Othello is a play written by William Shakespeare in 1603. It is believed that is was inspired and based on the “Un Capitano Moro” ( a Moorish Captain) by the Italian writer Cinthio. Othello play revolves around two major characters: Othello, a Christian Moor and general of the armies of Venice, and Iago is his disloyal ensign. Othello is considered to be a tragedy play, Tragedy is a type of drama that generally deals with problems and conflicts of the major character, leading to a miserable and calamitous ending induced as in ancient drama by some powerful shaping force - fate, God or established authority – and a tragic flaw in the character itself, or usually by social compression ethical failure or psychosomatic kink. Othello is a tragedy …show more content…
He is a Christian Moor and general of the Venetian armies, Othello is an articulate and physically strong character, honored and respected by all those around him. The play dramatizes this man falling from graciousness, he begins the play as a nobleman, but, by the end of it, Othello has turned into brutal, illogical and madly jealous husband who assassinates his own wife Desdemona after his ensign Iago twists his (Othello’s) insecurities (race, age and being an outsider) against him by convincing him that his wife been disloyal to him. After Othello kills his wife, the truth begins to appear, Iago’s true motives and personality were exposed by his wife Emilia, who soon was killed too by her husband Iago. Othello takes revenge for being deceived by Iago and kills him, and soon after, Othello takes revenge of himself as well for killing his innocent beloved Desdemona by committing suicide. For such events, the play can also recognized as a ‘Domestic Tragedy’, having events circling around love and marriage in a domestic sphere (house) is sure to be regarded as it. For it be also called a ‘Revenge Tragedy’, Othello didn’t only take revenge from Iago or himself, but also from Desdemona as he thinks she cheated on him. It is worth mentioning that there is a high possibility that Othello’s ‘big love’ wasn’t really for Desdemona as much as it was for his pride and feelings. He was so …show more content…
Being passed over for promotion to Lieutenant, Iago decides to take revenge from Othello with his deceiving words and behaviors. His talent of manipulation managed him to deceive all the characters in the play in a way that serves his goals, which makes him a very powerful figure. Iago is not considered to be a classical villain in any play or story. His role in this tragedy is very complicated and distinct, faraway from anyone might imagine. being an expert judge character along with his high cleverness gave him a major privilege in the play. For instance, Iago is aware that Roderigo will do practically anything to win Desdemona, so he uses Roderigo’s weakness to assist him achieving some of his goals by removing Cassio from being a lieutenant. He tells him to “put money in thy purse” so that Roderigo can buy some gifts for Desdemona to win her heart as well as to go to Cyprus, where he thinks (Iago) when they are far from Venice it would be much easier for him to get rid of Othello. During his soliloquy that followed after their talk, Iago demonstrates that he would never support and partner somebody as Roderigo unless it serves him, “thus do I ever make my fool my purse; For I mine own gained knowledge should profane; If I would time expend with such a snipe; But for my sport and profit” (act:1 scene 3, 362-383). Iago is so good at manipulating and deceiving
Othello’s tragic flaw can be viewed as jealously which ultimately leads to his downfall. When Othello is manipulated by Iago to believe that Desdemona is having an affair with Desdemona, Othello does not change from his good person mentality. However, Othello carries out with the plan for murder for which he believes is a fine reason to end Desdemona’s once previous life to preserve her innocence. Othello is the tragic hero within the play titled after him and because of his title, because of this Othello, the Moor of Venice follows one of Aristotle’s requirements.
Iago also knows that Roderigo will do anything for Desdemona’s love. Iago says, “Thus I do ever make a fool my purse” (1.3.355). Iago tells this to Roderigo which means that he is willing to manipulate anyone as long as he gives him jewels and money. This quote makes him look brilliant because he knows that Roderigo has a lot of money and will do anything to be with Desdemona. I agree when D. Madison says, “In Othello, he knows just what to say to sound innocent. Iago is the ultimate master of manipulation”. Iago uses his knowledge wisely and uses it to manipulate others for his own satisfaction, and knows how to manipulate them because he has analyzed them before, and that is what makes him so good at being evil. Iago is fully aware what he is doing and has no sympathy for anyone like he says himself; “And what’s he then that says play the villain, When this advice is free I give, and honest” (2.3.299).
