Othello

Question 1

Define aside

Answer 1

An aside is when an actor directly addresses the audience to provide insight into their private thoughts, feelings, and intentions

Question 2

Define dramatic irony

Answer 2

Dramatic irony is when the audience knows or sees more than the protagonist or antagonist

Question 3

Define soliloquy

Answer 3

Soliloquy is a type of monologue. A speech spoken specifically to the audience, to voice their thoughts, feelings, and intentions, and provide insight into the character’s inner world

Question 4

Define tragedy

Answer 4

The essence of tragedy is notoriously difficult to describe, but most scholars believe that it is the way a play references a metaphysical order that challenges the mortal world

Question 5

Define tragedic hero

Answer 5

The protagonist or agent of the tragedy. The tragic hero undergoes the suffering imposed on him by their position. Through empathy with the tragic hero, the audience undergoes the emotional release of catharsis (the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions). It is essential that the tragic hero have qualities we aspire to so that the audience is willing to place their identification on them