Othello Flashcards
What did Othello say in Act 1 scene 2 which is similar to when Jesus told Peter to “put up thy sword”?
Keep up your bright swords
What does Othello say that implies if desdemona were to be unfaithful, his life would not be worth living?
My life upon her faith
What does desdemona say that demonstrates a psychological and physiological weakness for Othello?
I a heavy interim shall support by his dear absence
What did critic Tynan state about Othello’s claim that he is “not easily jealous”?
The most appalling bit of self deception…hes the most easily jealous man that anybodys ever written about
How desdemona likened to Christ by othello? (2)
He calls her “the light”
Common symbol for Jesus who States “I am the light of the world”; a symbol of goodness and truth
What does brabantio call Othello when he discovers his marriage to desdemona, and what does this present her as?
Foul thief
Insinuate desdemona is an unlawfully stolen item
In The Taming of the Shrew, what does Baptist Minolta refer to himself as when bargaining with his daughter’s love interest?
What does this imply?
A merchant
As if undertaking a business negotiation
Othello is changed from a man of God to a satanic pessimist through the cunning words of Iago. He goes from taming the threats “keep up thy bright swords” to giving them.
By the end of act 3 scene 3 he seems almost demonically possessed when using a semantic field of satanic words such as…
Knives fire poison suffocating monstrous
When Othello commands “arise black vengeance, from the hollow hell” he sounds harrowingly similar to Iago in Act 1 when he says….
Hell and night must bring this monstrous birth to the world’s light
How has Shakespeare used meter to demonstrate the gradual degradation and fragmentation of Othello’s mind?
Iambic pentameter= rhythmic cadence
Repitition, enjambment, caesuras= “monstrous! Monstrous “ “oh blood, blood, blood”
(Fragmentation of speech mirrors fragmentation of mind)
How does marital obedience (as it is presented as destructive) cause the downfall of the amiable character Desdemona? (2)
Emilia obeyed her husband (by stealing the handkerchief used to fool Othello into believing desdemonas infidelity) which ultimately leads to Desdemona’s murder
Desdemona obeys Othellos command “get you to bed” which if she hadn’t obeyed, she couldn’t have been smothered that night
How does marital obedience (as it is presented as destructive) cause the downfall of the amiable character Emilia
Leads to her destruction not physically (though she does eventually die too) but emotionally. Her mind fragments at the realisation she is responsible for Desdemona’s death, and she is responsible because of martial obedience
How do we see the breakdown of Emilias mind at the realisation of being responsible for the death of desdemona?
Loss of iambic pentameter
Repitition of “villainy “ ×6
What word does desdemona repeat 3 times in Act 1, demonstrating her Christianity?
Duty
What does critic S.N. Garner state about Desdemona’s going against society for Othello?
Going against society for Othello is some measure of her love
