Improved extract question

This extract is significant in Othello's tragedy because it is where Iago starts to plot Othello's downfall. Iago's Machiavellian character is exposed to the audience and as stated by McEvoy 'the audience becomes complicit in Iago's intention...and is soon involved in his vengeful plotting...members of the audience...share Iago's delight in his own powers of evil invention'. The audience can see Iago start his plotting with Cassio and Desdemona when he is aside and enjoying how Cassio 'kiss'd' Desdemona's 'three fingers'. This therefore makes Iago significant in Othello's downfall because he is the cause of it. Iago's reason for plotting against Othello is because he wasn't Othello to feel the same hurt that he did when Othello gave the position of lieutenant to Cassio. It is evident that Iago is jealous of Cassio because of how he wans to 'strip' him of his 'lieutenantry'. This extract is also significant for the audience because Shakespeare is properly exposing Iago's character for the first time in the play. His duality is exposed.

The significance of the setting that Shakespeare has chosen for this scene is that it's at a sea port in Cyprus. This means that Shakespeare is going against what Aristotle said that classical tragedies should consist od. He is going against his three unities of time, setting and one story line. Because this scene breaks one of the unities, it does not follow the typical structure of a classical tragedy.


Prior to this extract, Othello is shown to have noble behaviour because of how he handles situations, for example when he refused to fight Brabanito and wanted to talk instead. Aristotle stated that a tragic hero in a classical tragedy should be a noble man, Shakespeare follows this by demonstrating Othello's noble behaviour. However it is questioned whether Othello is really noble because of how much he trusts Iago and how gullible he is. During this extract, Othello and Desdemona are acting very in love and very content with one another. An example of this is when Othello refers to Desdemona as his 'fair warrior'. This is significant for the audience to witness because it makes the tragedy of the play more effective. This is because the audience can see how much they love each other.


The role of Iago is significant because Shakespeare uses him too plot Othello's downfall and he foreshadows Othello's future in the play. When Iago says to Othello: 'O, you are well tun'd now!' this is foreshadowing that in the future he won't be 'well tun'd' because of the word 'now' which could be used to infer that Othello will be different in the future. This is significant because it reminds the audience that the play is still a tragedy, despite Othello and Desdemona seeming to be happy at the moment.


The mood of this scene, which is created by Iago, is jealousy. He is jealous of Cassio's 'lieutenantry' and he is jealous of how 'content' Othello is with his new wife, Desdemona. However, this does not affect the atmosphere of the scene because all of the other characters are celebrating that Othello has made it back safely. This is shown when Desdemona sees him arriving and says: 'let's meet him and receive him'. This atmosphere is created by Cassio and Desdemona being excited about the return of Othello. Furthermore, Shakespeare creates the atmosphere of love by having Othello and Desdemona speak in iambic pentameter to each other.


Desdemona is used as a method of tragedy in this extract because her love for Othello is presented as being so strong. It could be argued that Desdemona and Othello have an unusual relationship because Othello is black and society was highly racist in the time that the play is set. Desdemona's love for Othello is demonstrated when she calls Othello her 'dear Othello'; the fact that Shakespeare shows the audience how passionate their love is for one another adds to the tragedy of the play because the audience knows that Othello will soon lose these feelings towards her. Cassio is also used as a method of tragedy in this extract because of how Iago sees him to be 'flirting' with Desdemona and Iago is already jealous of what Cassio's job allows him to do. This aspect of the play is tragic because Cassio has done nothing wrong to deserve what Iago is doing to him. In Iago's plotting of Othello's downfall, he is simultaneously plotting the downfall of many other characters.


Iago doesn't interact with anyone in this play except for Othello. This is significant because of how reliant Othello is on Iago towards the end of the play to trust that he is being told the truth about Desdemona. It could be argued that being too trusting is Othello's tragic flaw that leads to him committing the hamartia of killing Desdemona. Iago's soliloquys are also significant in this extract because they reveal his plotting and the jealous streak in his personality. Additionally, it is important for the audience to see Iago's jealousy for Cassio because the fact that Cassio has Iago's desired job is the motive for the plotting of Othello's downfall. This is a key part in the tragedy of the play.

