Concept 3 - Tragic consequences of jealousy Flashcards
Point Sentence
The tragic outcome of the play due to the machiavellian evil offers the opportunity for the audiences to explore the dangers of extremes of human passions of jealousy and the conflicting emotions of love that are driven by violence and revenge. Through the portrayal of Othello’s naïvity, Shakespeare satires how easily a man with such pride could murder an innocent woman who is accused of betrayal, through depicting Othello to be suffering through extreme emotion such as guilt and regret.
Act 3 Scene 3, also known as the temptation scene, offers a metaphorical representation of jealousy in Iago’s dialogue,
“O, beware… of… the Green-eyed monster”
The cautionary ironic tone
demonstrates Iago’s two-facedness as he warns Othello to beware of jealousy whilst he makes an attempt to make Othello. Through this dialogue, Shakespeare foreshadows Othello’s hamartia as a consequence of his excessive pride and jealousy, caused due to Iago’s machiavellian monstrosity, elucidating the extremes of human emotions by manipulation.
Moreover, in Act 5 Scene 2, Othello’s suffer of shame and redemption is evident through the repetitive exclamatory tone in “O, fool! fool! fool!”
as he finally recognises the tragic error that he had committed by killing Desdemona who was innocent. In doing so, Shakespeare depicts how a man consumed by jealousy and driven to commit acts such as extreme violence would become overwhelmed by extreme shame and a misguided sense of justice to warn the audiences about the negativity of jealousy.
Further, in the same scene, Othello’s strong feelings of remorse is evident as he mutters his final word in
“I kissed thee ere I killed thee… killing myself to die upon a kiss”
The contrast between ‘kissed’ and ‘killed’
exemplifies the tragic fusion of love and violence that defines Othello’s tragic downfall and emotional journey towards shame and self destruction. Thus, Shakespeare deliberately portrays Othello’s complex emotion that is driven by Iago’s manipulation throughout the play to provide insights into the possible consequences of jealousy and anger that leads to tragedy.
Linking Sentence
Overall, Shakespeare’s illustration of the destructive nature of jealousy, and the corrosive impacts of manipulation emphasises the fragile equilibrium between the individual’s freedom and social norms, highlighting the depth and impact of the complex human conditions and nature. However, Shakespeare also highlights the fact that the tragic outcome of Othello is not only caused by external manipulation as the complex combination of Othello’s deepest emotions and strong pride brought life to the final acts of the play.