William Shakespeare wrote Othello in 1603. It is a tragic, love story full of love, honour, and betrayal. Othello is the protagonist in this drama. He is a skilled fighter and he is not from Venice. He falls in love with Desdemona, a beautiful and innocent woman from Venice. Her father disowns her for the marriage because he is racist toward Othello. Iago is the antagonist in the drama. The drama starts with him and shows that he is an instigator. He manipulates his way in to the lives of all of the characters and gains their trust. Iago is responsible for most of the sins. He takes on the role of Satan in the ways that he entices the characters into sinning, which leads to their own
In Shakespeare’s play Othello, tragedy unfolds on the account of one man’s actions, Iago. He is a twenty eight year old military veteran from Venice. His personality consists of being obsessive, manipulative, relentless, and bold. From the beginning he expressed his hatred towards the Moor, or North African named Othello. Othello is a highly respected general and is also married to the pure Desdemona. The marriage between Othello and Desdemona is destroyed due to Iago’s actions and lies. His actions consist of getting Michael Cassio discharged as lieutenant and convincing the Moor that his wife is cheating on him. The motives Iago has for despising Othello are he passed him over for a promotion to be his lieutenant, instead he chose
In William Shakespeare’s Othello, Othello is the tragic hero. He is a character of high stature who is destroyed by his surroundings, his own actions, and his fate. His destruction is essentially precipitated by his own actions, as well as by the actions of the characters surrounding him. The tragedy of Othello is not a fault of a single villain, but is rather a consequence of a wide range of feelings, judgments and misjudgments, and attempts for personal justification exhibited by the characters. Othello is first shown as a hero of war and a man of great pride and courage. As the play continues, his character begins to deteriorate and become less noble. Chronologically through the play, Othello’s character
The tragedy of Othello, written by William Shakespeare, presents the main character Othello, as a respectable, honorable, and dignified man, but because of his insecurities and good nature, he is easily taken advantage of and manipulated by his peers and alleged friends. The dynamic of Othello’s character significantly changes throughout the play. The contrast is most pronounced from the beginning of the play to its conclusion, switching from being calm and peaceful to acts of uncontrolled venomous rage. Othello’s motivation in the play appears to be his love and concern for his wife Desdemona, which ironically, ends up being his downfall in the end.
Shakespeare has been known to create terrific tales of love and tragedy. Even James Van Der Beek, a well known actor from Dawson's Creek, once commented that, “like all great romantics, Shakespeare realized love was a lot more likely to end with a bunch of dead Danish people than with a kiss”("Americans on the Bard"). This emphasizes how easily people can relate Shakespeare to tragic love. Although he did write many poems and plays with happy endings, his tragedies stand out the most. In these tragedies, people are often led through use of misconception, trickery, or both. An example of misconception can be shown by another of Shakespeare's plays, “Antony and Cleopatra,” as he wrote for Antony's part, “this foul Egyptian hath betrayed
355,] By playing on his hopes, Iago is able to conjure money and jewels from Roderigo, making himself a profit, while using Roderigo to further his other plans. He also thinks stealthy on his feet and is able to improvise whenever something unexpected occurs. When Cassio takes hold of Desdemona's hand before the arrival of the Moor Othello, Iago says, "With as little a web as this will I ensnare as great a fly as Cassio." [II, i, 163] This language demonstrates the evil inside Iagos goals of retrieving absolute power. He actually even says of himself, "I am an honest man...." [II, iii, 245] Iago slowly corrupts the characters thoughts, creating ideas in their minds without implicating himself. His "medicine works! Thus credulous fools are caught...." [II, i, 44] "And what's he then that says I play the villain, when this advice is free I give, and honest," [II, iii, 299] says Iago. In turn, people rarely stop to consider the fact that old Iago could be deceiving and manipulating them; yet they are convinced that he is "Honest Iago." From these quotes from Othello it is proven that the dialogue used between Iago and the others is manipulative causing an evil outcome.
