Transcript OTHELLO - Eagan High School

THE MOOR OF VENICE
TRAGEDY
A drama or literary work in which the
main character is brought to ruin or
suffers extreme sorrow, especially as a
consequence of a tragic flaw, moral
weakness, or inability to cope with
unfavorable circumstances.
Historical Background
• Othello was first performed by the
King’s Men at the court of King James I
on November 1, 1604. Written during
Shakespeare’s great tragic period,
which also included the composition of
Hamlet (1600), King Lear (1604–5),
Macbeth (1606), and Antony and
Cleopatra (1606–7).
• Othello is possibly the most famous
exploration of the warping powers of
jealousy and suspicion. At the same time it’s
among the earliest literary works dealing
with race and racism. Othello, undeniably
heroic, even if ultimately flawed, is the most
prominent black protagonist in Western
literature. Othello faces constant racism
from other characters, especially because
he has married Desdemona, a privileged
white woman whose father disapproves of
the union.
• Othello's treatment of race and sexuality makes its one
of Shakespeare's most relevant and controversial plays.
For some, the play's portrayal of a black man who marries
and then brutally murders a white woman in a fit of rage
and jealousy makes Othello a racist play. For these critics,
Shakespeare seems to endorse a xenophobic (antiforeigner) attitude that was pretty common throughout
England and other parts of Europe. After all, they say, the
play is full of characters that express a blatant hatred of
black men and foreigners, and these characters often refer
to Othello as "thick-lips," the "devil," and the "old black
ram" who supposedly contaminates his white wife with his
hyper-sexuality. Not only that, but Othello enacts a racist
stereotype (that says black men are "savage") when he
strangles his wife on her bed.
• Yet, for other critics, neither the action in the play
nor the characters' racist attitudes makes the play
(or Shakespeare) racist. For some, Othello is a play
that portrays racism in a way that provokes the
audience into rethinking its ideas and attitudes
about race. Many critics argue that Shakespeare's
play asks us to consider the tragedy of how Othello
absorbs and internalizes the dominant racist
attitudes that surround him. The idea is
that Othello is a study of what happens when a
society tells a man over and over and over again
that he is violent, savage, contaminating, and to be
feared. In the case of Othello, the character begins
to believe it's all true and acts out a racist
stereotype – that of a "savage" killer.
• Othello is set against the backdrop of
the wars between Venice and Turkey
that raged in the latter part of the
sixteenth century. Cyprus, which is the
setting for most of the action, was a
Venetian outpost attacked by the Turks
in 1570 and conquered the following
year.
Othello’s Race
• The question of Othello’s exact race is
open to some debate. The word Moor
now refers to the Islamic Arabic
inhabitants of North Africa who
conquered Spain in the eighth century,
but the term was used rather broadly in
the period and was sometimes applied
to Africans from other regions.
• George Abbott, for example, in his A Brief
Description of the Whole World of 1599,
made distinctions between “blackish Moors”
and “black Negroes”; a 1600 translation of
John Leo’s The History and Description of
Africa distinguishes “white or tawny Moors” of
the Mediterranean coast of Africa from the
“Negroes or black Moors” of the south.
• Othello’s darkness or blackness is alluded to
many times in the play, but Shakespeare and
other Elizabethans frequently described
brunette or darker than average Europeans as
black. The opposition of black and white
imagery that runs throughout Othello is
certainly a marker of difference between
Othello and his European peers, but the
difference is never quite so racially specific as
a modern reader might imagine it to be.
Black Elizabethan Characters
• Perhaps the most vividly stereotypical black
character of the period is Aaron, the villain of
Shakespeare’s early play Titus Andronicus.
The antithesis of Othello, Aaron is lecherous,
cunning, and vicious; his final words are: “If
one good deed in all my life I did / I do repent
it to my very soul” (V.iii.188–189).
Black Elizabethan Characters
• Othello, by contrast, is a noble figure of great
authority, respected and admired by the duke
and senate of Venice as well as by those who
serve him, such as Cassio, Montano, and
Lodovico. Only Iago voices an explicitly
stereotypical view of Othello, depicting him
from the beginning as an animalistic,
barbarous, foolish outsider.