Act 3 A.C. Bradley's view of Othello

 ‘Othello’s nature is all of one piece. His trust where he trusts is absolute. Hesitation is almost impossible to him. He is extremely self-reliant and decides and acts instantaneously. If stirred to indignation … he answers with one lightning stroke. Love, if he loves, must be to him the heaven where either he must live or bear no life. If such a passion as jealousy seizes him, it will swell into a well-nigh incontrollable flood.’

Having read Act III how far do you agree with A.C. Bradley’s view of Othello?

 

It can be seen that 'Othello's nature is all of one piece' because when he loves Desdemona, he loves her with all of his heart and this is shown when he says 'But I do love thee; and when I love thee not, chaos is come again'. Adding to the idea that his nature is all of one piece, it can be seen through his amount of trust with Iago, he trusts Iago so much about Desdemona being unfaithful that he is even willing to kill his good friend Cassio and his wife over something that has no real truth. We know that he wants Desdemona dead because of when he says 'Damn her, lewd minx: O damn her, damn her!' This demonstrates Othello's power, however it does not demonstrate his nobility which he should possess in order to be the tragic hero of a classical tragedy (according to Aristotle).


It could be argued that Othello's trust is absolute because of how reliant he is on Iago's information about Desdemona and Cassio. Othello's absolute trust for Iago is shown when he says to him 'I know thou'rt full of love and honesty'.  It could be said that the fact that Othello is so trusting of people and the fact that he is so gullible is a part of his hubris that leads to his hamartia at the end of the play. This could also be used to argue the fact that Othello isn't a 'noble' tragic hero because of this which means he doesn't possess the correct characteristics that Aristotle said are necessary for a tragic hero to have in a classical tragedy. It's apparent that Othello is gullible when Iago is telling him the arguably bathotic story of Cassio saying 'Sweet Desdemona, let us be wary, let us hide our loves' in his sleep. The fact that this is what convinces Othello that Desdemona has been unfaithful might make the audience question his ability to be in a position of power.

Furthermore, the idea that 'hesitation is almost impossible' to Othello can be seen when Othello immediately falls out of love with Desdemona as soon as Iago plants the idea that she has been unfaithful with Cassio. This is demonstrated when Desdemona has just spoken to him about giving Casio his job back and Othello calls her an 'excellent wretch!' This characteristic of Othello can also be seen as a part of his hubris. Othello's lack of hesitation leads to his downfall. It also shows that he can be easily angered and loses his temper quickly which some may argue doesn't make him noble. Not only does Othello not hesitate with his emotions towards Desdemona but he doesn't hesitate with believing what Iago has to say  about Desdemona and Cassio.


Moreover, there is evidence in act three for how Othello 'decides and acts instantaneously because of when he says to Iago 'within these three days le me hear thee say that Cassio's not alive. This demonstrates how he acts and decides instantaneously because he doesn't even want to speak to Cassio and Desdemona about it first to get their sides of the story; because his nature is all of one piece and that his trust is absolute, he is willing to be the cause of two deaths just because of something that Iago told him.


In addition to this, 'if a passion such as jealousy seizes him, it will swell into a well-nigh of incontrollable flood' because of how angry he gets when Iago first speaks to him to make him jealous. Once he gets jealous, he then starts to get angry with Iago wanting to know what he has to say about Cassio and Desdemona as shown when he says 'by heaven I'll know thee thoughts!' This demonstrates that when he experiences jealousy, he loses his temper very quickly and gets very angry with Iago. He even threatens to kill him if he finds out he is lying. That could be used as another example of when Othello acts and decides quickly, because he would have no hesitation in killing him under those circumstances.


To conclude, A.C. Bradley's views of Othello can be seen throughout act three in the play, there is evidence to support all of them. These characteristics of Othello may make up his hubris and that leads to him committing the hamartia of believing Iago to which eventually leads to him killing Desdemona which ultimately leads to his downfall and eventually he kills himself. However the audience experience a feeling of catharsis at the end of the play because Othello realises he was in the wrong and wants everyone to know that.

Extract question

Extract Question -1

Extract Question -2

Extract Question -3

Extract Question -4

Act 3 Scene 3 Questions

For what two reasons does Desdemona agree to plead Cassio's case?

