Othello Quotes

Question 1

‘Thick lips’ - Roderigo in Act 1 Scene 1

Answer 1

Highlights the racism rooted in Venetian society, cruel words are spouted out constantly by characters, targeted at Othello.

Question 2

‘My services which I have done the Signory shall out-tongue his complaints’ - Othello in Act 1 Scene 2

Answer 2

Possible hubris - he knows his reputation as a general gleams and outshines the controversy of his marriage to Desdemona.

Question 3

‘But that I love the gentle Desdemona I would not my unhoused free condition put into circumscription and confine for the sea’s worth’ - Othello in Act 1 Scene 2

Answer 3

He likens himself to the sea - wild, volatile, uncontrolled. Othello feels as though love and marriage has restrained him, he admits he would not have given up his bachelorhood and liberty if he was not in love. This emphasised the unstable foundations of their union.

Question 4

‘My parts, my title and my perfect soul’ - Othello in Act 1 Scene 2

Answer 4

Potential hubris - Othello is confident in his position in the eyes of the Duke and that he will not be punished.

Question 5

‘Keep up your bright swords, for the dew will rust them’ - Othello in Act 1 Scene 2

Answer 5

Othello is wise, reasonable, calm, rational, level-headed. Him being the voice of reason would contrast with Jacobean society’s stereotypes for a black man - savage, angry, irrational.

Question 6

‘Rude am I in my speech and little blessed with the soft phrase of peace’ - Othello in Act 1 Scene 3

Answer 6

Othello uses sprezzatura to humble himself in front of the Signory, highlighting his skills in manipulation via flattery of others and self- deprivation. The truth that he is actually a skilled orator challenges racist beliefs.

Question 7

‘And of the Cannibals that each other eat, the Anthropophagi, and men whose heads do grow beneath their shoulders’ - Othello in Act 1 Scene 3

Answer 7

Othello’s wild and riveting tales cement his reputation as a general. After all he’s been through, he’s a worthy leader and deeply attractive to Desdemona.

Question 8

‘Brave Othello’ - Montano in Act 2 Scene 1

Answer 8

Othello is heralded and respected, this will contrast his fall from grace and descent into jealousy and madness later on.

Question 9

‘O my soul’s joy’ - Othello in Act 2 Scene 1

Answer 9

Othello describes his love for Desdemona as passionate, spiritual, transcending the physical and mortal world.

Question 10

‘May the winds blow till they have wakened death…If I were now to die, t’were now to be most happy’ - Othello in Act 2 Scene 1

Answer 10

Othello has lost rational thought and has been consumed by his extreme emotion. He makes strange declarations - that he wishes for more storms so that he can have the pleasure of seeing Desdemona’s face afterwards. This foreshadows future tempests that will lead to chaos and fury. This moment is also the pinnacle of his happiness.

Question 11

‘Mark me with what violence she first loved the Moor but for bragging and telling her fantastical lies’ - Iago in Act 2 Scene 1

Answer 11

Othello embellished the tales of his past experiences in order to woo Desdemona.

Question 12

‘What is the matter here? Hold, for your lives!’ - Othello in Act 2 Scene 3

Answer 12

Othello asserts his dominance, he is the figure of authority and is deeply respected.

Question 13

‘Swounds’ - Othello in Act 2 Scene 3

Answer 13

Othello’s first profanity. As the world around him is being poisoned by Iago, the use of expletives is growing and noble Othello begins to change.

Question 14

‘Though he had twinned with me, both at birth - shall lose me’ - Othello in Act 2 Scene 3

Answer 14

Othello makes a bold, emotional claim without even knowing the truth about the brawl. Sign of his irrational and melodramatic behaviour growing - dangerous for a leader.

Question 15

‘To manage private and domestic quarrel’ - Othello in Act 2 Scene 3

Answer 15

Hypocritical and ironic in hindsight- Othello criticises the public brawl but his fight with Desdemona will be public later on - the merging of the public and private spheres.

Question 16

‘To leave me but a little to myself’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 16

Contrasts with Othello’s previous adoring comments about Desdemona. She is beginning to irritate him and he desires space away from her - cracks in their marriage are beginning to show.

Question 17

‘Excellent wretch, perdition catch my soul but I do love thee! and when I love thee not, chaos is come again’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 17

Othello is saying that when he stops loving Desdemona his soul will be damned to hell. He begins to mirror Iago’s language - he’s starting to lose his sanity and is exactly where Iago wants him. The caesura symbolises his lack of control.

Question 18

‘By heaven, thou echo’st me, as if there were some monster in thy thought’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 18

Motif of monster, connoting chaos, destruction, hell, malice. Iago is slowly driving Othello mad.

