William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest writer of all time as well as the greatest dramatist. Shakespeare lived in Stratford-on-Avon and he dedicated most of his life to writing plays and poems. Shakespeare’s plays are well known and they have many of the same reoccurring and similar, underlying themes. One very interesting thing about Shakespeare is the way he approaches the women characters in his plays and how he treats them. In the Shakespearian plays, Macbeth, Hamlet, The Tempest, King Lear, Much Ado about Nothing, Othello, and A Midsummers Night Dream, the women characters are treated very similar, but also differently as well. Most notably, Shakespeare creates the character, Lady Macbeth in Macbeth, a very cynical and ambitious woman. When Lady Macbeth learns in a letter that witches predicted that her husband would become Thane of Cawdor and then soon King, she became very ambitious. She believed that …show more content…
In Othello, the evil villain Iago, tricks Othello into thinking his wife is having an affair with someone else. Iago hates Othello with a passion simply because he over looked him in a promotion and chose someone else instead. Othello becomes so enthralled in his jealousy that he ends up killing his wife, Desdemona. Desdemona was pure and she always remained firm in her loyalty and devotion to Othello. Even when she knew she was about to die she remained strong, “I never did offend you in my life; never loved Cassio but with such general warranty of heaven as I might love” (Othello). Iago’s wife, Emilie, died as well by the hands of her husband. She told Othello the truth about what her husband did and that Desdemona was innocent. Because of this, her husband killed her. Shakespeare uses these two women to represent the wrongs of society. “Shakespeare uses Othello to identify the repression of women as a social evil”
In Othello, Act IV, scene ii and iii, Emilia, Iago’s wife, reveals her opinion about relationships to the reader as she attempts to comfort Desdemona. She indefinitely believes that many men, as well as women, are frequently guilty of deception and betrayal of their partner. By this part of the play, Othello’s suspicions of Desdemona’s unfaithfulness have greatly increased, and he begins to accuse her of cheating on him. When Desdemona persistently denies his accusations, Othello becomes enraged. He sarcastically asks for her pardon and claims that he took her to be the “cunning whore of Venice” (Act IV, scene ii, line 88). Desdemona is heartbroken by her husband’s mockery and seeks Emilia’s kind words.
Neely, Carol Thomas. “Shakespeare’s Women: Historical Facts and Dramatic Representations.” Shakespeare’s Personality. Ed. Norman N. Holland, Sidney Homan, and Bernard J. Paris. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1989. 116-134.
When we first begin Othello, we see the start of what we believe to be a beautiful marriage between Othello and Desdemona. However, at the end, we are faced with the tragic murder of Desdemona by her dear Othello, bringing this marriage to a gruesome end. We’re left with a sense of horror, sorrow, and bewilderment. How could this have happened? Why did Othello, how did Othello, go from a doting husband to a furious killer? The obvious answer is that Iago deceived him into thinking that Desdemona had been unfaithful to him. However, multiple factors contributed to this tragedy. One could say that Emelia is the pivotal point in the tragedy of Othello. It was due, in part, to her actions and motivations, as well as the jealousy that she caused in Iago, that Desdemona died.
In the play, Othello views women very differently. He see’s women almost as an object. Something that should never be seen nor heard unless wanted. This is a value assumption because it derives from ethics and morals. In the play this is shown through verbal irony. Throughout the play he is seen talking to Desdemona in a very demeaning way. He sees his wife not as a partner and a lover but as someone who works for him and must follow everything he says. That is one of the reason’s he was so angry when Iago told him that his wife was cheating on him. He felt betrayed, but not by a wife, by a soldier. A.C Bradley explains that Othello “was newly married; in the circumstances he cannot have known much of Desdemona newly married” (831)...
American musician Jimmy Dean once stated, “I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination” (values.com). The tenacity described by this quotation is shared by Macbeth from The Tragedy of Macbeth, Hamlet from The Tragedy of Hamlet: Prince of Denmark, and Alice from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Each of these beloved characters are placed in unfavorable circumstances, yet they manage to pursue their own desires despite the will of those around them. In addition, unlike Hamlet and Macbeth, Alice manages to minimize her path of destruction. As demonstrated by Lewis Carrol’s Alice Liddell, the characteristics William Shakespeare’s tragic heroes transcend time and morph to create new modern heroes.
William Shakespeare is known to be the greatest writer in the English language, and till this day Shakespeare upholds the title of being the start of English literature. Something every reader has possibly observed is how Shakespeare portrays women. The majority of William Shakespeare’s plays objectifies women and in some ways shows his underline feelings towards women, and their roles in society. This is clearly shown through out Shakespeare’s play ‘Othello’. The society of Othello is completely controlled by men who are the military and political leaders of their homeland. Furthermore women are seen as powerless second-class citizens, who are in place for nothing more than to serve their men. But the horrendous actions and intense downfall of the men in Othello show how men are not nearly as authoritative and powerful as they seem. The boldness of the female characters proves that they are much more capable of just serving. Furthermore, by the end of the play, I admit the men of Othello are not the ones who perform courage and power instead; this title is given to the women in the play.
