Othello Revision Flashcards
Context of Shakespeare and Othello
> Shakespeare was influenced by the Renaissance movement which took place during the 14th and 17th century. This was an artistic and intellectual rebirth which challenged old traditions.
> He portrayed Othello, an ethnic minority, as a noble and civilised hero whilst making Iago, a white man, immoral and destructive
> The play reflects the social concerns of the time. Racial stereotypes in Elizabethan England presented moors as violent savages. This can be seen in Literature throughout time. For example, in Titus Andronicus (Aaron)
> Around 1590 he left his family behind and travelled to London to work as an actor and playwright.
> Public and critical acclaim quickly followed, and Shakespeare eventually became the most popular playwright in England and part-owner of the Globe Theatre.
> His career bridged the reigns of Elizabeth I (ruled 1558–1603) and James I (ruled 1603–1625), and he was a favourite of both monarchs.
> In 1565, Giambattista Giraldi writes the Hecatommithi. This is Shakespeare’s source for Othello.
> Shakespeare writes Othello between 1602-4.
> First performed in 1604
> Othello was set in Venice and Cyprus. The military events in the play are based on Historical fact.
> Elizabethan dramatists often used Halianate settings for plays about secret affairs and revenge. This is because foreign courts were stereotyped as being full of villainy, sexual perversion and decadence.
Neoclassicist - Rymer “A Short View of Tragedy”
> Rymer argued that the play was unrealistic. He thought the play was ridiculous and improbable. For example, he thought that the handkerchief wouldn’t have caused such jealousy.
> Rymer questioned whether Shakespeare’s characters were convincing. He thought that Othello wouldn’t have been allowed to be a general or to marry a woman Desdemona’s race and class
> Iago’s actions were unexplainable. He stated that “never in tragedy, nor in comedy… was there was a soldier of his character”.
> He thought there was no instructive moral or poetic justice because Othello wasn’t punished, so the ending is ‘barbarous’
Neoclassicist - Johnson
Johnson disagreed with Rymer’s views.
> He defended the characters as being as realistic, arguing that
- the play demonstrates Shakespeare’s understanding of human nature
- he was impressed by the “fiery openness of Othello”, “the cool malignity of Iago” and the “soft simplicity of Desdemona”
> As a Neoclassicist, he looked closely at the play’s moral.
- Johnson argued that the lesson was “not to make an equal match” and to “not to yield too readily to suspicion”
Romanticist - Coleridge
Romanticism was an intellectual movement in the late 18th century which focused on beauty, the individual and the encouragement of people to value their emotions.
> Coleridge argued that Othello didn’t “kill Desdemona in jealousy” but was forced upon him by “the almost superhuman art of Iago”
- He also stated that any man would act the same way with the same evidence from someone like Iago who Othello fully trusted.
20th Century Critic - Bradley
> Bradley thought Othello was very ambiguous. He was sympathetic towards Othello and thought he was “exceptionally noble and trustful” whose downfall is caused by Iago’s pure evil.
> He denied that Othello was quick to jealousy due to him being “disturbed” by Iago’s accusations
> Argued that Othello never falls from nobility completely, the audience still feels “love and pity” towards the end of the play.
> He believes Iago is motivated by pride and in need to prove his “power and superiority”
- argues that Iago wanted to exercise his supreme intellect.
20th Century Critic - T.S Elliot
T.S Elliot disagreed with Bradley
> in 1927 he wrote that he has never read a more “terrible exposure of human weaknesses” than Othello’s last speech, Act 5, Scene 2
- he saw this speech as evidence that Othello is anything but noble and argued that he spends the final scene “endeavouring to escape reality”
> He believed that Othello was trying to delude himself, and in that he managed to fool the audience and other characters into thinking that he was noble.
Arthur M. Eastman
> he argues that nothing that is in Iago is absent from Othello, though there is much in Othello of which Iago could only dream of having.
> The jealousy we see in both characters very obvious, however, it is presented in different ways.
- Iago shows it in a subtle, manipulative way.
- Othello shows it in a hostile, degrading way.
Settings
> Venice is seen as a civilised, lawful place. It’s associated with power, commerce and wealth.
> Cyprus is described as isolated. It has associations with hostility and conflict - Cassio calls Cyprus “this warlike isle”.
- Even after the Turkish Fleet have been defeated, there are lots of ‘conflicts’ on the island.
> The move from ‘civilised’, Christian Venice to warlike, wild Cyprus removes the characters from their normal environment, creating disorder and isolation.
> Gradually our attention becomes fixed on a single bedroom, creating a feeling of claustrophobia that is unique in Shakespeare’s tragedies.
- The outer world becomes insignificant as Othello becomes obsessed and jealous. The use of Venice as a location is significant.
- At the end of the 16th century, dramatists began to use Italy as a suitable location for revenge tragedies. The Italian were thought to be worldly and Venice, in particular, was associated with everything that was culturally sophisticated. It was a location that suggested power, order and wealth.
> The sense of claustrophobia is heightened by the fact that there is not real sub-plot in Othello.
The length of the Scenes
> The construction of scenes is extremely effective in Othello.
> Long scenes of painful discussions or confrontation are punctuated by short scenes or moments of violence - verbal and physical.
- Act 3, Scene 3 is a good example of how Shakespeare structures a scene for maximum theatrical impact.
It is the longest scene in the play, and painful to watch. Iago takes full advantage of the awkwardness that already exists between the married couple.
