Shakespeare's Portrayal of Themes of Deception and Jealousy in Othello
The main characters in relation to jealousy in the play are Othello
and Desdemona. Desdemona is the object of Othello's jealousy, which is
planted in his mind by Iago's deception. This enhances Othello's
position in the minds of the audience as the tragic hero, and deeply
links these two themes.
The very status of being the tragic hero in the minds of the audience
enhances our sense of his deception by Iago. His complete trust in
Iago makes Iago seem all the more evil and deceitful in our eyes.
Othello's trust in him is demonstrated early in the play:
"Honest Iago,
My Desdemona must I leave thee." Act 1 scene 3
Ironically, this show of his complete trust in Iago could in fact
serve as a prompt for his plan to bring down Othello (his plan is at
this stage undeveloped, although even when it is in progress, it
relies as much upon Iago's resourcefulness and fleetness of mind as it
does upon prior planning). Iago is trusted and believed by all who
know him, and all of these are eventually destroyed: Cassio,
Desdemona, Bianca and Roderigo all suffer from his evilness and their
deaths are all by-products of his plan. Yet Iago seems unfazed and
unperturbed by this, and to the end refuses to intimate his plan to
anyone but Roderigo, with whom he contorts and presents his plan in a
favourable way. Even this apparent trust is in fact only serving to
increase his powers to remove Othello through his deception.
Right from the outset of the play, Othello is shown to be an
intelligent, slightly aloof but always just man, who is brought down
by the scheming and...
... middle of paper ...
... who knows him
with his quickness of mind and meticulous planning combined. By the
end, however, he is not in control of the situation and can only try
to change events, as is revealed in his line,
"This is the night, that either makes me or fordoes me."
Act 5, scene 1
I have also noted how Iago's deception leads to Othello's jealousy and
its counterproductive (at least for Iago, and everyone involved)
outcome, heavy with the moral that Iago's plotting and scheming does
not work and is his eventual undoing.
The complete futility and heartlessness of Iago's most evil of plots
is summed up by one of the final lines of a character whose death is
an unneeded by-product of Iago's cold-hearted plot, Desdemona:
"A guiltless death I die"
=========================
Desdemona, Act 5 scene 2, line 123
He uses his trusted advice to manipulate the minds of Othello and other main characters. He even calls himself "honest," saying, "As honest as I am." He does not care who it affects. Desdemona, Cassio, Roderigo, and even Emilia are all pawns in his board game, all to get revenge on Othello.
The play, Othello is one of the most famous tragedies composed by William Shakespeare during the Renaissance period. It powerfully portrays a world where the acts of evil ultimately vanquishes fidelity, nobility and integrity. The central themes jealousy and manipulation embodies the foretold tragedies and the downfall tragedies of the characters due to one’s insecurities. Through the use of literary techniques and figurative language, Shakespeare has effectively explored the themes of jealousy and manipulation.
begins to carry out his plan and soon enough gets the advantage of becoming Othello's lieutenant. Last
The Jealousy of Othello and the Motives of Iago in William Shakespeare's Othello. The Orthodox interpretation of Shakespeare's Othello is built on two assumptions: that Othello is not a jealous man and that Iago has no motives. Although there are many examples of these opinions within the play, I believe there is much more evidence which contradicts these two statements, which allows me to conclude that Othello is in fact a jealous man and that Iago does have motives. As the play progresses, the audience witness the development and increasing complexity of the characters.
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.
Kashayla Snipes Dr. Nancy Blair English Composition 1102 February 25, 2014. Othello: A Tragedy of Jealosuy. “Jealousy is troublesome to others, but a torment to themselves.”
“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.
Othello is a story of trust, and tragedy. A story of love, and loss. Who caused the aforementioned tragedy, and loss? Why, ‘honest’ Iago, of course. Iago is begrudgingly an ensign in the Venetian military, Under the command of The moor, Othello. Iago loathes the moor, for he chose Michael Cassio, a far younger, and less experienced man to be his lieutenant. Iago vows revenge on Othello, and swears to ruin his life. Now, Iago’s need for power is what drives him to do the awful things he does to Othello, Cassio, and all the others around him.
directs him as to what identity he holds. By imaging himself as Othello he is able to see the
...illed his needs on aiding with Othello’s insecurities, and eventually was the cause of downfall in character, Othello.
The Monster in Othello This essay is about William Shakespeare's Othello. It focuses on Iago's words to Othello, "O, beware, my lord, of Jealousy. It is the green-eyed monster." in act 3, scene 3 and just how important this warning was not only for Othello, but also for Roderigo and for Iago.
The critic Roland Barthes once said, “Literature is the question minus the answer.” William Shakespeare's tragedy, Othello, can be used to exemplify this quote. One of the themes that Shakespeare discusses in Othello is: the effect jealousy has on people. Several of the characters become jealous over the course of the tragedy. Brabantio became jealous because Desdemona fell in love and married Othello. Roderigo became jealous because Desdemona didn’t fall in love with him. Bianca became jealous because she thought that Cassio was cheating on her with another woman. Othello became jealous because he thought Desdemona was cheating on him with Cassio. Iago became jealous because Othello gave Cassio the position of lieutenant. These characters’
“O, beware, my lord of jealousy; It is the green - eyed monster, which doth mock the meat it feeds on.” - Iago (Shakespeare, Othello, 165-167).
Betrayal is a wound that cuts the deeper than any blade. In Othello, a play written by William Shakespeare, the reader is led through a drama in which several characters fall victim to acts betrayal by a villainous man. Iago, who is a master manipulator exploits the weaknesses of characters around him while maintaining own reputation. In this Shakespearean play, religion has a significant role due to the reoccurring elements of hell in the nature of betrayal. In like manner, the actions of Iago, Othello, Cassio, and Roderigo can all be attributed to the infamous, Seven Deadly Sins: Iago and Cassio embody the sins of wrath, envy, greed and gluttony; while Othello and Roderigo succumb to pride, sloth and lust.
Examine the role of jealousy, love, and/or betrayal in Othello. You may want to pick one character (Iago or Othello perhaps?) and focus on one issue.(O) 15