Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The meaning behind othello story
The meaning behind othello story
The meaning behind othello story
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Analysis of Othello Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Othello was written in 1603. The play is a mixture of violence and passion, with moments of reflection on the characters inside thoughts and feelings. Shakespearian language is very common and widely used in this play. Othello features both a mixture of poetry and prose. This work revolves around several characters: the noble Othello, a Moore who is also the general of the Venetian Army; Desdemona, Othello’s beloved wife; Cassio, his lieutenant; and lastly Iago, Othello’s trusted ensign who turns out to not be so trustworthy; and Iago’s wife Emilia. Othello is a play rich in metaphor, and other various forms of wordplay, symbolism, irony, and several recurrent themes. The biggest theme in …show more content…
Iago had a planned conversation with Cassio in which Othello overhears. In reality, Iago was talking to Cassio about his relationship with Bianca. However, Iago says her name quietly so Othello thinks they are talking about Desdemona. He also has Othello’s handkerchief, which is enough for Othello to believe what Iago has told him to be true. Othello believes Iago, and quickly becomes extremely jealous. Iago then tells Othello, “O, beware, my lord, of jealousy! It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock the meat it feeds on” (3.3. 165-67). This seems pretty ironic considering the jealousy that Iago holds. He’s warning Othello not be jealous, saying jealousy destroys whoever is taken over by it. Indeed Othello is taken over by jealousy. He becomes so enraged and hurt by Desdemona he throws reason out the window and will believe nothing but what he has heard from Iago. Othello orders Iago to kill Cassio, and Othello will kill Desdemona. After he kills Desdemona and seen that he has killed her unjustly, he comes back to his senses. He speaks calmly, and rationally, condemning himself for what he has done. Othello will execute himself and take his own life. This tragedy really shows how jealousy can take a toll on peoples lives and destroy the lives around …show more content…
Dramatic irony can really get the audiences attention and make the play more interesting; because the audience knows something the characters do not. The dramatic irony is quite obvious in this play. The main piece of dramatic irony is the fact that the reader knows that Desdemona is innocent, from the time that Iago devises his plan. Also, until the end, Othello thought Iago was his trusted ensign. In reality, the audience knows that Iago is actually a terrible person. Othello is unaware of any of this. “Iago most honest” says Othello in Act 2 Scene 3, believing that he can trust his friend Iago of the things he is telling him (2.3.6). Othello is completely unaware of the evil plans Iago has and this is ironic because Iago is simply the furthest thing from “most honest”. There are also a few more bits of dramatic irony that show up as the characters are thinking aloud to the audience; this allows the audience to know what is happening when most of the characters do not. These instances of dramatic irony really keep the reader invested in the play and it helps make it more
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
Iago wanted Othello’s position and used others to shame Othello and gain stature. Iago dressed himself up a trustworthy man and worked his way into Othello’s trust with tricks and lies. He wore a very convincing mask; often temporarily defending the person he was trying to ruin to further his honest visage. He says to Othello, “Men should be what they seem…” (3.3.127) through these methods, Iago convinces Othello that Cassio, an officer, was having an affair with Othello’s beautiful wife Desdemona. As a vicious result, Othello is driven mad with anger and sadness and throttles Desdemona in their bed. The death and want left by Iago’s deception is vast hurting everyone involved most frequently on a mortal level. When the truth finally comes out, Othello, in his grief and remorse, ends up stabbing himself with a dagger. In the end, many die due to Iago’s deception, through villainy or despair, and none gain what they truly want because of it. This just goes to show that the mask of deception that a man wears can cause an unbelievable amount of harm, bodily and worse,
In the play Othello, Shakespeare uses many literary devices to help the reader understand the theme of the story. One of those many literary devices used in the play, is the wide range of irony. Throughout the pages of the book the reader will see the use of dramatic, situational, and verbal irony. Shakespeare does not use irony in an understated way, it is very direct, and can be found on almost every page of the book. The use of irony creates suspense, and adds interest as to what will happen.
While Othello murdered his wife Desdemona, he did it purely from misunderstanding and jealousy. Iago made Othello believe Desdemona is cheating on him with Cassio even though she never did such actions. Iago’s persistence and villainous intentions made Othello become jealous of Cassio and break down his emotions towards Desdemona and want to kill her with fierce rage. Othello would not do such a crime if he have known it is was a
In Othello, the jealousy factor is deliberately introduced by Iago, with the precise intention of destroying those whom he feels have wronged him. Since it is intentionally used with malicious intent, it has catastrophic results. Iago himself is jealous of Cassio; he feels that he should have been appointed to Cassio's position by Othello, and since he wasn't he hates both Othello and Cassio. Iago channels the jealousy that Othello and Cassio have made him feel, and uses it against them in a hateful plan. Iago starts the process by planting the seeds of jealousy in Othello's mind, telling him Desdemona has been unfaithful. He then proceeds to cultivate the growing jealousy by feeding it with more lies, and twisting innocent events into situations which would serve his needs (his telling Othello that Cassio and Desdemona met in secret, and convincing him that Desdemona vied for Cassio's reinstatement as lieutenant because she loved him, for example). When the seeds had flourished, and Iago had succeeded in driving Othello mad with jealousy, Iago harvested his crop and convinced Othello to kill Desdemona. Othello's killing Desdemona would both rid Iago of Desde...
