Reputation is a central theme in Othello, shaping the decisions of many of the play’s major characters. Iago’s reputation as an honest and trustworthy man allows him to trick all those around him into their dooms. Othello’s reputation as a level-headed and fair-minded man causes those around him to have certain expectations of him which he does not always fulfill. Cassio’s reputation is ruined when he gets drunk and gets into a fight, losing him his job and placing him on a quest to return to a high standing. For all these men, reputation is determined by a variety of intermingling factors, including their personalities and common behaviors. But when one considers the main female characters of the play, the reputations they hold are markedly …show more content…
And yet, even as the most developed character, she seems to lack some definition. The main character traits that Desdemona calls to mind are innocence and passivity. Her father calls her “A maiden never bold, of spirit so still and quiet that her motion blushed at herself…” (Shakespeare Act 1 Scene 2 Lines 94-96). She is known mostly for her beauty and her relationship to the men in her life, Brabantio and Othello. In the same way as the male characters of the play, Desdemona’s reputation has a great influence on her life and ruination. However, unlike the male characters, Desdemona’s reputation is destroyed solely by sexual accusations. Through steady manipulation, Iago convinces Othello that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio, thus ruining her reputation and her …show more content…
Desdemona is the wife of the Moor, and her father placed her in high social standing even before she married. Emilia is the wife of Iago and Desdemona’s handmaiden, both of which give her a decent social standing. Bianca, however, is a prostitute with wealthy Venetian clients. Despite the vast differences in Desdemona, Emilia, and Bianca’s societal positions, Jardine points out that “all three… are equally vulnerable to a sexual charge brought against them…” (84). Because they are women, they are inherently susceptible to accusations of sexual misconduct. It does not matter what their social standing is, or even whether the accusation is true or not. The accusations can easily be made only by virtue of their genders, and they can easily ruin their
I’ll make thee an example” Only because Desdemona has been awaken he will do harm. Desdemona is shown in many different ways in this scene; Iago’s many faces has different opinions of Desdemona; one of sexual desire, one of hate, one of friendlyness. Othello is deeply in love with her and sees nothing but joy and innocence. Cassio only sees goodness and compliments her in every possible way. Desdemona herself is a young woman but brave, strong and witty; her presence in Cyprus and leaving her father and marrying in secret all show her brave and less innocent side.
Iago clearly does not have a high opinion of women, and it is because of his low opinion of women that Iago does not feel any guilt in using Desdemona for his gain. Had Iago had a better opinion of women, he may have not used Desdemona as a means to an end, which is an action frowned upon in philosophy (Johnson, “Kant’s Moral Philosophy”). Othello should have kept Desdemona at home, which, according to Vives, would have limited Desdemona’s exposure to men. With Desdemona spending most of her time at home, Othello would not have had to worry about his wife spending too much time with his crew. It is because of Othello exposing Desdemona to “evil” that he should be held accountable for some of the misfortunes that occur in Othello (Vives 274).
Throughout the play Othello is convinced by Iago that Desdemona has had an affair with Cassio, when really Iago is trying to bring as much misery into Othello’s life as he possibly can. At one point Othello, Desdemona, and a few others are talking with Desdemona’s cousin and everything that Desdemona says helps to convince Othello that she is in love with Cassio. Eventually Othello gets mad enough and slaps her in which she reacts in a much different manner than most women of that time period would have. “Othello: I am glad to see you mad. Desdemona: Why, sweet Othello - Othello:Devil! [Strikes her.] Desdemona: I have not deserved this (4,1,217-220).” This is not the only time we see Desdemona tell Othello that he is wrong in his actions. Later, in act four, he calls her a “whore” and accuses her of sleeping around and rather than taking the heat and dealing with the verbal abuse Desdemona speaks out. “Othello:...Impudent strumpet! Desdemona: By heaven, you do me wrong! (4,2,81-82).” Desdemona tries throughout the rest of the play to convince Othello that she is faithful to him and loves him, but as hard much as she tries Othello does not believes any of it and ends up killing her. Shakespeare has made this very vocal female character to show women that even if they were to speak their mind and try to defend themselves no man would ever believe
Even on her death bed, Desdemona’s character of an inanimate object belonging to Othello is carried on. It is lead on by Emilia’s question of “who hath done this deed” (5.2.137) referring to Desdemona’s death and her reply, “Nobody. I myself. Farewell. Commend me to my kind lord. Oh, farewell!”(5.2.138-139), overall putting the responsibility of her death upon herself. Leaving the readers impression of Desdemona as one filled with sympathy and rage against her unwillingness to fight her independence as well as against the men of this time period for not realizing the importance of such a woman.
