute?" make
Brutus forever fall into the untrustworthy friend camp.
Bruce is just similar enough to
Brutus, that I associate the two together. Also, the word brute is unpleasant.
Bruce Springsteen and
Bruce Lee contributed to making
Bruce seem cool for a bit, but it got over used and now seems dated.
Basically,
Bruce is cool on a Scotsman but is tired on everyone else.