race and prejudice Flashcards
1.1 IAGO [about othello] “his moorship ancient!”
An offensive indication to othellos colour. He is mocking his kingship in a clever but mocking tone.
Starting the play as insulting the protagonist shows the mistreatment and tragic ideas.
AO4 - Shakespearean plays usually worship the protagonist but othello is insulted, Contrasts to macbeth.
1.1 IAGO “an old black ram is tupping your white ewe!”
Old =knowing abusing innocence, black = darkness, dirty,race?
Ram = horns like devil and forceful animalistic sex
Tupping = onomatopoeia makes it aggressive and shocking for desdomona.
White ewe = innocent female sheep, pure + white. Docile and easily led.
This paints othello to be a beast using rough animal imagery
AO2 - Animal imagery + forceful plosive lang.
1.1 IAGO TO BRABANTIO“your daughter covered with a barbary horse”
he is saying desdomona is mating with a foreign arabian horse using zoomorphic inhumane language AO2 AND AO3
1.3 iago’s soliloquy“but for my sport and profit.i hate the moor”
AO2 endstopping = creates tension and puts emphasis on the next line.
- the “sport and profit” shows he sees this as a game messing and playing with othellos life
AO2 monosyllabic emphasises his hatred for othello
1.3 soliloquy cont. IAGO “and will as tenderly be led by th’ nose as asses are”
AO2 plosive lang. portrays his despite for him and how he pushes him around
- tenderly is uncomfortable opposing the rest of his harmful plan
AO2 asses = animal imagery dehumanising and insulting him
2.1 “when the blood is made dull with the act of sport,there should be, again to inflame it, and to give safety a fresh appetite, loveliness in favour, sympathy in years, manners and beauties,all which the moor is defective in”
“A pestilential complete knave”
step one of iagos plan. When desdomona becomes bored of othello she will look for someone else. Cassio.
One day she’ll come to her senses and nature will make her hate othello
AO2 - metaphor Calls Cassio as diseased fool
3.3 OTHELLO “She’s gone, I am abused, and my relief must be to loathe her.”
AO2 - List of declaratives. Iago has already manipulated othello corrupting his thoughts.
AO3/4 - The black perception of othello having a monster inside of him is explored but having a white man manipulating him is interesting as it shows this happens in all races.
3.3 OTHELLO “Arise, black vengeance, from thy hollow cell!”
“Never, iago. Like to the pontic sea
Striking images to show jealousy taking over and blackening his soul. He has resorted to a black-and-white approach.
AO3 Given in to the racist beliefs of others, uses witchcraft like language.
Sea imagery, wave of emotion and a violent pace. He is no longer in a state of calm.
3.4 OTHELLO ‘tis true, there’s magic in the web of it”
AO2 - Hyperbolic description of the handkerchief. Saying the handkerchief has magic powers confirms the witchcraft accusation which is planted in the audiences head AO3
1.3 DUKE TO BRABANTIO “your son-in-law [othello] is far more fair than black
“fair” can mean both beautiful and light-skinned.
He may see othello beyond his colour.
1.1 BRABANTIO “by what do you see them act. – is there not charms by which the property of youth and maid hood may be abused? Have you not read, roderigo, of some such thing?”
He is racist towards othello referring him to using ‘charms’ to manipulate desdomona. Thinks he is exotic and foreign, using wizardry.
AO2 - Lots of rhetorical questions in this section of dialogue. It quickens the pace, heightens the tension and the dashes (-) show his broken thoughts and torn emotions.
AO2 - lack of iambic pentameter as he is lost in panic compared to iago who is clever and deceptive with his words.
1.3 “she is abused, stolen from me and corrupted”
He is being overdramatic and using tripling emphasises this.
His pride as been abused – double entendre.
3.4 DESDEMONA “i think the sun where he was born drew all such humours from him”
Emphasises the foreignness + difference of othello.
Desdemona believes his tough upbringing taught him virtue and does not feel jealous.
This however is very ironic as the audience know othello is riddled with jealousy. AO2
4.2 EMILIA “never… never my lord”
“Remove your thought, it doth abuse your bosom”
Emilia is proof of desdemona’s innocence she has been with her the whole time in cyprus
it doesn’t sink in however for othello.
Stubbornness, embarrassment, love for iago, poison already sunk in??
Is this shakespeare suggesting black people become like this and his fatal flaw is emerging?
5.2 “o, the more angel she, and you the blacker devil…devil!”
States the physical and emotional contrast between othello and desdemona, they would never work.
AO3 - in 1603, Elizabeth I had issued declarations calling for the expulsion of those of Moorish descent, the Elizabethan/Jacobean audience would be inclined to applaud Emilia for denouncing of Othello
Emilia is trying to restore the image of purity that desdemona projected
