Othello

An Introduction to Shakespeare and the Play

BackgroundThere have been numerous movies made that

feature Shakespeare’s works!

The Elizabethan Era• The Elizabethan era was a time associated with Queen

Elizabeth I's reign (1558–1603) and is often considered to be the golden age in English history. It was the height of the English Renaissance and saw the flowering of English poetry, music and literature.

Othello BackgroundOthello 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 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.

The Turks• Shakespeare’s information on the Venetian-Turkish conflict

probably derives from The History of the Turks by Richard Knolles, which was published in England in the autumn of 1603.

Battle of Lepanto on 7 October 1571

Turkish Empire, drawn by Hondius, just at the end of the Long War, 1606

Details

• The story of Othello is also derived from another source—an Italian prose tale written in 1565 by Giovanni Battista Giraldi Cinzio (usually referred to as Cinthio). The original story contains the bare bones of Shakespeare’s plot: a Moorish general is deceived by his ensign into believing his wife is unfaithful.

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.

• DESDEMONA - The daughter of the Venetian senator Brabanzio. Desdemona and Othello are secretly married before the play begins.

• IAGO - Othello’s ensign (a job also known as an ancient or standard-bearer), and the villain of the play.

• MICHAEL CASSIO - Othello’s lieutenant. Cassio is a young and inexperienced soldier, whose high position is much resented by Iago.

• EMILIA - Iago’s wife and Desdemona’s attendant. • RODERIGO - A jealous suitor of Desdemona.• BIANCA - A courtesan, or prostitute, in Cyprus.• BRABANZIO - Desdemona’s father• CLOWN - Othello’s servant.

TragedyTragedy is kind of drama that presents a serious subject matter about human suffering and corresponding terrible events in a dignified manner.

Aristotle defines Tragedy in his famous work “Poetics” as:

“Tragedy is an imitation of an action that is admirable, complete (composed of an introduction, a middle part and an ending), and possesses magnitude; in language made pleasurable, each of its species separated in different parts; performed by actors, not through narration; effecting through pity and fear the purification of such emotions.”From the above definition, we can understand the objective of the Greek tragedies i.e. “…purification of such emotions” also called “catharsis”.

Catharsis is a release of emotional tension, as after an overwhelming experience, that restores or refreshes the spirit.

Tragic FlawA tragic hero is a person of noble birth with heroic or potentially heroic qualities.

This person is fated by the Gods or by some supernatural force to doom and destruction or at least to great suffering.

But the hero struggles mightly against this fate and this cosmic conflict wins our admiration.

Because the tragic hero simply cannot accept a diminished view of the self and because of some personality flaw, the hero fails in this epic struggle against fate.

Tragic flaw is a literary device that can be defined as a trait in a character leading to his downfall and the character is often the hero of the literary piece.

Othello’s Tragic Flaw

• Jealousy! • Othello is consumed with jealousy and he

knows it, but can do nothing about it.

• Othello requires little evidence and only persuasion by Iago who himself is shocked to see how swiftly his plan works.

Iago’s ‘Evidence’

1. Tells Othello that Desdemona is too close to Cassio2. Tells Othello that Cassio dreams of Desdemona3. Lets Othello believe that Cassio has the handkerchief,

without Othello ever seeing it with his own eyes.4. Overhears a conversation about the hankerchief with

Cassio and Bianca5. Tells Othello that Cassio confessed to him to having been

with Desdemona

Are any of these ‘good’ pieces of evidence?

Lets Look At Some Of Iago’s Evidence

• Turn to A3S3 L37, 41 - 43Iago: Ha, I like not that.Iago: Cassio, my lord? No, sure, I cannot think itThat he would steal away so guiltylike, Seeing your coming.

A3S3L475 - 482

• Iago: In sleep I heard him say “Sweet Desdemona,Let us be wary, let us hide our loves.”And then, sir, would he gripe and wring my handCry “O sweet creature!” then kiss me hard, As if he plucked up kisses my the rootsThat grew upon my lips; (then) laid his leg O’er my thigh, and (sighed,) and (kissed,) and then(Cried) “Cursed fate that gave thee to he Moor!”

A4S1 L166 - 167

• Bianca:Let the devil and his dam haunt you! What didYou mean by that same handkerchief you gave meeven now?

The Scientific MethodShakespeare is commenting on the rise of the Scientific Method at this time.

Is Desdemona FaithfulShe Deceived her Father when marrying Othello

Desdemona was with Cassio

Iago says that Cassio dreams of Desdemona and that he saw him with the handkerchief Iago has Othello

listen to Cassio talk about what he thinks is Desdemona and the handkerchief with Bianca

Othello tells Desdemona she is cheating and kills her

What This All Means

• Shakespeare is warning people of his time and today, that you cannot believe only in science because your senses (Othello’s, eyes, ears, est.) can deceive you as they have deceived Othello.