Shakespeare's Othello follows the tragedy of a great general. The general, Othello, is plagued by the thought that his newly wedded wife, Desdemona, may be cheating on him. While he never catches Desdemona in the act, he is persuaded by the villain Iago to believe that Desdemona is unfaithful. Othello is usually level headed, but the thought of his wife committing adultery drives him past the brink of insanity. Because of Othello’s jarring difference in character from the beginning of the play to the resolution, readers are encouraged to ask themselves, why does Othello become jealous? Othello’s jealousy is ignited by Iago’s constant prodding about Desdemona. Othello continues to fuel his jealousy because he has never had to deal with challenges in his personal life. As a result of his lifestyle, Othello has no coping skills that lead him to act irrationally when faced with a potential personal trial. Othello is one of the most accomplished men in the Italy. He is the general of the Italian army. This is quite a feat considering the attitudes people had towards men of African descent at the time. When Iago alerts Desdemona’s father, …show more content…
Othello becomes jealous when Iago initiates the thoughts of Desdemona being adulterous. Like a snowball rolling downhill, Othello’s thoughts grow bigger and develop to be more convincing as time goes on. While Iago is an antagonist, Othello becomes his own worst enemy. Othello also becomes a villain to Desdemona when he strangles her, refusing to believe the ultimate truth. Othello pleads to catch Desdemona in the act so his mind can rest due to his obsessive behaviors. The entire situation could have been avoided if Othello was capable of calming himself down. However, Othello is never able to do so because of his life of luxury and stresslessness. Othello’s lack of life experience and maturity, especially in his relationships, evolves to be his
Othello was a great leader in the battlefield, but that never transpired in his social life as he couldn’t take the lead in his relations. He had frequent suspicions about his spouse and close associates. In the play “Othello” written by Shakespeare, Othello is the main character who goes through many phases during the play. Othello is mainly influenced by Iago but he causes his own downfall as the tragic hero. Othello plays a role of a commander in the army and marries Desdemona in the process of making Cassio his general. Throughout the play, he suspects everyone around him and creates unusual thoughts in his head. Examining Othello’s behavior in the play, he can
He becomes jealous to the point of delirium, and murders Desdemona. Othello’s thoughts are expressed through a monologue, where he says: “Perplex’d in the extreme; of one whose hand,/Like the base Indian, threw a pearl away/Richer than all his tribe…” (A5:S2) Othello’s jealousy manifested because of his hamartia: his negative perception of himself, ignorance of his ‘hero’ or well-respected status and his placement Desdemona on a pedestal. The responder is provoked, and feelings of pity, sadness and grief are summoned, and then released in catharsis. These combined fulfilled the convention of tragedy’s ‘quota’ and led to Othello’s downfall.
The tragedy of Othello, written by William Shakespeare, presents the main character Othello, as a respectable, honorable, and dignified man, but because of his insecurities and good nature, he is easily taken advantage of and manipulated by his peers and alleged friends. The dynamic of Othello’s character significantly changes throughout the play. The contrast is most pronounced from the beginning of the play to its conclusion, switching from being calm and peaceful to acts of uncontrolled venomous rage. Othello’s motivation in the play appears to be his love and concern for his wife Desdemona, which ironically, ends up being his downfall in the end.
There are many themes that show up throughout all of William Shakespeare’s works. These include themes such as death, betrayal and love. One of the most important themes in Shakespeare’s Othello however is the theme of jealousy. The theme of jealousy is central to the story from the beginning of it when it is revealed that Roderigo was jealous of Othello due to his and Desdemona’s love. This theme is continued all the way through the story to the end when Othello is filled with jealousy and rage when he thought his wife was having an affair with Cassio. The idea of jealousy found throughout William Shakespeare’s Othello gives a distinct view of how a person’s insecurities can be exploited and used in order to cause chaos and deception, and ultimately resulting in anger and ill-will towards those we dislike, but also those who are close to us like family, friends or even a spouse.
Jealousy is what drives Othello to kill Desdemona. Othello claims to be a man who "loved not wisely, but too well; of one not easily jealous..."(V.ii.347). I can relate to this them because through my life I have experienced jealousy. To start with Othello does not show any signs of jealousy and is fully aware of Desdemona's friendship with Cassio and is not concerned. Othello knows that Desdemona "had eyes and chose me" (III.iii.189) until Iago starts his manipulative scheming. Iago has everyone fooled, his own jealousy is the motivation for his destruction of Othello “I do suspect the lusty Moor." Othello gives him no cause to suspect him but Iago will get his revenge “wife for wife" (II.i.303). “Like Iago's jealousy, consumes his life and the life of all around him. (V.ii.285) I can relate to this them because through my life I have experienced
Jealousy is a powerful human emotion. It often consumes a person like a disease, inducing behaviors that are not normally within character. It has the power to destroy even the greatest of men, growing and feeding on the thoughts of what has not been seen, but only imagined. Jealousy is evident from the start to finish of the play of Othello. The villain of the story, Iago, uses the other characters to play out his revenge on Othello. Iago has a hatred for Othello that has grown after he was passed up to be lieutenant for Cassio. Iago believes Cassio does not have the military experience to be in such a position and although he has no proof, Iago also believes that Othello has been sleeping with his wife. Iago’s hate for
William Shakespeare’s theatrical tragedy Othello and Tim-Blake Nelson’s film O both reflect the notions of jealousy, racism and appearance vs reality to signify how composers of different texts and eras present their ideas for their contemporary audience through the use of different techniques and their individual mediums. In Shakespeare’s context Othello was produced under significant influences of the Elizabethan era, where the British valued their homogenously white society in a time of social, political and religious conflict. Nelson’s film adaptation O on the other-hand transitions into a modern society by using film techniques where the values of equality and multiculturalism is valued, however is challenged through the manipulation of Odin.