Desdemona agrees to plead Cassio's case because him and Othello are good friends which is shown when Desdemona says: 'you do love my lord' and the other reason is that Cassio helped Desdemona and Othello get together because Desdemona mentions that he helped Othello with 'wooing' her.

What is Iago referring to when he says, "Ha! I like not that."

He is referring to Desdemona and Cassio speaking closely and quietly with each other, this is to try to make Othello suspicious so that Iago's plan will later work out

After Othello repeatedly urges Iago to tell him what's on his mind, Iago says "O, beware, my lord, of jealousy;/It is the green eyed monster, which doth mock / The meat it feeds on." What is Othello's response? What does he want from Iago?

Othello's response is 'O misery' because he wants Iago to tell him what he means by the comments that he is making about Cassio and Desdemona,  he wants to know if Desdemona is cheating on him or not.

What does Iago say about the women of Venice?

He says that 'In Venice they do let God see the pranks They dare not show their husbands; their best conscience Is not to leave't undone, but keep it unknown.' He is telling Othello that in Venice, if women cheat on their wives they just don't tell their husbands which means that it doesn't really count as cheating because they don't know about it. He is still refraining from telling Othello because he wants his suspicions to grow and his trust for Desdemona to decrease. This will enable his plan to work.

What contextual evidence do we have to support Iago's views of Venetian women?

The contextual evidence from Robert Burton, Anatomy of Melancholy (1616) he says that 'Wives are slippery, often unfaithful to their husbands but to old men most treacherous'

Why might this cause Othello to believe this or, at least, not dismiss it immediately?

Because it will make Othello come to his own conclusions by only being told hints from Iago, this means Iago will only have to do a small amount of lying because Othello will already be having the thoughts that Desdemona is being unfaithful as a result of Iago's language choice. Also, Iago already knows that Othello is insecure because of his appearance and that Desdemona will leave him when he is older and no longer finds him physically attractive

Who echoes Brabantio's earlier warning to Othello?

Iago does when he says ' she did deceive her father, marrying you' which will make Othello sensitive to the fact that she is capable of deceit and will therefore even further back up what Iago has been saying to him and this will make Othello question his trust for Desdemona.

In his duplicitous fashion, what bold statement does Iago make about Desdemona and Othello?

Desdemona's handkerchief becomes an important piece of stage business. Why did Desdemona produce it? What happens to it? What might this symbolise? What happens to it? What does Emilia plan to do with it?


Desdemona gives her handkerchief to Othello to use of a bandage because he is complaining of a headache. Othello rejects the handkerchief, saying 'your napkin is too little', and it falls to the floor. This might symbolise the way that Desdemona's love is not enough for Othello. Othello and Desdemona leave the handkerchief on the floor. Then Emilia picks it up and plans to give it to Iago, because she knows that he wants it but she doesn't know why.

What do you think motivates Emilia to take the handkerchief to Iago?


Emilia thinks that Iago will be pleased that she got him the handkerchief and that will in turn mean that their relationship will become better and more romantic.

What does Iago plan to do with the handkerchief?


Iago wants to make it look like Desdemona is cheating on Othello with Cassio, therefore he plans to leave the handkerchief in Cassio's room t make it look like Desdemona was there.

When Othello returns to the scene upset, what warning does he give Iago?


He warns him that if he finds out he if lying about Desdemona cheating or if he can't find sufficient proof to show to Othello, then he will kill him.

What 'proof' of Desdemona's disloyalty does Iago give Othello?


His proof that finally convinces Othello is when Iago describes that one night when he was sleeping by Cassio he spoke of his affair with  Desdemona 'sweet Desdemona...let us hide our loves', and also tells Othello how Cassio 'laid his leg over my thigh, and sighed and kissed'.

What is Iago's final 'proof'?


Iago's final proof is that he saw 'Cassio wipe his beard' on the handkerchief Othello gave to Desdemona. This really annoys Othello because that handkerchief has a lot of sentimental meaning to him and Iago describes Cassio just using it as a normal handkerchief.

What is noticeable about Othello's language in this scene?  


Othello's speech becomes monosyllabic throughout the scene. He also becomes increasingly distressed and Shakespeare shows how he is failing out of love with Desdemona as shown when he says: 'loathe her. O curse of marriage'.