In Othello, Act Three the theme is “what goes around, comes around” what this means is that a bad action lead into bad consequences. In Act Three the climax is the handkerchief. The handkerchief is one of the ocular proofs that is a lie. How does lying affect the characters? Lying affects the characters in a way that Iago convinces Othello that Desdemona is unfaithful, Othello thinks that Desdemona gave the handkerchief to Cassio, and Cassio is in a relationship while being married. Lying affects Othello when Iago convinces Othello that Desdemona is unfaithful. Othello is confused by Iago because Iago is playing games with him. Othello believes that his wife, Desdemona is not unfaithful “By the world, I think my wife be honest and think she is not...” (III. iii. 438-439). But, since Iago is always pointing out Cassio and Desdemona, Othello asks Iago to bring him ocular proof. Then Iago makes up a dream about Cassio. Iago says that Cassio thought he was with Desdemona, but it was actually just Iago. Iago continues by saying Cassio tried pulling him in, so he could kiss him thinking it was Desdemona. This proof worked for Othello, but it was a lie and …show more content…
Othello thinks that Desdemona gave the handkerchief to Cassio since he was wiping his beard with one similar to the one he gave to her. Othello believed that the handkerchief he gave Desdemona was associated with superstition, which helps keep their marriage secure. Othello gets angry at Desdemona and takes the missing handkerchief as another source of proof. Desdemona is naive and innocent. She does not really understand the meaning of the handkerchief. When Othello gets angry at Desdemona she decides to start talking about Cassio to change the subject by saying “Pray you, let Cassio be received again” (III. iv. 102). Desdemona is on Cassio side and she is trying her hardest to get Cassio his job back, but she does not realize that her husband is
Pray you let Cassio be received again.” (Shakespeare III.IV 81-83) At this point in the story, Othello is demanding that Desdemona present his handkerchief, a gift which he gave to her. In Othello, the manipulation, and whole story, revolves around a select few individuals.
In the beginning Othello is seen as a calm collected man when put into an awkward situation, such as being ridiculed by his wife’s father in thinking that Othello has used some sort of magic to gain Desdemona 's infection. Othello’s calm collected ways start to deteriorate after he is convinced by Iago, a deceiving evil man that Desdemona has slept with Cassio. Othello’s self control no longer exist once he is fully convinced that it is in fact true that Desdemona has been unfaithful. His sense of what is real and what is not real is thrown out the window. Othello starts to become extremely jealous of his used to be beloved Cassio, and after considering giving back his spot as liternuanat he denies him that. He starts to become cold and distant towards his wife, and starts to call her out of her name. As Othello continues to lose control the people around him start to doubt his abilities of being able to protect Cyprus, and even his wife starts to doubt him, and agree with her father. No one knows who this man is anymore, he has started to act in an insanely matter. He can longer be his true self and take on the responsibilities of being general as he starts to crack. With Othello being faced with evil, him being calm is no longer an option for him because he can’t face the fact that the person he loves so dearly is cheating on him. Going back the they handkerchief, the symbol of his love for her. Othello seeing Cassio with Desdemona’s handkerchief sets him over the edge becoming truly convinced that his wife has betrayed him. Even when Desdemona and her maid Emila, Iago’s wife, has told him countless times that she has not been unfaithful, he is so far gone from reality that he does not believe either one of them. With the state of mind he’s in he cannot bear the thought of another man touching his wife. Othello and Iago plan to kill Cassio and Desdemona. After he
The death of Desdemona is a result of the lies and manipulation of Othello and Cassio by Iago. Through his suggestion to Cassio, Iago can now be certain that Cassio will entreat Desdemona to petition for him with Othello. Cassio does implore Desdemona and she responds, “Be thou assured, good Cassio, I will do all my abilities in thy behalf” (Act III Scene III). Iago manages to obtain the handkerchief that Othello gave to Desdemona that had strawberry patterns on it from Bianca.
Iago talks about jealousy and deception in this same scene, but never gives any proof or direct descriptions of Desdemona's betrayal. Yet we know that Othello's perception has been sufficiently influenced to make him angry and sick by the end of this conversation. He tells Desdemona he has a headache, but he refuses any help from her. When she puts her handkerchief to his head, he pushes it away saying, "your napkin is too little" (3.3.285). This takes on more significance later on in the play when we find out that this handkerchief is the first token of love Othello ever gave to Desdemona.
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.
This item represented Desdemona’s love for Othello, but also all of the scandal that happened in the play. It was traditional in this time for women to give their handkerchiefs to the one they loved. In this play, however, while Desdemona did give Othello her handkerchief to represent her love, Iago used this item to manipulate Othello so that he could take Cassio’s place. In a way, the handkerchief is the second most important part of the conflict. Iago had a copy of the handkerchief made identical to Desdemona’s, and placed in on Cassio. This ended up causing the main uproar of the
Although Iago has no solid evidence of Desdemona cheating on him, he automatically believes what Iago tells him. He leads Othello into believing that Cassio slept with Desdemona, and also had her handkerchief that Othello gave her for their anniversary. Emilia takes the handkerchief from Desdemona’s chamber and gives it to Iago. He gives it to Cassio, creating a perfect scene for himself. He tells Othello that he saw Cassio wipe his beard with the handkerchief, which makes him upset with him and Desdemona. (insert quote about the handkerchief) He also gets Othello to believe that Cassio was talking about Desdemona in his sleep, which he made up. Othello is gullible, believing what Iago tells him. This leads him to murder his wife and order the death of
In The Tragedy of Othello, William Shakespeare tells the tale of the “noble Moor” whose honor and innocence bring about his downfall. Shakespeare writes of the power of jealousy, and the art of masterful deception and trickery. The story primarily takes place in Cyprus, during a war between the people of Venice and the invading Turks. In this play Shakespeare shows the feelings of Othello’s embittered right-hand man of, Iago, who feels he is passed over for a promotion and swears his revenge. He proceeds to manipulate his friends, enemies, and family into doing his bidding without any of them ever realizing his ultimate goal. He makes Othello believe that his new wife, the innocent Desdemona, is committing adultery with his newly promoted officer Michael Cassio. After this seed of jealousy has been planted, Othello’s mind takes its course in determining the true outcome, with a little more nudging from Iago. The course of action he proceeds to follow is one that not only ends his own life, but also the life of his wife and others. In Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Othello, Othello is a man who is still truly honorable, despite the course of action he takes to resolve his perceived problem.