Shakespeare’s Othello
• Powerful drama of a marriage that…
– Begins with fascination
– With elopement
– With intense mutual admiration
– Ends with jealous rage and violent deaths
Set in romantic world of
the Mediterranean
• Venice
• Cyprus
• Exotic stories of Othello’s past in Africa
Othello/Desdemona
• Differences in
– Race
– Age
– Cultural background
Race, Class, Gender Issues
• Race
– Desdemona is white, Othello black
– Interracial marriage leads to a stream of slurs from Iago
• Class
– Emphasized when Iago is presented as bitterly resentful of
his social inferiority
• Gender
– Especially evident in final scenes with attacks on Bianca,
Emilia and Desdemona - vivid reminders of how terrible the
power exerted by men over women can be
Iago
• Most people believe their love could
overcome all these obstacles were it not for
the words and actions of Othello’s ensign,
who hates Othello and sets out to destroy him
by destroying his love for Desdemona.
• Samuel Taylor Coleridge once wrote that
Iago's soliloquies are the "motive-hunting of
motiveless malignity." Is this an accurate
observation? Does Iago have a motive or
motives for his hatred of Othello?
Puns
•
•
•
•
Not as prevalent as in comedy
Many puns are sexual in nature
Blackness - literal/figurative
“Honest” - truthfulness/condescending
term for a social inferior/chaste
Metaphors
• Nautical terms
• Lovers as mating animals
CHARACTERS
OTHELLO
• The play’s protagonist and hero. A Christian Moor
and general of the armies of Venice, Othello is an
eloquent and physically powerful figure, respected by
all those around him. In spite of his elevated status,
he is nevertheless easy prey to insecurities because
of his age, his life as a soldier, and his race. He
possesses a “free and open nature,” which his ensign
Iago uses to twist his love for his wife, Desdemona,
into a powerful and destructive jealousy.
DESDEMONA
• The daughter of the Venetian senator
Brabantio. Desdemona and Othello are
secretly married before the play begins. While
in many ways stereotypically pure and meek,
Desdemona is also determined and selfpossessed. She is equally capable of
defending her marriage, jesting bawdily with
Iago, and responding with dignity to Othello’s
incomprehensible jealousy.
IAGO
• Othello’s ensign (a job also known as an ancient or
standard-bearer), and the villain of the play. Iago is
twenty-eight years old. While his ostensible reason
for desiring Othello’s demise is that he has been
passed over for promotion to lieutenant, Iago’s
motivations are never very clearly expressed and
seem to originate in an obsessive, almost aesthetic
delight in manipulation and destruction.
MICHAEL CASSIO
• Othello’s lieutenant. Cassio is a young and
inexperienced soldier, whose high position is much
resented by Iago. Truly devoted to Othello, Cassio is
extremely ashamed after being implicated in a
drunken brawl on Cyprus and losing his place as
lieutenant. Iago uses Cassio’s youth, good looks, and
friendship with Desdemona to play on Othello’s
insecurities about Desdemona’s fidelity.
EMILIA
• Iago’s wife and Desdemona’s attendant. A
cynical, worldly woman, she is deeply
attached to her mistress and distrustful of her
husband.
RODERIGO
• A jealous suitor of Desdemona. Young, rich, and
foolish, Roderigo is convinced that if he gives Iago all
of his money, Iago will help him win Desdemona’s
hand. Repeatedly frustrated as Othello marries
Desdemona and then takes her to Cyprus, Roderigo
is ultimately desperate enough to agree to help Iago
kill Cassio after Iago points out that Cassio is another
potential rival for Desdemona.
BIANCA
• A courtesan, or prostitute, in Cyprus. Bianca’s
favorite customer is Cassio, who teases her
with promises of marriage.
BRABANTIO
• Desdemona’s father, a somewhat blustering
and self-important Venetian senator. As a
friend of Othello, Brabantio feels betrayed
when the general marries his daughter in
secret.
DUKE OF VENICE
• The official authority in Venice, the duke has
great respect for Othello as a public and
military servant. His primary role within the
play is to reconcile Othello and Brabantio in
Act I, scene iii, and then to send Othello to
Cyprus.
MONTANO
• The governor of Cyprus before Othello.
We see him first in Act II, as he
recounts the status of the war and
awaits the Venetian ships.
