Let's review the plot summary of Othello. The introduction of the play is set in Venice, during a time of conflict between the Ottoman Empire and Venice. As the play begins, the Turks are preparing for war against the Venetians and are likely to attack either Cyprus or Rhodes.
Othello, a moor from North Africa and a successful Venetian general, has eloped with a young Venetian noblewoman named Desdemona. Rodrigo, a gentleman who is in love with Desdemona, complains to Iago, Othello's ensign, about the secret marriage. Iago has agreed to help Rodrigo court and win Desdemona, but only if Rodrigo keeps him supplied with money. Iago is angry at Othello for promoting another man, Michael Cassio, to lieutenant. At play's opening, Iago and Rodrigo cause a ruckus at Brabantio's home and reveal that Brabantio's daughter, Desdemona, has eloped with Othello.
Iago leaves before his identity is known and goes back to Othello. Cassio joins them, bringing a message from the Duke of Venice that Othello is required to turn back the Turkish attack on Cyprus. Othello hurries to the Duke, Brabantio following along, intent on confronting Othello about Desdemona.
The Duke, however, takes Othello's side in the matter, partially due to Othello's earnest professions of love for Desdemona, and his description of how they fell in love. Desdemona arrives and supports Othello's argument, and Brabantio is forced to accept the marriage. In the rising action of the play, Othello makes arrangements to leave right away for Cyprus, and Desdemona argues successfully to accompany him. The next day, Desdemona, Iago, and his wife, Emilia, Rodrigo, and Cassio arrive on Cyprus before Othello.
Cassio holds Desdemona's hand for a moment in greeting, and this small gesture gives Iago an idea of how to get back at both Cassio and Othello. Then Othello arrives. Miraculously, the Turkish ships on their way to invade Cyprus have been destroyed by a storm, so they celebrate this turn of events at a banquet that evening.
At the celebration, Iago convinces Cassio to get drunk and then encourages Rodrigo to fight Cassio. Montano tries to break it up, and Cassio stabs him in the leg. When Othello finds out, he strips Cassio of his rank. Iago suggests Cassio appeal to Desdemona, who can go to Othello on his behalf.
When Cassio leaves, Iago reveals to the audience that he plans to make Othello think Cassio and Desdemona are having an affair. As Cassio approaches Desdemona and she asks Othello to reconsider Cassio's case, Iago plants the seeds of suspicion in Othello's mind. When Desdemona accidentally drops her handkerchief, Emilia picks it up and gives it to her husband.
Iago plants the handkerchief in Cassio's room and Cassio finds it. Later, Iago stages a scene with Cassio meant to convince Othello, observing from a hidden place just out of earshot, that Cassio is sleeping with Desdemona. As a result, Othello becomes wild with jealousy.
While Iago orchestrates another fight between Cassio and Rodrigo, then ends up killing Rodrigo himself, Othello plans Desdemona's death. That night, in the climax of the play, he smothers Desdemona in her bed. In the falling action of the play, Amelia realizes it has been her husband all along, and Othello realizes he has been manipulated. He tries to kill Iago, but Iago kills Amelia instead. In the play's resolution, Othello kills himself, and Iago is arrested.
Let's review some of the characters in Shakespeare's Othello. Othello. As a tragic hero, Othello is unusual in that he is relatively passive and reactionary. His acts do not drive the plot.
He is known as a man of action, a military leader, and a successful one. His eloquent words and valiant actions in battle have given him a reputation. But in the play, he does not take the most active role in his own character arc.
Iago. in contrast, is the behind-the-scenes manipulator from the opening of the play. Othello wins Desdemona with his stories of adventure, and his love is centered on her pity and attention.
He's more acted upon than actor. In true tragic form, at play's end, Othello can only regain his status as Defender of the State by committing suicide. Iago Iago declares early on in the play, I am not what I am.
And indeed, the audience might well leave the play wondering, who is Iago? What is his motivation for causing such utter destruction in the lives of arguably innocent people? Is he angry at being passed up for a promotion?
Does he think Emilia has been sleeping with Othello? These petty motivations seem inadequate in light of the absolute thoroughness with which Iago manipulates the people around him. He's masterful at immediately assessing a person's strengths and how they can be turned into weaknesses. He exploits Rodrigo's desire for Desdemona and his generosity with money.
He leverages Cassio's desire to please Othello. He turns Desdemona's kindness to Cassio against both herself and Othello. And he keys in on Othello's love for Desdemona as the one weak point in Othello's character.
Desdemona. Desdemona begins the play with strength and purpose. She falls in love with Othello and acts on her own to elope with him.
eschewing social conventions. She goes with him on the military mission to Cyprus, and she is unwavering in her kindness to Cassio. Through no fault of her own, her independent spirit and goodness are used against her by Iago in his plot to ruin Othello. Yet her actions on her deathbed are curious. She's ready to take the blame for her own death and meets her death passively.
These contradictions suggest that Desdemona's idea of a life of romantic adventure is a dangerous fantasy. Cassio. Michael Cassio has recently been appointed as Othello's second in command, much to the chagrin of Iago.
Cassio's flaws open him up to exploitation by Iago, who seeks revenge for this appointment. He's also a flirt, who tends to characterize women as Madonna's or whore's . Rodrigo. In love with Desdemona, Rodrigo is wealthy and foolish. He provides a steady flow of income to Iago, who has promised to help Rodrigo woo Desdemona.
His desperation makes him susceptible to Iago's manipulations, and Iago convinces Rodrigo to help kill Cassio, who has been positioned by Iago as a rival suitor for Desdemona. In the end, Iago kills Rodrigo. Let's review the main symbols in Othello.
