Society Quotes

Question 1

‘Enter Brabantio at a window above’ - Stage direction in Act 1 Scene 1

Answer 1

Instantly highlights Brabantio’s social superiority and the strict class order of Venetian society.

Question 2

‘My spirit and my place have in their power to make this bitter to thee’ - Brabantio in Act 1 Scene 1

Answer 2

Brabantio threatens to use his influence, authority and power to have Roderigo punished for disturbing him. This emphasises the high position Brabantio holds in the hierarchical system of Venice.

Question 3

‘This is Venice: My house is not a grange’ - Brabantio in Act 1 Scene 1

Answer 3

Venice is a place of strict and rigid order and law, meaning a robbery is something Brabantio would not expect. This contrasts starkly with the later uncivilised setting of Cyprus.

Question 4

‘For nature so preposterously to err’ - Brabantio in Act 1 Scene 3

Answer 4

Brabantio believes Othello and Desdemona’s relationship is unnatural, a view that would be shared by all of Venetian society and the Jacobean audience. Society was not ready or willing to accept interracial couples or any deviation from their norm.

Question 5

‘Warlike isle’ - Cassio in Act 2 Scene 1, repeated by Iago in Act 2 Scene 3.

Answer 5

Cyprus is war torn and lawless, a place where Iago’s malice thrives and grows. This also foreshadows the domestic war between Othello and Desdemona which will submerge everyone in chaos.

Question 6

‘Importing the mere perdition of the Turkish fleet… it is the celebration of his nuptial’ - Herald in Act 2 Scene 2

Answer 6

This reveals the merging of the private and public spheres with the end of the war between Venice and Turkey as well as the celebration of Othello and Desdemona’s marriage.

Question 7

‘These letters give, Iago, to the pilot’ - Othello in Act 3 Scene 2

Answer 7

This order is a reminder of Iago’s role as Othello’s ensign and the hate that Iago harbours that he is below Othello in society despite being a white man.

Question 8

‘My lord this would not be believed in Venice, though I should swear I saw’t’ - Lodovico in Act 4 Scene 2

Answer 8

Lodovico has been brought in at this moment to guide the audience’s reaction to the strike. The audience has been watching the events occur gradually so Othello’s physical abuse seems less shocking. Lodovico has suddenly been flung into the action so he provides moral commentary. He also represents Venetian Society and its values, his character shows how much those in Cyprus have changed.

Question 9

‘And seize upon the fortunes of the Moor’ - Lodovico in Act 5 Scene 5

Answer 9

Misogyny and racism will live on past the play’s end. Othello and Desdemona’s deviation from the norm has resulted in nothing, they have been erased and now only act as a lesson to people to not challenge society and its expectations.