LODOVICO
• One of Brabantio’s kinsmen, Lodovico acts
as a messenger from Venice to Cyprus. He
arrives in Cyprus in Act IV with letters
announcing that Othello has been replaced
by Cassio as governor.
GRATIANO
• Brabantio’s kinsman who accompanies
Lodovico to Cyprus. Amidst the chaos of the
final scene, Graziano mentions that
Desdemona’s father has died.
CLOWN
• Othello’s servant. Although the clown
appears only in two short scenes, his
appearances reflect and distort the
action and words of the main plots: his
puns on the word “lie” in Act III, scene iv,
for example, anticipate Othello’s
confusion of two meanings of that word
in Act IV, scene i.
•SCENE
SUMMARIES
ACT ONE, SCENE ONE
• In the streets of Venice, Iago tells Roderigo of
his hatred for Othello, whom has given Cassio
the lieutenancy that Iago wanted and has made
Iago a mere ensign. At Iago’s suggestion, he
and Roderigo, a former suitor to Desdemona,
awake Desdemona’s father to tell him that she
has eloped with Othello. The news enrages
Brabantio, who organizes an armed band to
search out Othello.
ACT ONE, SCENE TWO
• Iago warns Othello about Brabantio’s anger, but
Othello is confident in his own strength and in his
love for Desdemona. Cassio arrives with orders for
Othello: Othello is to meet with the duke and senators
of Venice about a Turkish invasion of the Venetian
colony of Cyprus. Brabantio and his armed band
come to seize Othello, who persuades Brabantio to
accompany him to the duke, where Othello has been
summoned and where Brabantio can present his
case against Othello for his “theft” of Desdemona.
ACT ONE, SCENE THREE
• The duke and the senators conclude that the
Turkish fleet is heading for Cyprus. When
Brabantio and Othello arrive, the duke insists
on proof of the old man’s charge that Othello
has bewitched Desdemona. Othello suggests
that Desdemona be sent for. Othello
describes their courtship, and Desdemona
says she has married Othello for love,
thereby vindicating Othello before the senate.
-cont.-
ACT ONE, SCENE THREE
• The duke orders Othello to Cyprus, and
grants Desdemona’s request to accompany
him. Othello gives Iago the duty of
transporting his wife to Cyprus. Alone with
Iago, Roderigo despairs the loss of
Desdemona and threatens suicide. Iago
persuades him to sell his lands and pursue
her to Cyprus. Iago begins to plot to himself
how he may use Othello’s marriage to get
back at him and replace Cassio as lieutenant.
ACT TWO, SCENE ONE
• The Turkish fleet is destroyed in a storm,
while Cassio and then Desdemona, Emilia
and Iago arrive safely in Cyprus. Desdemona
anxiously waits for Othello. When his ship
arrives, he and Desdemona joyfully greet
each other. Iago, putting his plot into action,
persuades Roderigo that Desdemona is in
love with Cassio and that Roderigo should
help get Cassio dismissed from the
lieutenancy.
ACT TWO, SCENE TWO
• Othello’s herald proclaims a celebration of the
destruction of the Turkish fleet and Othello’s marriage.
ACT TWO, SCENE THREE
• Iago gets Cassio drunk, making it easy for
Roderigo to provoke him into a brawl, first
with Roderigo, then with Montano, whom he
wounds. Othello, called from his bed by the
noise, stops the brawl and strips Cassio of his
lieutenancy. Iago advises Cassio seek
Desdemona’s help in getting reinstated. The
next step in Iago’s plan is to tell Othello that
Desdemona supports Cassio because he is
her lover.
ACT THREE, SCENE ONE
• Cassio arrives with musicians to honor Othello and
Desdemona. As Iago has recommended, Cassio
asks Emilia to arrange a meeting with Desdemona,
even though Emilia assures him that Desdemona is
already urging Othello to reinstate him.
ACT THREE, SCENE THREE
• Desdemona’s interview with Cassio is cut
short by the arrival of Othello. Cassio leaves
hastily in order to avoid speaking with Othello.
Desdemona pleads with Othello on Cassio’s
behalf. When she leaves, Iago says that
Cassio’s avoidance of Othello is suspicious,
and that he may not be honorable, insinuating
that he (Iago) knows more than he is willing
to say. He warns Othello against becoming
jealous of Desdemona.
