“Love sees sharply, hatred sees even more sharp, but jealousy sees the sharpest for it is love and hate at the same time”(anonymous). Love and hate interlinked together builds jealousy. Jealous people are that way because they envy or wish they could have what someone else has to fulfill the attention or satisfaction need. There is a void in their lives that they believe can be filled if only the status or the treasures that another has belonged to them. The characters in Othello fall under the same category. There are several reasons for jealousy but all the reasons are interlinked and can destroy their fate if they are not careful. In Othello William Shakespeare exemplifies the fine line between a diverse range of jealousy types and how it can affect relationships.
Jealousy falls from love. In Othello the two are interlinked. Several characters show a love jealousy towards others. Iago has a jealous urge towards Othello because of Desdemona. “Now, I do love her too, not out of absolute lust, though peradventure, I stand accountant for as great a sin, for that I do suspect the lusty Moor hath leap’d into my seat”(28). Iago is in love with Desdemona not because of thirst for her but more by chance because he is jealous of Othello for winning Desdemona’s heart over all the other men after her. Iago also believes that Othello was after his wife, Amelia, when her and Iago were first married. Iago is jealous that Othello has stolen Desdemona’s heart behind her father’s back and stolen her away from all the men after her so that now she is all his. Because of Iago’s jealousy he vows to strike revenge on Othello. He contends that nothing can stop him from or produce fulfillment in his cause except obtaining retribution on Othello. “ A...
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...no conception nor no jealous toy concerning you (Desdemona)” (58-59). Desdemona has no intuition over the reason of Othello’s outward rage against her. Emilia just explains it that Desdemona has no basis to worry. Othello is just like all men in that he does not need specific cause to show jealous rage sometimes. Othello is jealous because he can be and it is a natural reaction for humans.
Some characters do not have a real cause for jealousy but they try to find reasons because it is a natural human feeling. Through Othello Shakespeare portrays the different types of jealousy and gives the reader the fine line connecting and separating them all. One jealous person leads to another, which leads to another, and pretty soon everyone is finding reasons to be jealous.
Works Cited
Shakespeare, William. Othello. Mineola New York: Dover Publications Inc, 2009. Print.
Othello has many positive traits, including being a great leader and loyal. He also has one negative trait that ultimately leads to his death; jealousy. Iago provokes deep, strong emotions in Othello, jealousy being the strongest. Jealousy is a nasty little emotion. It causes people to do terrible things because once it is on a person’s conscience, it stays for quite some time. Because of these effects, jealousy can impact some of the strongest people such as Othello. The love between Desdemona and Othello was portrayed so elevated and pure and was filled with religious words and phrases that just added to the strength and sanctity of their love. Othello has such a strong mind, but jealousy caused by the manipulation of Iago, negatively impacts him. Iago convinces Othello that Desdemona is cheating on him with his friend Cassio. When Othello asks Iago for proof of Desdemona’s deceit, Iago describes scenes and events in which Othello has a reason to be jealous. In Act III, Scene I Iago is describing to Othello, Desdemona and Cassio’s imagined relationship, “It is impossible you should see this/ were they as prime as goats, as hot as monkeys, as salt as wolves in pride, and fools as gross as ignorance made drunk.” These images planted themselves inside Othello’s mind and haunted him until he did something about it. These images led to Othello believing Desdemona really did love
The common thread of jealousy ties together the main plots in Much Ado About Nothing, Othello, and The Winter's Tale. In each of these plays, the main conflict is centered around some form of jealousy. While jealousy is the mutual, most prominent cause for turmoil in these plays, its effects on the characters, and ultimately the plots, is different in each case. This difference has much to do with the way in which the concept of jealousy is woven into each play, and what it is intended to accomplish.
