The Handkerchief of Mislead Passions
The handkerchief is the most dominant symbol in the tragedy. A present that Othello gave to Desdemona, with the purpose of showing his love and passion to his virgin wife. In the beginning, he make it seem as a relation of the pureness of her virginity and their married sheets; however, this symbol of their love transcends to represent Desdemona’s fidelity instead.
Othello is an exaggerated case of how prejudice distorts our reason and leads us to dismiss ideas that might not make sense but affect us and the ones we love. The iconic present, attests to the sensibility of Othello’s jealous mind, and how small things can be magnified as a proof of love. If he would not trust everyone but his beloved one,
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Othello was becoming like Iago, or at least he was extremely manipulated by him and his words. As a consequence, his naivety and jealousy changed his mindset and he became manipulative as well but only with the weaker one, his wife. Now, Othello only believed Iago’s lies but he also became worried for his honor, he wanted revenge to her and his love became something …show more content…
As he seems to remind the story about his mother, he claims” If she lost it (his mother), or made a gift of it, my father’s eye should hold her loathed, and his spirits should hunt…Make it darling like your precious eye. To lose it or give it away were such perdition”. Evidently, Othello want her to feel guilty, because he forehand knew that she gave it away.
Desdemona, one step away of her own misery, feels the guilt while he madly claims “Is it lost? Is it gone? Speak, is it out of the way? “And, despite of her innocence, she feels guilty. Thus, Desdemona realizes that she is lost, she understands her perdition.
I think it’s possible that Othello lied to Desdemona adding a mystic and exotic value to the present because he already was told that Casio had it, and, his madness and weird manners started showing off. The loving and carrying husband, had become a monster. Othello was convinced that she Desdemona cheated and he was full of hatred and anger, he only wanted to make her pay and rise his pride while humiliating and mistreating
She says that because Desdemona lost it, Othello will believe that she is no longer loves him but loves someone else, as humans are jealous creatures. This conflict plays a part in her untimely death. As she lost the handkerchief and Iago planted it in Cassio’s room, Iago uses that as unrecruitable proof of an affair, which Othello accepts. This thickens the plot, and causes Othello to smother Desdemona with a
The first symbol of the handkerchief is Desdemona’s marital fidelity. In the play, Iago gives the only description of the handkerchief when he says to Othello, "Have you not sometimes seen a handkerchief / Spotted with strawberries in your wife's hand" (III.iii.434-435)? The handkerchief is white with a pattern of strawberries in the
Othello is a frank and straightforward, honorable people. He believed that life is good, and society is fair; he treat people with sincerity, and believed that he can be received with honor. He wholeheartedly loves Desdemona, his own honor and dignity of all their faith in the awful happy marriage. Yet just at this time Igon told him that Desdemona has affair with its own honorable lieutenant Cassio, he was overwhelmed by this sudden blow, psychology began to lose balance, Othello caught in the pain and contradiction, a moment that Desdemona is chastity, and the next minute
Desdemona is portrayed as a very inquisitive women, whom loves to explore the things and people outside of her class. She fell in love with Othello because of her curious nature and being attracted to his acts of bravado. Her intentions are sincere; however her curiosity in this act is seen as folly. She asks her cousin Lodovico about his arrival and informs him of Cassio’s dismissal. This angers Othello as she is praising another man, taking a persona of being proactive about him. For Othello this concludes that she is disobedient and has dishonored him - to put her in place, he resorts to violence:
She tells him a flat out lie, but again, with good intentions. Desdemona loves Othello and did not want him to get angry. She thought she had just misplaced the handkerchief, and that she would soon find it, but if she told Othello she had lost it, he would become furious.
Othello believes that Desdemona is his possession, an object in his life which is supposed to show he honour and reputation as a man, therefore the belief that Desdemona has broken that honour and nobility forces Othello to destroy her.
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.
At this time, Othello has killed Desdemona and has forever ruined his own life. By her trying to stop the madness, her husband, who is still filled with hatred and jealousy, kills her.
It is here that the audience begins seeing a different identity of Othello. Who was once regarded as so valiant and courageous, was now beginning to show signs of severe insecurities dealing with matters, most importantly, such as his lack of experience in love and marriage causing shadows of doubt over his confidence in himself and his ability to be loved by and worthy of someone like Desdemona. Desdemona, although not intentionally, seems to be the reason for all the unrest in Othello. This is an instance in the play when irony shines it's smiling face upon Shakespeare's most tragic characters. Othello feels truly happy with the presence of Desdemona in his life (Act II.1, 181-187):
Starting off, Othello allows Iago to tamper with his mind and does nothing to stop it. Othello puts all of his trust in him, but Iago is just hiding behind a mask and only wishes to torment Othello. Othello is not aware of his surroundings and the people there, making him vulnerable. If he paid more attention to Desdemona and not Iago than he would not have thought to kill his loyal wife. Othello jumps to conclusions too quickly
She didn’t understand how she had been “[dis]loyal”(69) to her husband. For Othello to call her a “subtle whore”(68) acts upon how betrayal is caused by misunderstood envy and vengeance. Still, Desdemona respected and cherished Othello, calling him her “noble lord”(69). Her powerful affection was validated when blaming “herself”(85) while Othello was murdering her. Still, stubborn Othello considered her as a “whore” and a “liar [who has] gone to burning hell”(85).
Othello is really bothered by this though of Desdemona cheating on him. ‘’That we can call these delicate creatures ours, and not their appetites!’’ This reference highlights Othello’s diminishing trust in women because of the situation he is in. In conclusion, to summarize this speech briefly the speech contains Othello’s feelings on
As characteristic of a tragic hero, he came to understand how he was essentially the only person to blame for his own undoing. The murder of Desdemona was an irreversible act in which Othello realized was an effect of his jealousy and poor judgement. At the last scene, Othello was informed of how Iago had been deceiving him from the beginning and that he had unknowingly obeyed his diabolical plan. He was now aware that his wife was not what he was made to believe; she was completely innocent and honest. As a result, Othello began to regret what he had done, comparing himself to “one whose hand… threw a pearl away [that was]/ Richer than all his tribe” (IV.ii. 406-407).
”Afraid to admit the keepsake was missing, Desdemona insisted it was tucked away safely.” With this remark, Othello got scared and unhappy thinking that Desdemona had given it to Cassio. Also, Othello was unhappy when he had thought that Desdemona was with another man, expectually his
For Desdemona loosing it meant she had lost the symbol of her husband’s love that she held so dear and without being able to produce it for him she could see she was losing him. For Emilia it was a means to gain affection from her husband. Ultimately for Iago the handkerchief became simply the means to an end that he could use to manipulate the jealousy and insecure feelings of Othello to accomplish his vengeful