Question 19

‘I am bound to thee forever’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 19

Othello trusts Iago wholeheartedly, more than he trusts himself. This shows how Iago’s dominance is secured - he now has control over Iago.

Question 20

‘And yet how nature, erring from itself’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 20

Othello now sees his marriage to Desdemona as unnatural, his view aligning with Venetian society. Is he fickle? When he loved Desdemona he believed their union was pure and true but now when struck with rage and jealousy he sees their love as abnormal.

Question 21

‘If I do prove her haggard, though that her jesses were my dear heart-strings, I’d whistle her off and let her down the wind to prey at fortune’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 21

Othello uses animalistic imagery (Jesses were used to tether falcons) which presents the idea that Desdemona is under his control, restoring the patriarchal balance. It also makes her seem like a huntress - cruel, inhuman, unloving.

Question 22

‘O curse of marriage, that we call these delicate creatures ours and not not their appetites’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 22

Marriage has now become a curse for Othello, he resents how he is bound to his wife yet he cannot keep her from indulging in her lascivious desires.

Question 23

‘Farewell the tranquil mind; farewell content’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 23

Othello uses hyperbole, highlighting how his unbridled jealousy has now dismantled his psyche, he’s overcome with his emotions, he’s irrational and this will have a ripple effect on society due to his role as a general.

Question 24

‘O monstrous! Monstrous!’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 24

Othello is repeating his words, illuminating how he has lost control over his speech due to his wrath.

Question 25

‘I’ll tear her all to pieces!’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 25

Othello reduces Desdemona to a pronoun and his gory, brutal and gruesome declaration reveals how his fury has blinded him and eradicated the love he once has for Desdemona.

Question 26

‘Othello kneels’ - Stage direction in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 26

Shows how Othello has now submitted to his rage, letting it take full control of his mind and his actions.

Question 27

‘Damn her, lewd minx! O, damn her, damn her!’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 3

Answer 27

Othello’s anger explodes, he damns Desdemona to hell repeatedly, which juxtaposes his previous explosions of emotions, fury and hate contrasting with love and passion.

Question 28

‘Tis true; there’s magic in the web of it’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 4

Answer 28

The origins of the handkerchief are exotic and magical. This contrasts with 1:2 when Othello denies profusely having used magic to woo Desdemona. Is this story true or his previous claims? Also, is Othello giving into racial stereotypes by using magic?

Question 29

‘Lie with her? Lie on her? … Handkerchief - confessions - handkerchief?’ - Othello in Act 4 Scene 1

Answer 29

The abundance of punctuation, caesura and repetition used by Othello as well as his switch to prose shows the breakdown of his psyche. His chaotic, unhinged behaviour reveals the impact of a lifetime of racism on the mind.

Question 30

‘Ay, let her rot and perish and be damned tonight, for she shall not live! No, my heart is turned to stone’ - Othello in Act 4 Scene 1

Answer 30

There is violence and disgust in Othello’s words, he alludes to hell and talks in prose which highlights the complete decomposition of his rational mind. The biblical reference to a heart turned to stone reveals that Othello is devoid of pity, sorrow, love and forgiveness. Instead he is driven by hatred.

Question 31

‘Is this the noble Moor… Is this the nature whom passion could not shake?’ - Lodovico in Act 4 Scene 2

Answer 31

This reveals Othello’s peripeteia, how he has descended from noble to debased. All his extreme emotions are now public, Lodovico can see how Othello’s emotions blinds him and makes him act irrationally.

Question 32

‘This is a subtle whore, a closet, lock, and key of villainous secrets’ - Othello in Act 4 Scene 2

Answer 32

Othello’s passionate, loving view of Desdemona has been completely shattered, he now only sees her as evil, immoral and conniving. He thinks so badly of her that he takes Emilia’s word of her innocence as evidence that Desdemona is even more cunning and wicked than he thought.

Question 33

‘Had they rained all kind of sores and shames on my bare head… I should have found in some place of my soul a drop of patience’ - Othello in Act 4 Scene 2

Answer 33

Othello alludes to the Bible, where God punishes Jove. Othello would understand and manage being punished or tested as Jove was, but Desdemona’s infidelity has made him reach his breaking point.

Question 34

‘The fountain from the which my current runs or else dries up - to be discarded thence, or keep as a cistern for foul toads’ - Othello in Act 4 Scene 2

Answer 34

Othello’s water imagery that he previously used in a loving, transcendental way has now become debased. His fountain of love has dried up and is now repulsive, only habitable for toads.