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
Neely, Carol Thomas. "Shakespeare's Women: Historical Facts and Dramatic Representations." In Holland, Norman N., Sidney Homan, and Bernard J. Paris, eds. Shakespeare's Personality. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1989.
In William Shaspeare play Othello, Iago make Othello believe that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio. He does by taking advantage of any situation to make of Othello doubt. Iago make Othello thing a lot of crazy thing on his head, Othello got so jelous leading him to kill his own wife, Desdemona, satisfying iago obseccion for revenge.
Shakespeare’s play Othello is based on tragedy of Othello’s jealousy, which ironically leads Othello to kill Desdemona, his beloved (wife). Evil Iago is above all Shakespeare’s villains. Iago is a person with evil emotions, and as a result he deceives everybody, he also is exceptionally influential character who has taken in everyone, above all his own wife Emilia. His public face of bravery and honesty conceals a satanic delight in manipulation and destruction, and he will stop at nothing. Iago’s opinion on women is that he detests women in all kinds and shapes, and finds faults even when they have little or no faults.
Once Iago has poisoned Othello’s mind with lies about an affair between Cassio and Desdemona, Othello becomes suspicious and distrusting of Desdemona. He is convinced that his wife is a whore, but never speaks to her about his suspicions. Othello refuses to confront Desdemona because, just as their society mandates, to him women are untrustworthy and decietful. Othello (and society) truly believes that if he asks her about Cassio, she will deny sleeping with him. Because Desdemona is a woman, she is not given a chance to speak on her own behalf. It is this same societal issue that played a part in her death. Othello the man and thus obviously stronger and more logical, suffocates Desdemona without hearing her side of the story first. The society in which they live gave Othello permission to kill Desdemona without her even really knowing why.
Her confession then confirms that Desdemona was faithful and did not deserve to die and as a result she shows one that love can be foolish and naïve. Her love and loyalty to Iago causes her to deceive her friend and this ends with both women being killed because the love they possessed for too foolish men. Othello is responsible for murdering Desdemona; Iago is
It all started at the beginning when Iago said women are like “wildcats in your kitchens, saints in your injuries, devils being offended, players in your huswifery, and huswives in your bed.” (Act II, Scene I, line 122-125, pg 67) this reflects his villainy.This also tells us that Iago had no respect toward women. This may be the cause of why Iago used Desdemona as his revenge against Othello.Desdemona was only trying to help Cassio since she knew he was a decent man who was close with Othello. She was only trying to help as a friend but Iago used this as an opportunity in manipulating Othello into thinking she was in love with Cassio.Iago also got lucky when Emilia picked up the handkerchief that was accidently dropped by Desdemona, he used this as his key in adapting his plan in revenge. Desdemona was wrongfully accused by Othello but she was truly innocent and loving towards her husband. She could have fought Othello when he was suffocating her but she thought staying noble was the right thing to
The society in which Othello takes place is a patriarchal one, where men had complete control over women. They were seen as possessions rather than being just as equally human and capable of duties performed by men. All women of the Elizabethan were to obey all men, fathers, brothers, husbands, etc. Which leads me to the most reliable and trustworthy character of Desdemona, whom goes through many trials just to satisfy her love. Shakespeare brings the thought of Desdemona into the play by Barbantio, her father, “It is too true an evil. Gone she is....Oh, she deceives me Past thought! …” (1.1.163)(1.1.168-169), whom has just found she has taken off with Othello and firstly suspects they have been hitched. Shakespeare gives reader the impression Desdemona is a devious imp full of disrespect towards her father. However, surpassing normal tradition of asking of her fathers’ permission to wed, Desdemona ran off and did marry the moor. This in a sense was her emancipation of her father’s possessiveness and oblivion of Othello’s dominance over her. Othello replies to Barbantio’s accusation, sedating or using black magic on his daughter, by saying, “My very noble and approved good masters, That I have ta’en away this old man’s daughter. It is most true.” (1.3.79-81), which brings me to the claim that Desdemona’s character in this tragedy, was only to become and to serve as Othello’s private possession rather than a typical beloved daughter or wife as in modern time. Shakespeare bases this tragedy on the foundation of Desdemona’s character by the symbol of the discrimination of women in the Shakespearean time era. Desdemona even for the first and only time within the play stands up and challenges her inferiority under her father’s aut...
In Othello, the main character Othello is newly married to his innocent wife Desdemona. They are a perfect couple, until Othello’s “friend” Iago, starts to