Othello

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Recommended: Analysis of The Tragedy Othello

Books related to Othello Othello - The protagonist and tragic hero of the play. A Moor commanding the armies of Venice, he is a celebrated general and heroic figure whose "free and open nature" will enable Iago to twist his love for his wife Desdemona into a powerful jealousy. Desdemona - The daughter of a Venetian Senator, and Othello's bride. The most sympathetic character in the play, she is deeply in love with her husband, and her purity contrasts strongly with Iago's wickedness. Iago - Othello's ensign, and Shakespeare's greatest villain. His public face of bravery and honesty conceals a Satanic delight in manipulation and destruction. Passed over for a promotion by his commander, he vows to destroy the Moor. Cassio - Othello's lieutenant, promoted in place of Iago. He is an inexperienced officer but an honest man, with a great concern for his good name. Emilia - Iago's wife and Desdemona's attendant. A cynical, worldly woman, she is deeply attached to her mistress. Roderigo - A jealous suitor of Desdemona. A vain, melodramatic fool, he follows Desdemona and Othello to Cyprus and acts as a willing tool for Iago. Bianca - A courtesan in Cyprus, and Cassio's mistress. Brabantio - Desdemona's father, and a Senator in Venice. A friend of Othello, he feels betrayed when the Moor marries his daughter in secret. Lodovico - Brabantio and Desdemona's kinsman, he acts as a messenger from Venice to Cyprus. Gratiano - Brabantio's brother. Clown - Othello's servant. Montano - The governor of Cyprus before Othello. The Duke of Venice - The official authority in Venice who presides over some scenes and events in Othello. Roderigo, meanwhile, appears as a whiner and dupe for Iago--if he is the best suitor Venice has to offer, then Desdemona's preference for Othello is understandable. As for Othello himself, we hear the racist insults of Roderigo and Iago, who refer to him as "thick-lips" (I.i.66) and "an old black ram" (I.i.88-89), so his identity as an African and an alien in Venice are firmly established. At the same time, Othello's importance in Venice is clear: he can appoint officers, converse with the chief citizens, and marry the daughter of a Senator. This is the paradox of Othello--as a heroic general, he is tremendously powerful, but as a black man in a white society, he is tremendously vulnerable. This is our first glimpse of t...

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...s planned Cassio's downfall, and in a soliloquy he says that Cassio will share guard duty with three Cypriots "That hold their honours in a wary distance" (2.3.56). Iago believes that because these three hold their honor so dear, any show of disrespect from Cassio will get him into trouble. Things don't turn out exactly as Iago predicts, but close enough. Roderigo insults Cassio, and Cassio beats him for that. Then Montano tries to intervene and tells Cassio that he is drunk; for that insult Cassio wounds Montano. Thus, in defense of his honor, Cassio commits a dishonorable act. After Cassio has gotten drunk, wounded Montano, and lost his job, Iago asks him if he's hurt. Cassio answers that he has wound that can't be healed: "Reputation, reputation, reputation! O, I have lost my reputation! I have lost the immortal part of myself, and what remains is bestial. My reputation, Iago, my reputation!" (2.3.262-265). Iago is not impressed. He tells Cassio that reputation is "oft got without merit, and lost without deserving" (2.3.269-270), and that the only thing that matters is what a person thinks of himself. [Scene Summary]

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