Deadly Language Words strong enough to kill. In act V, scene ii of “Othello” by Shakespeare, we come across a passage spoken by Othello. He is an African and a general of the army. He has recently married his wife Desdemona, whom he has killed because his friend Iago has tricked him to believe she was cheating on him with his former friend Cassio. Shakespeare uses this passage to reveal to us how Othello truly deals with problems and how he thinks. He shows us that Othello is far too naive and trusts what he is told. Othello also makes mistakes when he is confronted with moments of extreme distress and in this situation he has chosen both murder and suicide. Shakespeare also uses his monologue to develop and strengthen the idea that language can kill just as Iago has used it to kill Desdemona. …show more content…
One of the techniques shown to us is the use of imagery. He uses imagery in the phrase “ I took by the throat the circumcised dog and smoke him- thus.” In this sentence Othello is referring to himself as the circumcised dog and it means that he sees himself as far less than noble and even human. This creates a sense of regret and sadness because the audience was not able to help him and was stuck having to watch his fall. Immediately after that sentence, Othello being pushed to the edge with these words kills himself. Othello then says has hes dying “Killing myself to die upon a kiss” because he believes that this is his justice for having killed the on he loved. This supports my claim that language can kill because the words spoken by Iago were as deadly as a knife and it was drawn on anyone who he
The characteristics of Othello includes passion, obligation, courage, jealousy and intelligence. These are great characteristics to have, but proves to eventually lead to Othello’s demise. Othello was a foreigner from Africa who was sort of accepted into the Venetian society, only because of his excellent track record of winning wars, but he was an outsider and never fully accepted. Othello enjoyed the status and luxuries of being a General and leading the defense of Venice. He also understood that he
The following passage is significant to the play ‘Othello’ in retrospect to the plot progression, as it reiterates themes and introduces important facets to the plot development. Through Iago’s cunning manipulation and Shakespeare’s crafting of language, this passage is constructed as a pivotal point of the play, marking the transition of Othello’s personality and revealing his deepest insecurities that eventually lead to his downfall and tragic ending. Iago wields a lot of power over all the characters throughout the play, but in this passage in particular he is presented at his most powerful. The passage is riddled with subtle suggestions and insinuations by Iago to raise Othello’s suspicions of his wife’s fidelity, opening with the admonition to “beware, my lord, of jealousy!
Othello’s naive nature hindered him from seeking the truth of Desdemona and Cassio and finding out Iago had been lying the whole time. Iago may have been the cause of rumors, however Othello’s own doing ultimately caused him to suffer the consequences due to the fact that he did not communicate with his wife. He let a envious person control every aspect of his perception of his wife. He let a piece of fabric be the defining factor of whether or not his wife was faithful to him. It was the breaking factor of life and death which resulted the death of two innocent souls.
Shakespeare 's Othello centers around the power of jealousy and how it can end up causing the death of a couple and some of those around them. Othello seems to grow incredibly jealous of his wife, Desdemona, and his lieutenant, Cassio’s fake affair that Iago, the villain, has convinced Othello of. As an act of jealousy, Othello decides to kill Desdemona to prevent her from hurting more men and then after realizing everything was part of Iago’s plan he kills himself due to the guilt he feels after having killed his wife. Shakespeare’s use of figurative language and symbolism in act 5 scene 2 reveals how even though Othello truly loves Desdemona, his jealousy for what he believes she has done has completely clouded his judgment and taken over
• For example , in act 4, scene 1, Othello says “O devil, devil!” about Desdemona. He does so out of anger when confronted by Lodovico about the fact that he had struck her, because Othello is trying to make it seem like Desdemona’s wrong-doing has caused this to
Othello’s character undergoes a significant change due to a series of events at the hands of Iago, the play’s antagonist to enhance the fact that even a valiant heroes can become corrupt. In the beginning of the play, Othello adores
The common aim of playwrights of any time or location is to capture and hold the attention of their audience; this is what Shakespeare has clearly done. The tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice, is one of Shakespeare 's most renowned plays. Through construction of intriguing characters, exploration of universal themes, use of comic relief and a well-written script featuring a compelling plot, Shakespeare ensured the tragedy of Othello would hold the interest of the audience; despite being over four centuries old. It possesses so many conditions that can be accentuated to hit nerves with both a Shakespearean and modern audience. The entire plot of Othello is very much like the attitudes and methods of our modern day society.
Othello is so blind from jealousy that Iago ends up brainwashing and manipulating Othello into killing his wife. Othello chooses to kill himself after coming to his senses and realizing what he did, he states, “I kissed thee ere I killed thee. No way but this, killing myself, to die upon a kiss.” He now becomes aware that he made the wrong judgements towards the one person who showed him true love and commitment. It is a little too late when Othello eventually realizes that Iago has betrayed him.
The tragedy of Othello written by William Shakespeare presents the main character Othello as a respectable, honorable, and dignified man. However, because of his insecurities and good nature he is easily taken advantage of and manipulated by his alleged friends. Shakespeare is known for his exceptional ability to compose plays full of deceit, revenge, and jealousy. Jealousy is an underlying theme throughout the tragedy and has been represented by many of the main characters, such as Iago, Roderigo, and Othello. The topic of jealousy will ultimately lead to the demise of many characters throughout the tragedy.
Shakespeare cheapens Othello by lowering his standard with impertinent language. Othello ruined himself with jealousy because of the doubt that Desdemona has
Iago’s powerfully disruptive insinuations torment Othello to fall precipitously into his intricate trap, believing in the prospect of Cassio and Desdemona’s fictitious affair. Through the use of linguistic techniques such as elliptical speech, subservient vocative choices and a hesitant tone, Iago is able to construct artful innuendoes to deceive and manipulate Othello. Supplementary to linguistic techniques, dramatic techniques such as dramatic irony reinforces Iago’s role as a two-faced villain, who is making a pretence of being Othello’s loyal ensign. Eventually, Iago’s villainy nature sows a seed of doubt in Othello that germinates into the murder of Desdemona. Through the characterisation of Iago as a notorious villain, Shakespeare is able to hold Iago’s actions accountable for the play’s tragic downfall, establishing a sense of powerlessness amongst the
Othello’s This rage at Desdemona’s infidelity signals destmetion of his identity as a successful and loving man. It shows that he now completely loses control of himself, he no longer is that gentle man. He has become so poisoned by the manipulation of Iago, he no longer hears out for his “fair
He gets so angry that he smothers Desdemona, he soon realizes that this was a mistake. This is a very weak point for Othello, because he has let the world get between he and his love. He was not strong enough to carry the both of them
Finally, By the end of the play, Iago has changed Othello so much, that he starts to display multiple personalities at the same time. For example when Ohello says, “I would not kill thy unprepared spirit. No, (heaven) forfend! I would not kill thy soul”.(VI,ii, 35) This quote shows the mix of personalities that Othello is displaying by the end of the
Iago convinces Othello of false information, convincing him to kill Desdemona. Easily manipulated by Iago, Othello’s inherent character flaw, irrational jealousy, directly interferes with his common sense, driving him into a murderous rage. The result, the unjust murder of Desdemona, also leads to Othello’s own suicide. In the case of Othello, the audience watches as his tragic flaw destroys Othello’s life and brings about his fall from grace.