La or that women cheating on men is somehow a great sin is probably a tad bit naive. So in this video today we will be discussing if Desdemona from the play Othello deserves our sympathy. By the way guys, if you haven't already, please do give this video a like and also subscribe to my channel for future videos down the line. I'd massively appreciate it. Now, there are lots of reasons to feel bad for Desdemona.
I mean, heck, she gets murdered by her husband for something she's not done, so that's probably as bad as it gets. And not only that, Desdemona is courageous in love and progressive in values, having been willing to challenge her father and her society's racial bigotry by marrying whoever she loves, despite him being a racial outsider, who happens to be Othello the Mole. You go, girl!
She's also a selfless vessel of virtue, and her eventual martyrdom to her husband's misguided and reckless judgement has inspired pathos with every theatrical production through the ages. But there's the problem. Who even is that perfect?
It's like, Desdemona is so perfect, she doesn't even seem relatable. And if she's not relatable as a character, then it's hard for her to be likeable for the audiences. In fact, there's an argument to be made that Shakespeare doesn't portray Desdemona as this embodiment of virtue. Instead, she embodies the ideal of a virtuous woman, but she dramatises the failure of any woman ever becoming perfectly virtuous or saintly. Now, the cause of her tragedy has very little to do with whether she's cheated on Othello.
but rather with the expectation of saintliness that both Desdemona and the surrounding men impose on her. Now the first clue to this lies in Desdemona's frequent and earnest allusions to the word heaven. Now note that while Iago and Othello also invoke the word heaven quite a bit in the play at various points, they tend to do it in either ironic or cursey ways.
Desdemona, on the other hand, associates herself with all that's elevated and it certainly doesn't help that the men around her reinforce this impression, as they view her to be a walking version of this impossible woman trope. For instance, Casio in Act 2 Scene 1 calls her the Divine Desdemona. who the grace of heaven before behind thee and on every hand and wheel thee round. Othello, while doubting Desdemona's chastity, refers to her name that was as fresh as Diane's visage, with Diane being an allusion to Diana, the Roman virgin goddess. Even Iago recognises in a pun that Desdemona is framed as fruitful as the three elements, with the word fruitful here connoting either a generosity in spirit or, of course, in sexuality.
But the reference to the elements associates her with the heavenly elements, and so we see that all three men view Desdemona in a superhuman and therefore unrealistic light. But the thing is, Desdemona isn't divine. She's human.
Her flaws, however, aren't really to do with being unchaste or dishonest, but are instead reflected in her stubbornness, immaturity, and occasional lack of empathy, all of which are not bad, but just very human traits. Now this is most evident in Desdemona's insistence on Othello's forgiveness of Cassio. which is a classic case of doing the wrong thing at the wrong time, despite genuinely good intentions. There's nothing wrong with making one's voice heard, but there's a time and place for it, and this has nothing to do with being a man or a woman.
So having asked Othello to consider retracting his demotion of Cassio, Desdemona insists that he gives her a prompt response. which lives up to Cassio's earlier characterisation of her as, quote, her captain's captain, as she says here, A. Suf.
so humbled that he hath left part of his grief with me to suffer with him good love call him back not now sweet desdemona some other time but shall it be shortly the sooner sweet for you shall it be to-night at supper no not to-night to-morrow dinner then i shall not dine at home i meet the captains at the citadel why then tomorrow night or tuesday morn on tuesday noon or night on wednesday morn i prithee name the time but let it not exceed three days in faith he's penitent and yet his trespass in our common reason save that they say the wars must make examples out of their best it's not almost a fault to incur a private check when shall he come tell me othello I wonder in my soul what you would ask me that I should deny, or stand so mammering on. What, my Cocasio, that came a-wooing with you, and so many a time, when I have spoke of you disproportionately, have taken your part, to have so much to do to bring him in. Trust me, I could do much prithee.
No more. Let him come when he will. I will deny thee nothing. Later, in Act 4, Scene 2, when Desdemona says that she's a child to Chiding, after Othello strikes her and calls her a whore, we may be reminded of her childlike behaviour in this much less violent scene.