Othello's reputation also plays a big role in this play and the outcome of it. He has the reputation of a no nonsense military general. This status in fact partly causes Desdemona's death. He becomes so distraught when he hears from Iago that Cassio and Desdemona and cheating on him he becomes angry and wants to kill her. "I will chop her into messes! Cuckold me?" He is surprised and astonished that she would go behind his back and do this. His reputation doesn't allow him to confront her with the situation and talk things over. He is also angry that his reputation would be tarnished when found out that he is a cuckold. He proves that his reputations means a lot to him when he says, "For nought I did in hate, but all in honour." Othello believed that reputation was everything, because of his status as a general and the fact that those under him and above him respected him. Othello's reputation played a big role in the outcome of the play and in part caused Desdemona's death and his own.
Although he was portrayed by society’s point of view, Othello did have some respectable qualities. He was a Venetian general, so he had a high status among his people and was known to be a respectable, honorable gentleman. These characteristics could be seen in Act 1 when saying he’s not afraid to face Brabantio’s wrath as he confidently states “my services which [he has] done the signiory/ Shall out-tongue his complaints.” (1.2) and when Brabantio talks to the Duke, the Duke remarks that he thinks “[Othello’s] tale would win [his] daughter over.” (1.3). Othello’s status and respect can also be seen through Iago’s monologues and how people act around him like in Act 2 when everyone’s worried about Othello and they promise to “throw out [their] eyes for brave Othello,” showing respect and devotion to Othello. The contrast in how Othello’s personality changes throughout the book exemplifies the theme that no matter how high status one is or how respectable, all will be judged by their perception of them and
Reputation is defined as the way people perceive others based on facts, previous experiences, and opinions. Reputation was very important during Shakespearean times because it determined a person’s job, social status, and role in society. In the play, Othello, reputation is a critical theme that greatly impacts the story. The main use of reputation is by Iago who uses the fact that people know him as “honest Iago” to manipulate the characters. Roderigo, Cassio, and Othello believe Iago’s lies because he has such a positive reputation. Iago threatened Othello’s reputation by saying that Desdemona and Cassio had an affair. Othello wanted to do everything in his power to maintain his strong reputation even if that meant killing his wife. The story relies on reputation because it is the driving force that makes Iago want revenge and it is the reason why Cassio and Othello believe Iago. Although Iago’s reputation is detrimental to his plan and the downfall of Othello, the importance that Othello and Cassio place on their reputations is what caused the tragedy of Othello.
In Shakespeare's Othello, reputation is one of the main themes that is expressed. Every characters reputation played a vital role in how and why certain events were played out. For instance, Iago analyzed each individual's reputation, found their weaknesses, and used them to his advantage. Characters like Iago, Cassio, Desdemona, and Othello were all concerned with their reputations throughout the tragedy. If the concern of each characters reputation was not part of Othello, then the story and events that took place would have played out differently.
In William Shakespeare’s Othello, unspoken fears of being an outsider and concerns about his public image contribute to the downfall of a tragic hero named Othello. Othello, a general in the Venetian army’s, final monologue reflects the importance of reputation and the conformity needed to fit his surroundings. He is seen as an outsider of the Venetian culture; he is frequently referred to as “the Moor” and is called an abundance of racial slurs by the Venice born natives. Although Othello never voices his internal struggle to feel accepted by the people around him, his image and physical appearance are some of major issues he faces. Even in the moments before he stabs himself, Othello is more concerned with the legacy he is leaving behind than with the death of his wife, Desdemona. Shakespeare uses Othello’s transformation from a heroic military soldier to a tragic figure to warn of the dangers of obsessing over one’s reputation and the need to feel accepted by society.