Othello asks Desdemona for the handkerchief. The handkerchief had been given to Othello’s mother by an Egyptian charmer. Desdemona is unable to present the handkerchief to Othello Othello continues to demand the handkerchief while Desdemona continues to plead for Cassio’s return to service. “Fetch me the handkerchief! — my mind misgives” (Othello/Otl. 3, 4, 85) Filled with anger and doubt, Othello exits the...
Lying by omission is incorporated into the theme of appearance versus reality. Othello often falls prey to Iago’s twisted words. Iago plants a seed of doubt in Othello’s mind about Desdemona when the men see her talking to Cassio. Cassio leaves in a hurry and Iago tells Othello that Cassio “would steal away so guilty-like/ Seeing you coming” (3.3.39-40). He is telling Othello that Cassio would only be leaving so quickly if he and Desdemona were involved in something clandestine. Iago is planting seeds of doubt in Othello’s mind. He is making it seem that Cassio is acting suspicious, but in reality, Cassio is leaving quickly because he is “ill at ease” (3.3.30). around Othello given his current situation after the drinking incident in Act II. Another example of Iago twisting Othello’s reality is when Othello says he will only believe that Desdemona is unfaithful to him when he sees “ocular proof” (3.3.360) with his own eyes. When Iago manages to procure the handkerchief and place it in Cassio’s possession, Othello effortlessly takes it as proof and therefore is completely convinced of Desdemona’s infidelity. To Othello, it appears that Desdemona is cheating, because Cassio has her handkerchief, but in reality, Iago had planted it in Cassio’s chambers for him to find. Iago is liar; who makes other character believe what he wants them to believe through twisting his words
Deception, which by its definition is a bad thing and has only one level or degree, is truly not this way at all. Deception appears many times in Othello, but in almost every incident the degree of deception is different. There are only a few characters that use deception, and those characters all use different degrees of deception to get what they want in the play. Deception is almost always used through verbal language or body language because it is the easiest way to deceive a person. The reasons, or intentions, a person has for deception determines the goodness (or badness) and (or) severity of the deception. If a person deceives others with good intentions, then, in a way, the deception is partially good. However, if a person has bad reasons or intentions in deceiving others, then the deception is bad. There is also, in contrast to the definition of deception, debate over what is deception because it is always different in the eyes of different people.
From this point on, Othello insecurity manifests into a seemingly irrational fear of being cuckolded, and his self-perceived worth diminishes exponentially. Othello comments on the likelihood of Desdemona cheating, by explaining how it may be “for [he is] black / And have not those soft parts of conversation / That chamberers have…” (3.3.280-282) Othello’s frustration with the threat of being cuckolded puts strain on his relationship with Desdemona, and she quickly becomes a victim of domestic abuse. For example, Othello acts as an interrogator, demanding to see the handkerchief which he gave her that symbolizes faithfulness and commitment towards Othello. (Quotation) When she is unable to produce their symbol of trust, Othello’s anger manifests inside him. The audience is shown a stark contrast to Othello’s typically cool, collected and composted nature. This abrupt and irrational change in behaviour is emphasized when Othello strikes Desdemona in front of Lordovico, (4.1.245) Othello’s
Already there is a high importance to the handkerchief in the start of the story. This being due to the fact that it originally came from Othello’s mother. The reason it is also seem to be placed on a pedestal is because it is believed by Othello to possess magical powers. He had been told that it was woven by a 200-year-old sibyl also known as an Egyptian charmer. The process was done by using the silk from sacred worms, and the dye from mummified virgin hearts. Later being given to his mother; who he claims used it to keep his father from being unfaithful to her. This further illustrates Othello’s fixed perspective of the handkerchief, and the value of fidelity that it holds within it. When he presents Desdemona with the handkerchief, he expects nothing but love and faithfulness in return. The handkerchief, as mentioned, does give a variety of meanings to each of the characters as it falls into each of their hands throughout the entire story. So for Desdemona, the strawberry embroidered handkerchief, means nothing but Oth...
Throughout the drama, Othello let Iago control him as if he was a puppet under his master’s hands. When Iago first brought up the idea that Desdemona and Cassio might be having an affair, Othello did not believe him, he had faith in his wife. After many lies that Iago planted in Othello’s ears, Othello started to believe him and he dropped most of the faith that he had in Desdemona. Iago told Othello that in his sleep, Cassio said “Sweet Desdemona, let us be wary, let us hide our love”. Cursed fate that gave thee the Moor” (III.iii.416-417).
The role of the handkerchief is significant in “Othello” as it symbolized the sentimental value that it held, as well as the themes of jealousy, love, and faithfulness.