William Shakespeare’s dramatic and poetic techniques and his use of hyperbole are used to describe the characters emotions and weaknesses. The use of dramatic irony is used to create personal conflict. This is done throughout the play to describe the characters concerns and their situations.
really does believe Iago. That makes Othello responsible for Desdemona's death. For example, When Othello sees Cassio talking to Desdemona, Iago winds him up. says he should beware of jealousy, the ''green eyed monster''. This explains to us that from now on you have to take on jealousy as well.
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.
Jealousy’s true destructive wrath and the pure evil it brings out in people can be revealed through Iago’s actions throughout the tragedy Othello. Throughout the play, jealousy is a ruler over Iago’s thoughts and actions, influencing the way he feels about himself. Iago’s jealousy is exhibited while speaking with Roderigo “One Michael Cassio, a Florentine/ (A fellow almost damned in a fair wife)/ That never set a squadron in the field, / Nor the division of a battle knows/ More than a spinster—unless the bookish theoric, / Wherein the toged consuls can propose/ As masterly as he.
Othello, a play by William Shakespeare, takes place in Venice during the invasion of the island of Cyprus by the Turks. The protagonist of the story, Othello, is a newlywed, Moorish general with a very gullible nature. The antagonist of the story is Iago, an officer under Othello who wishes to be promoted to lieutenant, but the position was given to the young and attractive Cassio. Other major characters in the play are Desdemona, Othello's wife who is accused of having an affair with Cassio. In addition, there are Roderigo, a Venetian who is deeply in love with Desdemona; and Emilia (Iago's wife) who could have prevented the death of Desdemona.
That’s Othello’s weakness that Iago deems as useful. Othello’s love turns to jealousy. The question is how sympatric is Othello to the reader. Othello feels betrayed. But Othello loses his look of a gullible, good guy when he decides he wants Cassio and Desdemona dead. The rage of his jealousy turns the character of Othello the readers know on its head and creates a different look. Only during and after the death of Desdemona can the reader see the good that was once in him. Othello shows regret and kind of a sense of torment. Clearly parts of him doesn’t want this to happen. And after the death of Desdemona he sees the misplaced change and rage he had. When Othello hears of Iago’s disseat he changes back to the good Othello that was present in the start of the play. He might be filled with regret and a new rage for Iago, but is morals seem solid
Shakespeare makes this scene significant and dramatically effective through dramatic irony and by using two very different, charismatic figures.
Internal and external struggles influence people to action, be it swift and daring or cunning and low. In Shakespeare's plays, the events around and within a character often combine to cause a character to act in a manner that would be considered out of character or unnatural for the person. Shakespeare uses these characters to provide the audience with a lesson or theme; to give them something they can apply to life and see learn from. In Othello, the character he uses as an example is, in fact, Othello. Shakespeare informs his readers of how doubts caused by rumors and lies can lead to the breakdown of even a once noble person.
Iago had tricked Othello into believing that Desdemona cheated on him with Cassio, thus causing him to become jealous. His jealousy overcame his usual respectable, noble personality and he became irrational and violent. His jealousy and rage lead him to kill his wife, something he would never have done if he had not been jealous.
Othello doesn’t realize Iago doesn’t care towards him and never did after Iago wasn’t promoted to lieutenant. Iago plays the as the main director of what happens in Othello’s life. Othello doesn’t realize it thought. Iago is able to hide his emotions towards others. Which allows Othello not to notice he is faking every emotion of helping Othello. Iago is always at ease when in the eyes of his peers. “He moves jovially and at ease among the gentlemen of Cyprus, even as he sets up Cassio for a drunken fall” (Barnes 15). This shows how committed Iago was to strike revenge against his foes. Only a psychopath could hide their feelings in front of the people you want to hurt. “Iago refuses to show the "outward action" which would "demonstrate / The native act and figure of [his] heart / In complement extern" (“Where Iago Lies” 19). Because of Iago, Othello creates his own anxiety. He has anxiety because he now worries that Desdemona may be cheating on him with Cassio. Iago creates Othello’s fear by twisting his words to have different meanings. “Iago: O, beware, my lord, of jealousy/ It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock/ The meat it feeds on” (Shakespeare 1816-1818). Iago is manipulating Othello into believing that Othello shouldn’t be jealous, which tricks Othello into being jealous. The green-eyed monster is another term for jealousy. It is Othello though that allows him to get trapped in anxiety. Iago exploits him to bring Othello to a tragic