Along with that, everyone's reputation has changed throughout the play at one point in time making some feel confident and others vulnerable. In some cases the change has had a positive outcome, while some were not. Cassio was one of the characters, who had their reputation go from being admirable and exemplary to completely unacceptable back to how it was previously. Cassio was Othello’s right hand, but it all changed when Cassio decided to overly drink alcohol, impairing his state of mind creating a brawl between himself and Roderigo, until Othello came into it and deciding to demote Cassio, creating Cassio’s first negative opinion that affected his reputation. Cassio then cries to Iago, “ Reputation, reputation, Iha’ lost my reputation!
...or example when she asked him to tell her how much he loved her, “If it be love indeed, tell me how much”. Her maids add a little to Cleopatra’s characteristics. Also she had a messenger go to Antony saying she was dead, which she was not.Cleopatra’s character is so exotic and proud to be able to manipulate men but Desdemona is a complete opposite. Betrayal is the other ultimate theme of both of these tragedies. In Othello, he betrays Desdemona by believing the evil Iago and not communicating with his wife. He instead assumes Iago’s statements are of truth. We see Iago’s slyness and cleverness grow and a vapid rate, Desdemona’s innoncence becomes more apparent and Othello’s character galls from a noble warrior into a jealous fool. Iago is the source of the problems in Othello. He has motivation to ruin dear Othello because of the promotion Cassio gets instead of Iago.
Being unfaithful to the one that she loves is something Desdemona cannot get into her head and would never understand. While singing the ‘Willow’ song that her mother’s maid sung before her death,a very concerned Desdemona wonders about infidelity by asking, “That there be women do abuse their husbands/ In such gross kind?” (IV, iii. 115). Desdemona grew up in a good family, never being exposed to certain realities which would explain why always sees the best in people and fails to acknowledge the real world, along. Irony makes presence when Desdemona is unaware that at that same moment her dear husband believes that she has been having an affair with Cassio for a while due to the fact of Iago’s lies getting through
Reputation and honor are two different things. They often are the difference between appearance and reality. Reputation is other people's opinions of you, while honor is a high respect. In the play, Othello, a character named Iago has a great reputation; however, he has no real honor. He is able to manipulate and shame other people without hurting his own reputation. In the play there are many examples of when he appears to be something, but really he is being the opposite.He talks badly about Othello to Roderigo and then talks badly of Roderigo to Othello.He also acts as Cassio’s friend and tells him to talk to Desdemona. In addition, he lies to Desdemona when she comes to him for help with her husband. Iago was able to manipulate each one of these people and in the end ruin his honor.
Desdemona demonstrates weakness in her love for Othello and by taking his abuse. At the beginning of the play, Desdemona feels she must accompany Othello to Cyprus in war. This can be looked at as her being a strong woman, but she truly is not since the real reason she wants to go is because she can not be seperated from Othello. "If I be left behind A moth of peace and he go to the war, The rites for which I love him are bereft me,And I a heavy interim shall support by his dear absence. Let me go with him." (Act 1, scene 3, line 250) She feels that she loves him so much, she can not be alone or without him. This is a trait of the stereotypical damsel. When Othello hits her in public, she does not get angry with him but begins to cry. " 'Tis very much.Make her amends, she
Desdemona is portrayed as the highest class a female could accomplish. She is elegant, honest and loyal to her husband as any other good Elizabethan married woman would be. She is presented as the ideal woman. Desdemona symbolizes innocence and helplessness against men. Shakespeare presents Desdemona as a mature and knowledgeable woman for her age as she defends her love for Othello to her father, Brabantio. However this is seen differently in the eye's of the society. Brabantio declares her as "Against all rules of nature"(scene.. line...). This statement reveals what the society believes what is natural and what is unnatural. To the society, "natural" is when a women complies to their husbands and fathers wishes, but it's unnatural for a women to do anything else. Women are referred to as property, clearly stated when Desdemona's father angrily calls Othello a "theif" (scene...line..). Here, Brabantio addresses Desde...