In the play Othello, there are many jealous and selfish characters. Each of the characters at one point or another let their jealousy take over. It seems like they all have these plots and plans on how to hurt another character in the play either physically or emotionally, as an act of selfishness, so that they can feel better about themselves. One main character who seems extremely jealous in this play is Iago. Infact, probably the most jealous. Many bad things happen because of Iago. The first bad thing that Iago did, was tell Barbantio (Desdamona's father) that Desdemona has married Othello, the Moore. Iago was mad at Othello, because Cassio had made Othello a higher position and not Iago. Iago thought that he was the one who qualified for the position as general, not Othello. Iago was jealous because of this, so he decided to tell Barbantio about Desdemona and Othello. This was bad, because Barbantio did not know yet, and something like that should have been said by his own daughter, not someone who was not part of the family. The way Iago went about telling him was also bad. He called to his house in the middle of the night. He yelled it to Barbantio from downstairs into his window in a rude manner. " quote from Othello here." He wanted Barbantio to be upset about what had happened, and most of all, he wanted Barbantio to be mad at Othello and do something bad to him.
This was brought on by a simple persuasion of Iago, the evil character in the play. Even though Iago used extreme manipulation to get Othello to be jealous, Iago did not really have to try very hard to get Othello in a jealous state of mind. Othello was blinded by his jealousy, which led him down a path of constant questioning of his wife and his friend Cassio. Throughout the play we see his dramatic flaw sink him deeper and deeper into a cloud of doubt which eventually leads him to kill not only his love of his life but also himself. At the beginning of the play, we see Othello as a strong character.
“O, beware, my lord, of jealousy;It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock.The meat it feeds on; that cuckold lives in bliss. Who, certain of his fate, loves not his wronger; But, O, what damned minutes tells he o'er. Who dotes, yet doubts, suspects, yet strongly loves” (3.3.163-168). In Shakespeare’s Othello, jealousy is the common theme that becomes Othello’s undoing. Through text in the play, the audience can notice Othello slowly begin to become crazed through his speech.
Shakespeare’s work “Othello” emphasizes the dangers of jealousy. The play demonstrates how jealousy is powered by affirmations that can easily be proven false. Therefore, resulting in the destruction of many lives, including the tragic hero himself. It is extremely apparent that jealousy is a behavioral propellant on the entire plot. Specifically, the play begins in the midst of Iago’s jealous behavior towards Cassio. Lago’s twisted actions refer to the source of jealousy, indicating that he takes revenge on the people around him and is the least discontent with the lives he damages. As the play progresses, both the tragic hero and Iago’s jealous behavior develops. Othello’s Moorish values make him obscure in comparison to other Venetians suggests that the reason for his jealousy is unreasonable. Notably, Shakespeare exhibits that jealousy is unreasonable throughout the play as a result of the tragic hero’s fatal flaw, an issue that is psychological. The action and behavior Othello performs in enviousness is not a source of a reasonable act of
Above all, at the pivotal point in the play, it is Othello, ultimately who determines the outcome of his raged jealousy. But, his anger towards Desdemona and Cassio, leaves him very little of another option, but to continue his plan. Othello demands that he will "make me to see 't” (3.3.364) “or woe upon thy life!" (3.3.366) and this expresses his emotions, such as his love for Desdemona. Furthermore, when Othello says “when I love thee not” (3.3.91) “chaos is come again" (3.3.92) , it can be seen as how Othello feels towards his insecurity due to his race. Iago uses Othello 's position of a "stranger from here and everywhere" (1.1.136-137) to exploit his insecurities; he says that "in Venice they do let God see the pranks” (3.3.202) “they dare not show their husbands" (3.3.203). As Othello is not a Venetian, he cannot defend himself from this accusation of his wife. Therefore, jealousy might be a result of the insecurity that he is feeling, but also caused by Iago who takes advantage of
A.C. Bradley describes Othello as "by far the most romantic figure among Shakespeare's heroes"(Shakespearean Tragedy, 1). This is an unusual description of a man who murders his own wife. However, Othello's feelings of hate for Desdemona started as an overwhelming love for her when their relationship began. This transformation from love to hate also inflicted the characters Iago and Roderigo and like Othello their hatred resulted in the murder of innocent people. Roderigo's love for Desdemona was transformed into hate towards any man that he thought was loved by her. Iago's love for his job and his wife, Emilia changed into a destructive hatred of Cassio and Othello. As a result of their hatred Cassio, Emilia, and at the end themselves were killed. The connection between love and hate in William Shakespeare's "Othello" is the ugly feeling of jealousy that caused such transformations. Jealousy can be described as a fear of losing something or someone that is valuable (Godfrey 2). As minor as this feeling appears to be by that definition, it can take on varying degrees of damaging behavior. Othello, Roderigo, and Iago became paralyzed by jealousy. Their thoughts, actions, and behaviors were ruled by it. Jealousy caused their inability to the act rationally. They became paranoid and unable to love. This paper will examine the jealousy that caused love to turn into hate for Roderigo, Othello, and Iago.