Handkerchief Desdemona's handkerchief, given to her as a gift from Othello, is a potent symbol of love and trust. Originally, it had been Othello's mother's, and his gift of it to Desdemona shows his love for her. Othello even explains to Desdemona that the handkerchief allowed his mother to make her husband faithful in their marriage.
The handkerchief, then, represents fidelity. Because Othello sees great symbolic importance in the handkerchief, Iago has good reason to use it for his own nefarious purposes. When Desdemona accidentally loses it, Emilia gives it to Iago, who controls its symbolism.
He plants it on Cassio and leads Othello to interpret it as a symbol of unfaithfulness and betrayal. And so Othello is completely undone by the loss of the handkerchief because it represents the loss of Desdemona. He crumbles into incoherent shouts of, the handkerchief, as he is overwhelmed by Iago's lies.
Willow Tree. As Desdemona and Amelia prepare for bed, Desdemona shares a song of willow. In Shakespeare's plays, willow trees are often associated with the death of women.
In Hamlet, Ophelia slips into the stream in which she drowns near a willow tree after being abandoned by Hamlet. The willow tree is here a symbol of Desdemona's sadness and emotion over her lost love. foreshadowing the impending death of this love, as well as Desdemona's own physical death.
Here, increasingly abandoned by Othello, his faith in her broken, Desdemona sings, let nobody blame him, his scorn. I approve. Desdemona, though innocent, tries to accept the blame for her own death.
In addition, the topic of infidelity provides Desdemona a chance to express her belief that nothing, even Othello's betrayal, could make her unfaithful to Othello. The color green. Iago tells Othello to beware of jealousy because it is the green-eyed monster which doth mock the meat it feeds on. Green symbolizes the jealousy.
that will ultimately undo Othello's marriage, sanity, and life. Iago also uses plant images to explain his own role in the action of the play. He sees the will of a person as the gardener of the body. Our bodies are our gardens, to which our wills are gardeners. Let's review the main themes in Othello.
Love. Love is a powerful force in the lives of Desdemona and Othello, whose secret marriage is the spark that ignites the plot. A great deal of time is spent as Othello explains to the Duke of Venice and to Brabantio how Desdemona came to love him by his stories.
Desdemona is utterly devoted to Othello, even to the point of wanting to take the blame when he murders her, rather than have him suffer. Yet, Othello's love for Desdemona proves to be his undoing. as it causes him to be easily manipulated by Iago, who sees it as a point of weakness in Othello's otherwise strict military demeanor. The two couples, Othello and Desdemona, Iago and Emilia, have very different relationships. Othello and Desdemona have a romantic relationship that is, perhaps, too good to last.
In contrast, Iago and Emilia's relationship is plagued by mistrust and misogyny, betrayal. Trust and betrayal are features of nearly every relationship in Othello. Iago is a trusted officer, advisor, and friend, and his position of trust allows him the opportunity to manipulate others. Othello entrusts Iago with important correspondence and never questions his intent.
Rodrigo confides to Iago his love for Desdemona and accepts his help. Cassio takes Iago's advice willingly, and even Desdemona seeks out his advice when Othello seems to be acting strangely. Iago betrays all this trust in spectacular fashion. Trust between Othello and Desdemona is also an important feature of the play. As the play begins, Othello unquestioningly accepts Desdemona's love and fidelity.
He's convinced of it, and it gives him confidence and security. She, in turn, trusts him utterly. Yet due to Iago's manipulations, Othello loses trust in Desdemona and, ultimately, Othello betrays Desdemona's trust by murdering her. Honor. Honor is a driving force in the lives of the men of Othello.
Iago appeals to Brabantio's sense of being dishonored by his daughter's elopement and sparks outrage in Rodrigo by suggesting that it's unfair for Desdemona to have married Othello. Although Iago's own motivation for his villainous actions is murky at best, he does suggest his plot against Othello is motivated by Cassio's promotion. As well as the rumor Emilia cheated on him with Othello.
Cassio, after getting into a drunken brawl, bemoans the loss of his reputation more so than the loss of his rank. This provides Iago with the leverage he needs to manipulate Cassio and make him a key part of the plot to destroy Othello. Othello's honor is wounded by the idea that Desdemona might be unfaithful, leading him to murder. Let's review the main motifs in Othello. Darkness and Light Iago often hides in darkness to prevent people from knowing his identity.
He stays out of sight in the wee hours of the morning as he and Rodrigo goad Brabantio about Desdemona's elopement. He hides in shadows while Cassio and Rodrigo confront each other, using the darkness's cover as he deals blows to both sides of the fight. Othello enters Desdemona's bedchamber by the light of a candle.
and uses the light as a metaphor for her life, which he plans to snuff out as he would a candle. Desdemona's and Othello's contrasting skin colors are also illustrated through the text. Desdemona is called a white ewe and fair Desdemona, while Othello is referred to as a black ram and black Othello.
In addition, the contrast of Othello's dark skin and Iago's light skin brings situational irony to their portrayals in the play. Despite conventional associations of dark with evil and light with good, Iago, the light-skinned one, not the more Othello, plays the devil, which undercuts racial stereotyping of the day. As the devil figure in the play, Iago frequently uses beast and demon imagery to extend the negative associations with blackness he uses to manipulate the play's racial tensions. In the play's opening, he suggests to Brabantio that Othello and Desdemona are making The Beast with Two Backs, and calls Othello an old black ram. These beast references are like a virus, and careful readers can track the moments in which the contagion is passed to others.
Cassio, after getting drunk at Iago's encouragement, declares he is by and by a fool and presently a beast. And when Iago plants the seed of suspicion in Othello's mind, Othello too begins to use animal and hell references. Goats and monkeys, he exclaims to Lodovico after he learns he's been recalled back to Venice.
When Emilia finds out Iago has used her, she declares in the final scene that she will play the swan.