ACT THREE, SCENE THREE
• Desdemona enters, and Othello complains of an aching
head. She offers to bind his head with her handkerchief.
As they exit, the handkerchief drops unnoticed by either of
them. Emilia picks it up and gives it to Iago, who has often
asked for it. Othello reenters, tormented by jealousy, and
threatens Iago with death unless he provides proof of
Desdemona’s infidelity. Iago alleges that Cassio talked in
his sleep about making love to Desdemona and that
Cassio once wiped his beard with the lost handkerchief.
Othello is convinced by this “proof” and vows to kill
Desdemona; Iago agrees to kill Cassio. Othello than
names Iago lieutenant.
ACT THREE, SCENE FOUR
• Desdemona, still seeking to have Cassio reinstated,
is worried about the loss of the handkerchief. Her
anxiety increases when Othello asks her for it, then
rebukes her when she can’t find it. Cassio
approaches her, but she must postpone her efforts
on his behalf due to Othello’s anger. As he waits,
Bianca, his lover appears. Cassio has found
Desdemona’s handkerchief in his room (placed there
by Iago) and he asks Bianca to copy the embroidery
for him.
ACT FOUR, SCENE ONE
• Iago continues to torment Othello with vivid
descriptions of Desdemona’s alleged sexual
activity until Othello blacks out. Iago places
Othello where he can see, but not hear, a
conversation with Cassio about Bianca,
telling Othello that the bawdy conversation is
about Cassio and Desdemona. Othello’s fury
grows stronger.
ACT FOUR, SCENE ONE
• Lodovico arrives from Venice with
ordersfrom the duke and and senators
that Othello return, and that Cassio be
appointed in his place. Othello strikes
Desdemona in his presence, then
rudely dismisses her, and leaves in a
jealous rage. Lodovico expresses
surprise at the change in Othello.
ACT FOUR, SCENE TWO
• Othello questions Emilia about Cassio and
Desdemona’s relationship, acting as if Emilia is the
mistress of a brothel and Desdemona is one of her
prostitutes. Othello denounces Desdemona to her face
as a whore. Desdemona turns for help to Iago, who
reassures her.
• Roderigo, protesting to Iago that his gifts to
Desdemona have won him no favor, threatens to ask
for their return. Iago counters this by telling him that
Desdemona will leave with Othello unless Roderigo
can delay them. Iago suggests the best way to do this
is by killing Cassio.
ACT FOUR, SCENE THREE
• Othello, walking with Lodovico,orders
Desdemona to go to bed and to dismiss
Emilia. As Emilia helps Desdemona
prepare for bed, they discuss marital
infidelity, with Desdemona arguing that
no woman would be unfaithful to her
husband, and Emilia arguing that
women have the same desires men
have.
ACT FIVE, SCENE ONE
• In the dark streets of Cyprus, Roderigo
attacks Cassio, who, uninjured, stabs
Roderigo. Iago thens wounds Cassio in the
leg. Othello, hearing Cassio call out, thinks
that Iago has murdered him, and goes to kill
Desdemona. Iago then kills the injured
Roderigo. While Iago tends to Cassio, Bianca
arrives. Iago accuses her of being a whore
and of engineering the plot against Cassio
that led to his injury.
ACT FIVE, SCENE TWO
• Desdemona is asleep in bed when Othello
enters. He kisses her, wakes her, and once
again charges her with adultery. Over her
protests of innocence, he smothers her.
When Emilia comes to tell him of the violence
in the streets, he acknowledges the killing,
telling her that Iago had informed him of
Desdemona’s infidelity. Emilia’s cries bring
Iago, Montano and Gratiano.
ACT FIVE, SCENE TWO
• Iago admits under pressure that he accused
Desdemona. When Emilia discloses the truth
about the handkerchief, Othello tries
unsuccessfully to kill Iago, who then kills
Emilia. Othello, now aware of his terrible error
regarding Desdemona’s faithfulness, stabs
himself, falling dead beside Desdemona and
Emilia. Iago is taken away to be tortured and
killed.
ACT I JOURNAL
• Journal Responses – Analyze and discuss the
importance of each passage.
Were I the Moor I would not be Iago.
In following him I follow but myself;
Heaven is my judge, not I for love and duty,
But seeming so for my peculiar end.
