settings in othello

Question 1

venice
what did Venice have a reputation of?

Answer 1

wealth
sophistication
loose morals

Question 2

venice
what would elizabethan/Jacobean dramatists use Italian settings for?

Answer 2

for plays about intrigue, drama and secret affairs.

Question 3

cyprus
what is Cyprus described as in act 2 scene 2?

Answer 3

a ‘warlike isle.’

Question 4

cyprus
what is mirrored in the play of the conflict and danger of the setting?

Answer 4

the tragic events which unfolded there.

Question 5

cyprus
what was Othello sent to Cyprus to do and what happened instead?

Answer 5

he was sent there to govern and restore peace (given his military role) but instead threatens his marriage under the influence of Igo.

Question 6

how is Cyprus viewed?

Answer 6

as an isolated and psychologically appropriate place

Question 7

cyprus
how does moving to Cyprus advantage Iago’s plan

Answer 7

Cyprus is away from the ‘civilisation’ of Venice and there is less control of law and order without boundaries. (Desdemona is also away from her familial support in Venice - more vulnerable.)

Question 8

Aphrodite - Cyprus
what is Aphrodite the Greek Goddess of? what was the myth?

Answer 8

Aphrodite = goddess of love, sex and beauty.
myth = thought to be that she rose from the Cyprus West Coast

Question 9

Aphrodite - cyprus
how is Aphrodite relevant to the story, why is this ironic?

Answer 9

because the love and marriage which had potential will be destroyed and become a major tragedy

Question 10

Bedroom settings
what were bedroom settings often associated with in the jacobean era?

Answer 10

tragedy

Question 11

bedroom settings
how is it viewed for a military hero to kill himself in his wife’s bedchamber?

Answer 11

deeply tragic and degrading

Question 12

bedroom settings
how does Desdemona predict her death in act 4 scene 2

Answer 12

‘lay on my bed my wedding sheets.’