By badgering and cajoling Othello into granting her wish, Desdemona, in fact, does show a certain lack of maturity and empathy. The issue here isn't with a wife nagging her husband, or being rightfully assertive, but with an individual not registering that another person may need time to reflect on a decision, or that certain things are just best discussed in a private one-on-one setting. Now after all, just because we want something now doesn't mean it must be granted to us right in that moment. Notice as well that little hint of guilt-tripping in Desdemona's remark I wonder in my soul what you would ask me that I should deny or stand so mammering on."Here she's basically implying that Othello shouldn't deny her request because she would grant whatever he wants in a heartbeat. There are of course possible sexual connotations to this statement, but in any case this guilt trapping tactic reflects a certain level of manipulation and power play instigated by the Desdemona in this marriage, which shows that Desdemona isn't really this paragon of purity or divinity which many readers perceive her to be. I must stress again here that this isn't a bad thing or that I think Shakespeare is discounting Desdemona's character in any way. It simply reveals Desdemona's humanity which we should acknowledge for a more rewarding and less reductive approach to interpreting her role in this play. Because here's the thing, she's not just a victim and this makes her interesting. The only character who doesn't buy into the image of Desdemona as this representation of purity or perfection is Emilia, who in many ways is a foil to her mistress. Unlike Desdemona, Emilia is earthly, common, and even a tad bit crude, and this just makes her more relatable. In public, Emilia is conditioned to behave like an obedient wife. which she does at the start of the play when Iago openly disparages women as being no better than prostitutes, to which she only gives a curt quote, you shall not write my praise. But Emilia eventually rejects this when she discovers and exposes her husband's diabolical plot. In private however, Emilia has the forward-mindedness to question the unrealistic social expectations of womanhood or wifedom, which proves a refreshing counterpoint to Desdemona's heavenly morals. This is perhaps best borne out in the two women's conversation in Act 4, Scene 3, when they discuss the role and parity of wife and husband. I have heard it said so. Oh, these men, these men! Dost- thou in conscience think tell me amelia that there be women do abuse their husbands in such gross kind there be some such no question but wouldst thou do such a deed for all the world Why, would not you? No, by this heavenly light. Nor I, neither, by this heavenly light. I might do it as well in the dark. Wouldst thou do such a deed for all the world? The world's a huge thing. It is a great price for a small vice. In troth, I think thou wouldst not. in troth i think i should and undo it when i have done marry i would not do such a thing for a joint ring nor for measures of lawn nor for gowns petticoats nor caps nor any petty exhibition but for the whole world why who would not make her husband a cuckold to make him a monarch i should venture purgatory for it beshrew me if i would do such a wrong for the whole world why the wrong is but a wrong in the world and having the world for your labour tis a wrong in your own world and you might quickly make it right i do not think there is any such woman for contemporary audiences especially those in societies where gender equality is encouraged desdemona's incredulity is likely to come across as either naive or a bit phony By not believing that there are women who'd cheat on their husbands, she's in essence denying that women are, like men, humans with weaknesses. This is not about moral superiority, by the way. Just because people commit adultery doesn't de facto make them bad people. It does, however, suggest that virtue is relative and that no one can be virtuous all the time. Notice that Desdemona's lines here. are marked by hyperbole and superlatives, such as the phrases, in such gross kind, for all the world, for the whole world, any such woman, etc. Which reveals both her out-of-touchness with human nature, as well as her inability to empathise with, and readiness to judge, those other women in the world who may not see sexual and marital roles in the same light as her. In contrast, Emilia keeps it real with her sexual puns and witty humour, which subtly rebukes her mistress's moral posturing. When Desdemona exclaims in shock horror, by this heavenly light, that she would never cheat on her husband, even in exchange for all the world, Emilia gently mocks the heaven references with the light-dark antithesis, implying that if she were to cheat, she might as well do it in the dark, which is a reference to having sex in the dark and also doing questionable things in secret. Unlike Desdemona, who keeps invoking the heaven trope, Emilia bluntly states that she should venture purgatory for it, purgatory being the level where most Christians go to explain their sins after death. So the idea here is that she's not above the ordinary person, which is why she also doesn't measure herself by unrealistic heavenly terms. So, ultimately, should we or should we not pity Desdemona? The answer, for me at least, is yes, we should. And not because Desdemona dies this wrongful death, but because she dies from being a victim of impossible standards. The point of this play isn't about putting blame on who's responsible for her murder. Instead, Shakespeare encourages us to reflect on what could happen. when we, both men and women, hold ourselves to impossible standards of behavior, encourage others to see us by such impossible standards, and ultimately fail to realize these same standards which no one can ever fulfill. So that's it for this video guys. I hope this character analysis of Desdemona helps you and if you enjoyed this video please do give this a thumbs up and also subscribe to my channel. for more useful Shakespeare and English Lit study videos down the line, and I'll see you guys very soon. Bye!