The time-scale of Othello
> The theory of a double-time scheme in Othello dates from the middle of the 19th century. There can be no doubt that there are inconsistencies in the way time is presented in Othello.
It appears that the disintegration of Othello’s mind and marriage occurs extremely fast and Iago recognises that he must move quickly if his plots are to remain concealed; at the same time the characters make statements that suggest time is moving quite slowly.
- A long duration of time: Weeks
> Desdemona is murdered within a few weeks of arriving in Cyprus which makes the action seem more realistic.
> Bianca complains to Cassio that he has stayed away from her for a week. “What! Keep a week away? Seven days and nights?” - A short duration of time: 3 days
> This time frame is intense and would mean that Desdemona is murdered within a few days arriving in Cyprus. This means that Iago manages to drive Othello to murderous jealousy very quickly.
Form: Tragedy
> Greek tragedy is based on conflict and depicts the downfall of high-ranking characters, who make fatal errors of judgement (hamartia) because of their overweening ambition and pride (hubris).
> They are destroyed swiftly by the disastrous consequences of their errors.
> Othello fits into the classical mould in many ways. Othello is a high-ranking general and is descended from a line of kings. Many believe that he suffers from hubris.
> It is possibly arguable that there is a sense of inevitability about Othello’s downfall from the moment he arrives in Cyprus and declares he feels ‘too much joy’
> Emilia performs some of the functions of a Greek chorus when she comments on Othello’s folly.
> In Shakespearean tragedies it explores the nature of good and evil, the disintegration of families and the breakdown of law and order within states/countries.
- In Othello, Shakespeare pits good (Othello) against evil (Iago) and we watch as the tragic hero’s new family unit is destroyed against the backdrop of the Turkish conflict.
- Shakespeare makes effective use of the theatrical conventions of his own age. By the time Shakespeare came to write Othello, it was usual to present tragedies in 5 acts, with a climax or turning point.
F.R. Leavis (1963)
> Accepts Othello is a tragic hero but he does not believe that Othello learns anything in the course of the play.
> He claims that Othello realises his folly but there is no ‘tragic self-discovery’. As a results Othello is now seen as ‘tragically pathetic’.
Language in Othello
> Elizabethan and Jacobean dramatists used language to establish and build dramatic atmosphere, to define time, place and character.
> In Othello, language is not simply the medium by which the drama is conveyed; in this play language is action.
> Othello ‘falls’ because he believes Iago, whose every utterance is deceptive. Through language, Iago imposes his will on the hero and creates opposition within Othello’s marriage.
> When Othello is taken in by false words, tragedy is the result. This play shows the audience the power of words. We watch the characters construct their own and others’ identities through language, and exert power either by speaking, remaining silent or silencing others.
> From Act 3 onwards Othello and Desdemona struggle to understand one another’s language. The break-up of their marital harmony is conveyed through the disruption in the lines, and Othello’s measured calm gives way to verbal bullying.
> Language is the source of Iago’s power, but his characteristic idiom is different from Othello’s. It is full of colloquialisms and oaths, befitting a cynical soldier.
We quickly notice that the villain slips between prose and verse, adapting his style to suit his different audiences and purposes. The fast-moving prose of his exchanges with Roderigo conveys Iago’s crude nature.
Iago’s use of soliloquies reinforces his power. Iago speaks his soliloquies first, drawing the audience in as he outlines his intentions
Theme: Jealousy / Conflict
“O, beware, my lord, of jealousy! It is the green-eyed monster, which doth mock / The meat it feeds on”
> Iago refers to the idea of jealousy and directs his accusation to Othello. Iago allows these powerful ideas to come together in Othello’s mind so that when he finally mentions the possibility of Desdemona’s unfaithfulness, Othello already believes it is plausible.
> Iago’s use imagery to perfectly encapsulate the effects of jealousy, as the audience, will witness in the coming scenes (foreshadowing)
> “doth mock / The meat it feeds on” suggesting that if Othello gives into jealousy, it will eventually destroy him. Prophetically, this is precisely what happens.
> Shakespeare uses the monster as a metaphor is ironic. The ironic thing about it is the fact that Iago’s advice for Othello is its soundness. He gives sound advice, yet goes against it.
Context:
> The notion that jealousy is green-eyed is probably older than Shakespeare, although Shakespeare is our earliest authority in print. In The Merchant of Venice, Portia refers to “green-eyed jealousy” (Act 3, scene 2), > Shakespeare coins the more intense phrase “green-eyed monster.”
> Renaissance Englishmen often paired colours with emotions or personal qualities: both green and yellow are emblematic of jealousy, and green is also emblematic of envy.
Act 1: Iago - Prejudice/Jealousy/Conflict
“An old black ram is tupping your white ewe”
> Shakespeare uses Religious symbolism
> In other words, an uncastrated black sheep is having sex with a white lamb.
> Lamb is a symbol of renewal. It should be sacrificed to assure someone’s salvation. Also, it symbolises innocence.
> Iago says this phrase in such a way that it makes the audience think if Iago and Brabantio view Othello’s love for Desdemona as a crime.
> Possible connotation could be by the “black ram” having sex with “white ewe” the lamb is becoming ‘contaminated’ with the sins the black ram holds and contains.
Critic: Horney’s Theory
> is a psychoanalytic social theory assumes that social and cultural conditions, especially during childhood, have a powerful effect on later personality.
> Iago’s arrogant-vindictive personality and his strong desire to seek revenge could be due having trouble with coping and handling certain psycho-social environmental stressors when he was in his childhood.