Shakespeare’s Othello has many different reoccurring themes, particularly love, death and infidelity. One of the most obvious themes that drive a lot of the play is jealousy, stemming from the mischievous ways of Iago. His actions create a chain reaction of speculation, lying and most of all jealousy. Iago who plays a manipulative and dishonest character seems to bring out the worst traits of many of the characters within the play especially Othello. These reoccurring issues of manipulation and hatred begin early on in the play. It has been discovered that Othello and Desdemona have married, for everyone around these two, including friends and family this is a problem. This is especially an issue for Iago and Roderigo. Each of them seem to have there own reasons why these two should not be together, one for love of Desdemona and the other for hatred of Othello. They set up to break the newly weds apart by setting the stage with an accusation that Desdemona has cheated on Othello with Cassio, Othello’s lieutenant. After these accusations are made the lives of all the characters seem to spiral out of control, the relationship that takes the biggest toll in the end seems to be Othello and Desdemona. It is clear to see that this “green-eyed monster” in Shakespeare’s words, has the power to control the psyche of the human, resulting in unthinkable acts from many of the characters involved.
Othello is insecure about his race and Iago uses this insecurity to bend Othello to his will. As he expresses his love for Desdemona to the duke, it is apparent that the love is both pure and elevated. However, at the end, Iago poisons Othello to an extent that he believes that she must die; else, she will betray more men (V, ii, 6). This radical change occurred through the gently toying and prodding of Othello by Iago. Then Iago takes advantage of the alienation of Othello from Venice.
Othello was portrayed as a strong willed general that has his world under control, when in reality he is in ruins, his life is slipping right out of his grasp. Othello was being manipulated by his lifelong friend Iago. Iago schemed a plan to convince Othello that Desdemona was cheating on him. Throughout the entire play Othello kept his cool, aside from a few moments it was as if Othello was unphased by such an event. It is often said that talking to oneself is the first sign of madness, likewise othello is even heard arguing with himself on numerous occasions about the state of his relationship with Desdemona and trying to sift through the facts to determine if she is actually cheating on him. Othello has such a hard time deciphering what is right and wrong because Iago is supposed to be one of Othello's great friends. Othellos outside and internal conflicts become apparent when he calls Desdemona a whore. Desdemona is taken back because she cannot think of a good reason why Othello would do such a thing to
William Shakespeare’s play Othello is a play with a theme of love and jealousy. During Othello’s final speech to Desdemona it becomes clear that Othello’s motives for killing Desdemona is purely based on jealousy and love. After hearing Iago’s false tales of Desdemona’s “affair” Othello becomes enraged with Desdemona and refuses to acknowledge her side of the story. He loves her so much he can’t bear to see her cheat on him, this is clear after analyzing the speech in act V scene V lines 1- 25.
William Shakespeare examines Othello’s character, to illustrate how too much of something is not good for the human soul. Othello is very confident, honest and trusting. Nevertheless, these very same qualities tear him apart. Othello changes from the person he was at the beginning of the play and into a monstrous person by the end of the play. The driving force behind Othello’s barbaric behavior is due to the unconditional love he has for Desdemona. Othello and Desdemona’s love for each other is so strong and so pure that neither one of them held each other capable of doing any wrong.
Desdemona and Othello show their affection for each other regardless of racial and cultural differences. In the first half of the book, they believe and reassure others that their love is real and no one else’s opinion can affect this. In the second half of the book, Iago’s cunning acts start to test Othello’s feelings for Desdemona. Othello becomes enraged with jealousy, but Iago does not create it, but only influences it. His jealousy is derived from his sincere love for Desdemona, for he does not know how to handle the news that Desdemona may no longer love him the way that he loves
“Jealousy is the green-eyed monster which doth mock the meat it feeds on’’ (III.iii.165-167). Othello: The Moor of Venice is a play by Shakespeare that presents the theme of human relationship: jealousy. Jealousy often has no real basis, usually the loved one is faithful, but the lover interprets all evidence in the sense of being cheated. The protagonist Othello is the general of the armies of Venice respected by all those around him. In the first act a dispute between Desdemona and her father, Brabanzio the Venetian senator, arises because she marries Othello without consulting him. Othello is considered inferior because he is a great warrior. Othello’s career seems promising as he is sent to Cyprus as the new governor with his wife Desdemona. Despite Othello’s successes, his self-esteem seem to be fragile and he feels as an outsider thought-out the play. The conflict of the play starts when Othello promotes Cassio and not Iago, his lieutenant that takes the role of the antagonist. Iago feeling disparaged, started a psychological warfare spreading rumor to make his superior, Othello believe his wife and Cassio are having an affair. The jealousy of Othello, fed by the tricks of Iago, grows up to be paranoia. The play is a game in which Iago gets his peculiar revenge. Both the protagonist and the antagonist are over taken by jealousy. As a result jealousy drives Othello as well as Iago to their downfall destroying the lives for those whom they once care for.
Desdemona fell in love with Othello because of his individuality, his being different. He appeared before her like an unknown world to know and to decipher. Othello and Desdemona are able to cross all the barriers imposed by culture and race. Although they fought all that so that they can be together, the evil of Iago reaches them. Iago creates a plan to make Othello believe that his wife cheats on him with another. Shakespeare shows us how Othello falls into the trap of Iago, and is impelled to perform acts that go against his own identity. False proofs and lies made Othello 's jealousy grow, this brought about the tragic of murder of Desdemona.