Jealousy is an emotion showing envy to someone's achievements, advantages or possessions. Jealousy can also be for someone's suspicions of unfaithfulness. In the William Shakespeare play "Othello", the major theme of jealousy is portrayed through the characters Roderigo, Iago and Othello. These characters show how jealousy has a destructive influence. Roderigo shows a destructive influence of jealousy in the play "Othello".
Othello claims he will not let jealousy destroy him, but due to Othello’s insecurities stemming from his race, he tries to mask his insecurities by overly announcing his happiness. He has actually already started to subconsciously fear a change in his young wife, “When the blood is made dull with the act of /sport” (2.1.228-229) Othello is already concerned that his marriage will fail once his wife has had her fill of him physically. Othello, allows jealousy to overpower him and let him slip into his dominant personality trait of jealously.
Jealousy begins the book when every body comes to realize that Othello and Desdemona have eloped. It seems as if every male in the book is in some way in love with Desdemona, whether it is for her looks, for her presence, or because it gives them reason to hate the Moor, Othello, who is her husband. The first sign of envy came from Iago toward Othello. Although Iago is married, he wants Desdemona under his power as well. He is also jealous of Cassio, Othello's lieutenant, because he was chosen to be Othello's lieutenant over himself.
Songs of love and jealousy are spewed across today’s radio. Billboards and magazines highlighting the “perfect body” can be seen all throughout the streets. Billionaires flaunt their cash and splurge on Ferraris and Fendi. With the help of social media, it’s impossible to not be jealous of someone or something. Jealousy is a major theme in the play Othello.
He has very strong jealousy behavior, and his jealousy is leading him to a point where he ends up losing his friends Othello, and his crush Desdemona, and also ends up killing his wife Emilia. According to Alexis Carrel, “Like hatred, jealousy is forbidden by the laws of life because it is essentially destruction. “Jealousy is just a dangerous disease. Jealousy damages the trust between friends or a partner.
The role of jealousy, love and betrayal play a major role in The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. The entire play is based on the human interactions of the characters as related to Othello and Desdemona. The characters’ personalities, their social status, and their relationships to each other control the story line and their fate in the play. Othello is portrayed early in the play as an outsider with animalistic characteristics by Iago and Roderigo because of jealousy. “Your heart is burst; and have lost half of your soul/Even now, now, very now, an old black ram/Is tupping your white ewe”.(531) Desdemona’s father, Brabantio, accuses Othello of using witch craft on his daughter. “If she in chains of magic were not bound/ Whether a maid so tender, fair, and happy/ So opposite to marriage that she shunned…” (535) This point is important because Othello must defend himself not only to Desdemona’s father, Brabantio, but to the entire Venetian Senate. “And till she come, as truly as to heaven,/ I do confess the vices of my blood./ So justly to your grave ears I’ll present/ How I did thrive in this fair lady’s love, / And she in mine.” (539) Othello proves himself to be an intellectual hero early in the play. He has worked hard to gain respectability and power, but because he has a different background, is from another country, is dark-skinned and is older than Desdemona, he becomes jealous very quickly of Cassio. Cassio is from the same social class, is compatible with Desdemona and is a young handsome man. Iago has also convinced Cassio to seek favor with Desdemo...
Jealousy can be a problem, especially when it can make someone lose control. When Iago convinces Othello about Desdemona’s affairs with Cassio, Othello loses control. Then as the play begins to come to an end, Othello’s discovers the truth and everything is put in the