In William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Othello, Iago demonstrates a mastery of manipulation over people who had previously trusted and confided in him. His sudden turn from Othello’s loyal ensign to rage-filled villain seems indicative of a man who can no longer accept his position in life. Iago’s plotting of Othello’s demise starts as idle talk of a disgruntled 28 year-old career military man passed over for promotion. Iago believes that such a promotion may never come after Othello rejects his candidacy and makes it clear that he did not believe him suitable. He sees Othello is only concerned with personal and political gain with his choice of Cassio as lieutenant. When Iago teams with love-scorned and desperate Roderigo, he begins
"Othello is set in a world and focuses on the passions and personalities of its major figures." (Thomas). Othello is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The work revolves around four central characters: Othello, Othello's wife Desdemona, his lieutenant Cassio and advisor Iago. The play appeared in seven editors between 1622 and 1705. The themes of the story are racism, love, jealousy, and betrayal. Othello is a black soldier who is accused of stealing his wife Desdemona. Although Desdemona's father dislikes his daughter's choice, Desdemona loves Othello very much and the two are married. Othello’s right hand man is angered at the fact that Othello picked a man named Cassio to be more important than him and he also feels that he is messing with his wife. Iago plans to manipulate Othello but his plan eventually causes more hurt to most of the characters. Iago tries to use the meeting between Cassio and Desdemona as a way to make Othello believe she was cheating on him. Iago goes on with his manipulative plan by planting a handkerchief in Cassio's room, and goes and tell Othello about what he has seen Cassio do. Othello becomes jealous throughout the story and begins to believe that Cassio is talking to his wife. Iago persuades Othello to come up with a master plan to kill Cassio and Desdemona. As Othello tries to kill Desdemona, Emilia, Iago's wife, comes in to tell Othello the truth about Iago. Unfortunately it is too late. Othello had already suffocated her. When Othello
"Tush, never tell me! I take it much unkindly/ that thou, Iago, who hast had my purse/ as if the strings were thine, shouldst know of this./" (I. i. 1-3) From the beginning of Othello, Iago is portrayed as an antagonist, a villain who acts out of only his own interest. The acts that Iago engages in throughout Shakespeare's Othello are erroneous acts. Iago is not insane and he can comprehend the difference between right and wrong. Shakespeare is known for his ability to focus on human flaws and teach us lessons from their misfortune. Iago's destiny with evil is due to his own flaws, jealousy, selfishness, and deceit. Because of these insecurities, Iago will stop at nothing to get even with Othello. By
Without a doubt, Shakespeare's play Othello is a tragedy. The main character, Othello, is a typical Shakespearean tragic hero. Othello is good man who is deeply in love with his wife. He has one flaw, jealousy, which gets the best of him, and triggers the downfall of his wonderful life.
Othello is a tragic hero because of his greatnesses and his weaknesses. He is a noble man who possesses all the qualities of a military leader, which he is. He has control over himself and shows courage as well as dignity. Just as Othello is a virtuous man there are some flaws within him, these flaws complete him ff as a tragic hero. Othello is often blinded by trust and can not see a person for who they really are. He trusts the people around him even when they mean to afflict harm upon him. Through this, it can be seen why Othello is one of the most tragic hero out of all the characters from Shakespeare’s many plays.
Critics have debated the significance of Othello’s race in terms of portraying his identity for a long time. The negative connotations of “blackness” have led to the creation of many racial constructs associated with the “Moor”; this denigration has infused the opinions of many critics, such as Albert Gerard, proposing that Othello’s “negroid physiognomy” reaches down to the “deepest levels of personality” and that he is a “barbarian”. However, many other critics like Edward Berry and Martin Orkin believe that colour is merely a “surface indicator” compared to the outward virtue of beneficence, defining identity. Beneficence could be defined by the will to practice good acts, in conjunction with the aversion of practicing evil, and the prevention and removal of evil.
saying he will “tear her all to pieces” and he tells Iago to let him