Act 3 key quotes Flashcards
Desdemona- ‘I will have my lord and you again as friendly as you were’
Desdemona is going to make Othello forgive Cassio and reinstate him as lieutenant.
Iago- ‘honest my lord, honest?’
do you think that Cassio is an honest man. This foreshadows what’s to come. Iago is going to turn Othello against Cassio, by suggesting that he is a liar and sleeping with his wife.
Othello- ‘Tis not to make me jealous to say my wife is fair, feeds well, loves company’
Othello states that he is not a jealous person, which is ironic as it is his downfall later in the play. He states that if people call his wife beautiful and talk about her it would not make him jealous at all.
Iago- ‘ I speak not yet of proof, look at your wife, observe her well with Cassio’
Iago starts to put ideas into Othello’s head about his wife being with Cassio.
Iago- ‘In Venice they do let God see the pranks they dare not show their husbands’
in Venice is is quite common for women to cheat and hide it away from their husbands. Iago is still fueling the idea that Desdemona is sleeping with Cassio.
Iago- ‘She did deceive her father, marrying you’
when Desdemona agreed to marry Othello she was going against her father’s wishes. Iago is trying to say that if she would go against her father like that then there is a likely chance that she may deceive Othello as well. Iago is still creating suspicion.
Othello- ‘why did I Marry’
Othello begins to question his marriage to Desdemona. Iago’s plan is working and so is his manipulation.
Othello- ‘Haply for I am black, and have not those soft parts of conversation’
Othello begins to question why Desdemona has cheated on him. He believes that he does not have any major faults, so cannot understand why she would cheat on him.
Emilia- ‘I am glad I have found this Napkin, this was her first remembrance of the Moor, my wayward husband hath a hundred times wooed me to steal’
this is a turning point in the play. Emilia has found a handkerchief on the floor, which belongs to Desdemona. This will be used against her as evidence that she is supposedly cheating on Othello.
Iago- ‘to have a foolish wife’
a derogatory term, referring to his wife as being an idiot.
Iago- ‘ this may do something, the Moor already changes with my poison’
Iago now has evidence that he can use to manipulate Othello with. Othello is already beginning to believe Iago so Iago only needs a small piece of evidence.
Othello- ‘farewell the tranquil mind, farewell content, farewell the plumed troops, and the big wars that makes ambition virtue’
This is a turning point for Othello’s personality as he is now consumed with jealousy, a trait that he said that he did not have.
He feels that he is so sad he will never be able to be happy again, never be able to fight again, or even live again.
One could argue that this is a way of trying to highlight the fact that their relationship was never meant to be as it is against the status quo.
Othello- ‘her name that was fresh as Dian’s visage, is now begrimed and black as mine own face’
Othello is saying that Desdemona’s reputation was fresh and he refers to her as being ‘dian’ who was the goddess of virginity. Now that she has supposedly cheated on him she is no longer a virgin, and like the typical women. Othello states that her face has become dirty, and soiled due to what she has done.
The fact that her face is also referred to as being black, suggests that being black is a bad thing, which was the main racist consensus at the time.
Iago- ‘were they as prime as goats, as hot as monkeys, as salt as wolves in pride, and fools as gross as ignorance made drunk’
Iago uses animal imagery a lot in the play to highlight the fact that Cassio and Desdemona are having sex. It is explicit and vulgar, and puts images in Othello’s mind. It is a way that he can manipulate people.
Similes are also used here suggesting that the relationship is heated and fiery and also lecherous.
Othello- ‘arise black vengeance, from thy hollow cell! Swell, bosom, with thy fraught, For ‘tis of apics’ tongues’
Personification is used here. Othello is calling upon evil spirits to possess him. The word ‘black’ is used which suggests that the color black is associated with evil and the devil.
