Shakespeare’s play, Othello, deeply explores the effects of jealousy on a person. Shakespeare also portrays the different types of jealousy and alludes to the causes of them. Othello is a tragic play written by William Shakespeare around 1603, about a man, Iago, who plots to take revenge on a Moorish soldier, Othello, for he has “done my (Iago’s) office”. The deaths of several people, including Othello’s wife Desdemona, Iago’s wife Emilia, Othello and Iago’s companion Roderigo, were all directly linked to Iago’s actions. Othello illustrates that jealousy often leads to revenge, jealousy can prevent a successful relationship, and jealousy leading to one’s downfall.
Jealousy is often the catalyst for revenge. Shakespeare’s Othello displays
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Also, each relationship in Othello provokes jealousy in one partner. In a typical Venetian society, a woman was considered to be a man’s property, so if a woman was disobedient, it negatively impacted the man, while also questioning his masculinity. The hyperbolic soliloquy as Othello expressed he would “rather be a toad” than “keep a corner of the thing I love” is Othello’s justification of killing his wife, as her untrustworthiness challenged his masculinity and reputation. Referring to Desdemona as a “thing” emphasises the idea of women being property. Iago’s jealousy of Desdemona and Othello’s relationship is emphasised through the degrading comment of Othello, “an old black ram” “tupping” Brabantio’s “white ewe”. Comparing Othello to an “old black ram” introduces animalistic imagery, and puts him at a level below humans on the Great Chain of Being. The coming together of an animal and a human would disrupt the chain, and was thought to also disrupt the laws of nature and cause bizarre events to occur. The descriptive word, “black” highlighted that in the Renaissance times, black stood for sin and evilness. Emilia’s views on men are discovered through the metaphor comparing men to “stomachs” and women to “food”. Men “eat us hungrily, and when they are full they belch us”, implies men get rid of women as soon as they have had enough of them, and therefore should not be trusted.
Speaking of which, Iago only becomes Othello 's lieutenant solely due to the suspicion he plants in Othello 's mind, proving how even this friendship isn 't pure. Iago is at the center of all relationships pulling the strings. Moreover, the truth between Emilia and Iago 's so-called matrimony is seen as Emilia confides in Desdemona about men, "They [men] are all but stomachs, and we all but food; They eat us hungerly, and when they are full, They belch us" (3.4 121-123). Not only does this explain the root of the men 's wants in amorous relationships, but it demonstrates the true intentions of all the men in the play in relation to the women in the play. Although Othello does not have any examples of friendship, one must make affirm that life is filled with people unlike the characters in
In Act 1 Scene 1, Iago tells Brabantio "... you’ll have your daughter covered with a Barbary horse, you'll have your nephews neigh to you…" it’s obvious that Iago’s use of animalistic language insinuates that Othello is a beast, highlighting that his marriage is unnatural. Iago’s description of Othello attempts to exploit his care for social status to make Othello doubt if he deserves Desdemona. In Act 1 Scene 3, Brabantio’s discovery of Desdemona’s marriage to Othello prompts him to question their union and to state that it is “against all rules of nature and must be driven to find out practices of cunning hell”. Brabantio uses hyperbole to emphasise the incorrectness of the marriage. This forces Othello to doubt his marriage and exposes his jealous and naive flaws.
Since Othello utters that since he is with Desdemona, her reputation “is now begrimed and black,” it presents how a black man can tarnish the “fresh” identity of a white women. Since Othello is accepted and praised as a war hero, but not accepted as lover, love becomes a barrier that leads to a tragedy. Societal expectations push people to the point where they try to surpass society’s norms. Though, when they reach this tipping point, tragedy will
"Othello" by Shakespeare is a well-known and outstanding literary composition which pays distinctive attention to the dangers associated with jealousy. The play deals with the root and driving force of all evil and exemplifies how far jealousy can induce a human being as well as destroy lives by mere circumstantial evidence. According to Godfrey (1972), “Jealousy, once awakened, becomes self-perpetuating, self-intensifying, and where no evidence for it exists, the jealous person under the impulse of an extraordinary perversity will continue to manufacture it”. Jealousy manages the characters’ lives in "Othello" from the beginning of the play, when Roderigo feels jealousy towards Othello because he desires to be with Desdemona, and to the ending of the play, when Othello is furious with envy because he supposes Cassio and Desdemona have been engaging in a love affair. Some characters’ jealousy is generated by other characters.
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!