For when my outward action doth demonstrate
The native act and figure of my heart
In compliment extern, ’tis not long after
But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve
For daws to peck at. I am not what I am. (I.i.63-71)
ACT I JOURNAL
My noble father,
I do perceive here a divided duty.
To you I am bound for life and education.
My life and education both do learn me
How to respect you. You are the lord of my duty,
I am hitherto your daughter. But here’s my husband,
And so much duty as my mother showed
To you, preferring you before your father,
So much I challenge that I may profess
Due to the Moor my lord. (I.iii.208-218)
ACT II JOURNAL
Journal Responses – Analyze and discuss the importance of each passage.
That Cassio loves her, I do well believe ‘t.
That she loves him, ‘tis apt and of great credit.
The Moor, howbeit that I endure him not,
Is of a constant, loving, noble nature,
And I dare think he’ll prove to Desdemona
A most dear husband. Now I do love her too,
Not out of absolute lust (though peradventure
I stand accountant for as great a sin)
But partly led to diet my revenge
For that I do suspect the lusty Moor
Hath leaped in to my seat – the thought whereof
Doth, like a poisonous mineral, gnaw my inwards,
And nothing can or shall content my soul
Till I am evened with him, wife for wife,
Or, failing so, yet that I put the Moor
At least into a jealousy so strong
That judgment cannot cure. Which thing to do,
If this poor trash of Venice, whom I trace
For his quick hunting, stand the putting on,
I’ll have our Michael Cassio on the hip,
Abuse him to the Moor in the rank garb
(For I fear Cassio with my nightcap too,
Make the Moor thank me, love me, and reward me
For making him egregiously an ass
And practicing him upon his peace and quiet
Even to madness. (II.i. 308-333)
ACT II JOURNAL
Cassio: 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!
Iago: As I am an honest man, I thought you had
received some bodily wound. There is more sense
in that than in reputation. Reputation is an idle and
most false imposition, oft got without merit and
lost without deserving. You have lost no reputationat
all, unless you repute yourself such a loser. What,
man, there are ways to recover the General again!
(II.iii.281-291)
ACT III JOURNAL
Think about
CHARACTER !
What motivates the main characters? What are
the characters’ relationships with other
characters?
•
•
•
•
•
•
1) Othello
2) Desdemona
3) Iago
4) Roderigo
5) Emilia
6) Cassio
2&3
1&3
1&4
3
3
3
ACT IV Journal
• In this act Desdemona seems to have
become resigned to her fate, and is not
trying to fight it. How is this acceptance
shown, and in what ways is she acting
like a totally different woman who earlier
stood up to her father and the Venetian
nobles in defense of Othello? Use
evidence from both Act IV and earlier in
the play,
ACT V Journal
•
•
•
•
•
1) Identify and explain one example of puns/metaphor using:
- light/dark imagery
- nautical terms
- animals/sex
2) Do you believe in “real life” the green-eyed monster could lead to
tragedy and/or death? Explain.
• 3) What caused the tragedy? Was it because Othello was so gullible
or Iago so evil? Support you answer.
• 4) Explain what happened to each of the main characters at the end
of the play. Be specific.
• - OTHELLO - DESDEMONA - IAGO - EMILIA
- RODERIGO - CASSIO - BRABANTIO
Quotes Review
a. Brabantio
b. Cassio
c. Emilia
d. Iago
e. Othello
1) “If thou hast eyes to see, she did deceive her father and may thee.”
2) “I will be hanged if some eternal villain, some insinuating rogue…have
not devised this slander.”
3) “It is thought abroad that twixt my sheets he has done my office.”
4) “Then must you speak of one that loved not wisely, but too well.”
5) “I took you for that cunning whore of Venice that married with Othello.”
6) “I look down towards his feet; but that’s a fable. -- If that thou be’st a
devil, I cannot kill thee.”
7) “Touch me not so near, l had rather have this tongue cut from my mouth
than it should do offense to Michael Cassio.”
8) “She loved me for the dangers I had passed. I loved her that she did
pity them.”
9) “I have very poor and unhappy brains for drinking.”
10) “Ha, I like not that.”
11) “That handkerchief did an Egyptian to my mother give.”
12) “But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve for daws to peck at...”
13) “This is the night that either makes me or for does me quite.”
14) “O, beware, my lord, of jealousy! It is the green-eyed monster...”