Literary Devices Flashcards
“If thou dost _______ her and torture me, never _____ more. Abandon all remorse, on _______ ______ _______ accumulate”
Slander
Pray
Horrors head horrors
• when the idea of desdemona having an affair becomes implanted into othellos head, Shakespeare uses alliteration to emphasis othellos franticness. Raving that his “tranquil mind” is already lost and demands for further proof. The alliteration focuses the audiences attention on the idea of the self sustaining nature of vices proving central to the play. The vice being a simple seed of jealousy sewn into othello.
“I kissed thee ere i ________ thee. No way but this, _______ myself to die upon a _____.”
Killed
Killing
Kiss
• the alliteration of k in kissed and killed draws a clear link between these words which are seperated by only one letter. The verbal similarity of these words draws the thin line between passion and violence. The link between love and violence is a consistent dramatic method used to emphasise their relationship. After all, desdemona fell in love for the “dangers [he] had passed”. The verbal symmetry of othellos phrasing - in the pattern of kissed, killed, killing, kiss - also reflects othellos attempt to restore balance and order in this scene. The symmetry reflects the stages of othellos and desdemonas relationship.
“I am not _____ I am”
What
• this line is an allusion to the book of exodus in the bible, while Moses asks for gods name and god replies “I am what I am”. While gods response signals a union between reality and appearance. Iagos phrasing introverts this meaning and highlights his duality and deceptive appearance. Directly linking him to the devil by dichotomising between gods actual words and iagos. Making this distinction early in the play Shakespeare signals its importance. The fact that iagos speech is an exact inversion of gods in the bible also clearly alludes to his evil nature and his role as a villian.
Dramatic irony - iagos honesty
• iagos reputation as honest and moral man is clearly an example of irony. Othello says iago is a “man of honesty and trust”, desdemona calls him an honest fellow” and Cassio says “never knew a florentine more kind and honest”. Iago, of course, ends up deceiving all three of these characters making these remarks highly ironic. The reason iago is easily able to manipulate these characters is because he has so effectively cultivated this image of himself as trustworthy. Iago himself also ironically refers to himself as honest as part of his method to deceive characters. “I am an honest man”. Likewise iago criticises the dishonesty of other characters such as when he berates othellos “fantastical lies” while emphasising Desdemonas supposed deceitful nature. Shakespeare highlights how deceiving an appearance can be ensuring the discord between appreance versus reality is obvious to the audience.
“But I do ______ thee! And when I love thee ____ ______ is come again!”
Love
Not
Chaos
• the last part of this speech when othello says chaos will come again when he loses his love for desdemona foreshadows the plays ending. The effectiveness of such foreshadowing is strengthened through the simultaneous use of dramatic irony. Though othello is unaware of how prophetic his words will prove, the audience at this point are aware of iagos plotting through his soliloquy’s and that he plans to tear desdemona and othello apart. The fact the audience knows more than othello complicates the audiences relation to the play. They feel forced to become a part of iagos plotting yet helplessness to stop it. The feeling of helplessness reinforces the idea of fate that presents the ending of the play inevitable and predetermined.
“My ______ upon her ______”
Life
Faith
• irony is embedded from the very beginning of the play, othellos statement here proves to be ironic due to the lines double meaning. Though othello means what he says in a figurative way, meaning that he has complete trust in desdemona. It is the literal meaning of this line that will become true. It is othellos realisation of desdemonas faith and the consequent revelation of the horror of his own acts, that will ultimately bring about othello to take his own life. The irony of the double meaning of this line highlights the duplicity of language, with the words’ ability to deceive being a key part of othellos downfall.