MLA International Bibliography EBSCOhost, doi:10.1353/jem.2015.0006. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017. Synopsis Jealousy is evident in Shakespeare’s Othello through several sources, but most commonly seen as possessiveness over the female characters (with a focus on Desdemona) in the play.
The tragedy of “Othello” is the destruction of one’s integrity. The play is one of the great Shakespearean tragedies, which are all “a play dealing with tragic events and having an unhappy ending, especially one concerning the downfall of the main character,” (Oxford Dictionary) who in this case is Othello. He was a Venetian general living in Cyprus with his lovely wife Desdemona. The play begins with one of his most trusting friends, Iago, who is furious about Cassio being appointed as Othello’s lieutenant rather than him. Given this, Iago forms the web that he would use to ensnare the characters that he would use to bring Othello down for him.
“Othello” written by William Shakespeare revolves around this protagonist who is depicted as strong and powerful. To everyone he is known as Othello or the Moor. Throughout the play, Shakespeare portrays numerous counts of jealousy and manipulation around many of the characters. It is mainly illustrated through Iago, the antagonist of the play, who manipulates other to their downfall. Iago who is known for always being true and honest towards others has easily earned the trust of everyone around him, thus giving himself an advantage on his schemes.
In William Shakespeare’s Othello the two main characters are Iago and Othello. The entire story centers around Iago 's plan to achieve revenge on Othello for not promoting him to lieutenant. Throughout the story Iago tries to convince Othello that his wife Desdemona has cheated on him with his lieutenant Cassio. Iago’s plan is successfully and easily executed. Othello is tricked into believing that desdemona has been unfaithful and in the end he kills her.
In the beginning of the tragedy Othello tells Brabantio to “Keep up your bright swords signior, for the dew will rust them” (1.2.72-73). This statement gives the reader insight to Othello’s level-head and smart decisions, before he allowed jealousy to cloud his vision. Othello becomes convinced that Desdemona has cheated on him with Cassio; therefore, he is angered and beings to seek revenge for a crime that was never committed. Iago tells Othello “O, beware, my lord, of jealousy! It is the green-eyed monster, which doth mock the meat it feeds on” (3.3.187-189).
Othello shows the two types throughout the story and the play, envy and fear, and how they can claw and chew away the the fragile human psyche, like a monster, trying to claw out of a deep dark hole that has had a trap on it for days without end. Othello is one of the great examples of how jealousy can teach us not to be overcome by dark things, to always stay strong and believe in our own thoughts, and that the poison known as jealousy, can make or break even the best of people a slow killing venom that makes the weak sick and twisted. This play teaches us that jealousy has no good outcomes, only horrid and how it shows no mercy to anyone. Jealousy is a card no one should or ever want to play with a deck full of
In the play Othello, William Shakespeare creates an elaborate tragedy with various in depth characters, enhancing the story with powerful characterization. Iago, the main antagonist of Othello, exemplifies Shakespeare’s use of characterization to create in depth and complex characters. Using his manipulative nature, intellectual mind, egotistical attitude, and dishonesty, Iago controls the other characters in order to achieve his goal, leading Othello to succumb to an overwhelming jealousy causing his downfall. In order for Iago to gain control of the characters in the play, he manipulates Othello, Roderigo, Cassio, and more to believe false information and turn on one another.
In the play of Othello jealousy caused anger and distrust, which in the end led to much bloodshed. The first time we see jealousy towards Othello is in the council chamber, everyone is gathered together when Othello and Desdemona share how they truly feel about each other and Brabantio was displeased. Brabantio told Othello with much anger, “look to her, moor, if thou hast eyes to see: she has deceived her father, and may thee.” (Othello I.III 293-294)
In Othello, it is jealousy that ultimately leads to the downfall of three characters, Roderigo, Othello and Iago. " O, beware, my lord, of jealousy; It is the green eyed monster" (III.iii.163). Although, Othello is not the only play where William Shakespeare has made jealousy a central motivator. He did it in Macbeth also. Jealousy has many faces between these two plays and in both they lead to the downfall of characters.
Of all the emotions humans show, jealousy is one of the most common and unsettling, and it tends to bring out the worst in us. Jealousy is seen in all cultures regardless of gender; it is only different depending on a person’s degree of jealousy. In a gentle way, jealousy makes us dislike the person who is more successful in the area that we failed. When the degree has increased, dislike will turn into unreasonable angriness and disgrace, which leads to irrational hatred. William Shakespeare’s