Question 35

‘Minion, your dear lies dead, and your unblest fate hies: strumpet, I come!… Thy bed, lust-stained, shall with lust’s blood be spotted’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 1

Answer 35

Othello weaponises misogynistic, derogatory language which emphasises his loathing. He means for Desdemona to die in the marriage bed which she tainted with Cassio, cruel, shameful death.

Question 36

‘Yet I’ll not shed her blood, nor scar that whiter skin of hers than snow and smooth as monumental alabaster’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 1

Answer 36

Othello wants to kill Desdemona and erase her character and identity however he wants to preserve her beauty and control her body. If she wasn’t ‘pure’ in life then she can be ‘pure’ in death. Alabaster is a soft stone used to carve statues, highlighting how Othello valued Desdemona for her looks and how that is what he’ll remember her for after her death - like a statue.

Question 37

‘Yet she must die, else she’ll betray more men. Put out the light, and then put out the light, if I quench thee, thou flaming minister, I can again thy former light restore should I repent me; but once put out thine… I know not where is that Promethean heat that can thy light relume’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 37

Othello believes he is carrying out justice by killing Desdemona as this will stop her from cuckolding more men. Othello understands that life is finite, once it’s over it’s over, and he cannot revive Desdemona yet he is still willing to end her life. He references Prometheus in Greek mythology, enhancing the metaphor of light and life.

Question 38

‘O balmy breath, that dost almost persuade justice to break her sword… I will kill thee and love thee after’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 38

Othello experiences a split second of hesitation, evoking hope in the audience. However their hope is quickly dashed when he redetermines his plan. He believes he will love her after she’s dead, that way she’ll be pure and faultless and cannot defy or humiliate him.

Question 39

‘Have you prayed tonight Desdemon?… Unreconciled as yet to heaven and grace… I would not kill thy unprepared spirit… I would not kill thy soul’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 39

Othello wants Desdemona to admit to the affair to cleanse her soul and so that she can ascend to heaven. He wants to save her immortal soul but remove her from earth.

Question 40

‘Some bloody passion shakes your very frame’ - Desdemona in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 40

Othello’s unbridled emotions have now manifested physically, causing him to shake. Iago has successfully plagued and played with Othello’s mind and now Othello’s irrational thoughts and emotions have taken the reins and are controlling him.

Question 41

‘O insupportable! O heavy hour! Methinks it should be now a huge eclipse of sun and moon, and that th’affrighted globe should yawn at alteration’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 41

Othello alludes to Jesus’s death in the Bible, when the world shook and went dark. This hyperbole shows how Othello equates himself to God, believing his actions are having cosmic reactions. He does this to soothe his guilty conscience and try to rebuild the idea of him having power.

Question 42

‘But O vain boast! Who can control his fate? Tis not so now’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 42

Is Othello blaming fate for Desdemona’s death and shirking responsibility? He refuses to acknowledge his guilt and brings supernatural forces into the picture, which the audience knows weren’t at play.

Question 43

‘Cold, cold, my girl?’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 43

Othello uses the diminutive ‘girl’, making the audience question if he knows Desdemona’s worth - how independent, witty forthcoming she was. He also refers to her as his, showing how he still thinks he has control and ownership over her.

Question 44

‘Blow me about in winds, roast me in sulphur, wash me in steep-down gulfs of liquid fire’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 44

Othello believes he deserves punishment and he knows he is going to hell. However he still isn’t apologising.

Question 45

‘For naught I did in hate, but all in honour… demand that Demi-devil why he hath ensnared my soul and body?’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 45

Othello is trying to justify his actions and is abdicating responsibility, instead pinning all the blame on Iago. If he blames fate and Iago, and doesn’t realise what he has lost, then is he experiencing anagnorisis?

Question 46

‘I have done the state some service, and they know’t… then must you speak of one that loved not wisely but too well; of one not easily jealous’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 46

Othello believes his extreme love for Desdemona drove him to kill her, he claims that he was not jealous but the audience knows his actions say otherwise. He reminds the audience and the characters of his valour to protect his legacy and reputation.

Question 47

‘Like the base Indian, threw a pearl away’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 47

Othello experiences delayed and incomplete anagnorisis as he realises he rid himself of something precious, however he still cannot take the blame and focuses on his reputation. He likens himself to a savage and Desdemona to a beautiful, white pearl - showing his internalised racism.

Question 48

‘I kissed thee ere I killed thee - no way but this: killing myself, to die upon a kiss’ - Othello in Act 5 Scene 2

Answer 48

Is this just? Does Othello deserve to die upon his innocent wife whom he murdered and showed no mercy?