Othello by William Shakespeare is one tragedy that leaves readers' emotions overwhelmed. It could be compared to an intense soap opera found on channel 3 of CBS. Not only does Shakespeare convey multiple themes throughout this tragedy, but he also reiterates several other themes that can be found in his other literature pieces as well.
1- Who is to blame for the tragic outcome?(or what is to blame?)
Shakespeare purposely never included certain details to keep his audience guessing and entertained. There is no correct answer to this question, but instead of wondering about who is to blame, maybe we should look at what is to blame?
Of course, Iago might seem like the villain throughout the entire story, but you have to admit that towards the end, Othello turned himself into a villain as well. Why could we consider both of these characters villains? They were both corrupted by one main source--jealousy.
Both characters of this tragedy were defeated by jealousy. Iago stated towards the beginning of the story of how the moor "'twixt my sheets He has done my office"(I.iii.369–370). In other words, Iago believes that Othello slept with his wife,Emilia, because of some rumors he has heard. Based off those rumors, he is going to ruin Othello's life anyways whether the rumors are true or not. So Iago wants revenge. He wants revenge on someone who never did anything to him or slept with his wife. Iago's revenge is to start the rumor that Othello's wife slept with Cassio by convincing him through lies that he spits from his own mouth. Kind of ironic. It's also ironic when Iago tells Othello, "beware, my lord, of jealousy; It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock The meat it feeds on" (III.iii.167-168). Iago is telling Othello to be aware of jealousy when obviously Iago is already jealous of Othello. What a jerk.
Even after Iago tries to convince the moor that his wife is cheating on him, Othello tries to not believe it. Othello even said himself "Why, why is this? Think'st thou I'ld make a life of jealousy" (III.iii.176-177). Othello stated that he would not let jealousy control him or destroy him--but its just the very thought that pushes him over the edge of a break.
After Iago puts the bug in Othello's ear by telling Othello he saw Cassio with Desdemona's handkerchief, then Othello starts to become overwhelmed and jealous--jealous of Cassio. Since Othello is black and Desdemona is white, Othello feels insecure; although this is never set in stone, we can infer because people were racist during this era and to have an African American be at such a high status was very rare to come by. Another thing to point out is Othello's age compared to Desdemona's. Othello is described as a middle aged man as to where Desdemona is described as young and beautiful. Cassio's age is never said but we can tell by his rank that he is younger than Othello. So why wouldn't Othello feel threatened and be jealous of Cassio? He feels threatened because he doesn't feel like he is enough for Desdemona and is insecure about himself overall.
If Othello was never jealous at all, then he would have seen through Iago's lies and the tragedy would have been avoided. But as we can see, jealousy can drive a man mad--even to the point of killing his own wife.
Of course, Iago might seem like the villain throughout the entire story, but you have to admit that towards the end, Othello turned himself into a villain as well. Why could we consider both of these characters villains? They were both corrupted by one main source--jealousy.
Both characters of this tragedy were defeated by jealousy. Iago stated towards the beginning of the story of how the moor "'twixt my sheets He has done my office"(I.iii.369–370). In other words, Iago believes that Othello slept with his wife,Emilia, because of some rumors he has heard. Based off those rumors, he is going to ruin Othello's life anyways whether the rumors are true or not. So Iago wants revenge. He wants revenge on someone who never did anything to him or slept with his wife. Iago's revenge is to start the rumor that Othello's wife slept with Cassio by convincing him through lies that he spits from his own mouth. Kind of ironic. It's also ironic when Iago tells Othello, "beware, my lord, of jealousy; It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock The meat it feeds on" (III.iii.167-168). Iago is telling Othello to be aware of jealousy when obviously Iago is already jealous of Othello. What a jerk.
Even after Iago tries to convince the moor that his wife is cheating on him, Othello tries to not believe it. Othello even said himself "Why, why is this? Think'st thou I'ld make a life of jealousy" (III.iii.176-177). Othello stated that he would not let jealousy control him or destroy him--but its just the very thought that pushes him over the edge of a break.
After Iago puts the bug in Othello's ear by telling Othello he saw Cassio with Desdemona's handkerchief, then Othello starts to become overwhelmed and jealous--jealous of Cassio. Since Othello is black and Desdemona is white, Othello feels insecure; although this is never set in stone, we can infer because people were racist during this era and to have an African American be at such a high status was very rare to come by. Another thing to point out is Othello's age compared to Desdemona's. Othello is described as a middle aged man as to where Desdemona is described as young and beautiful. Cassio's age is never said but we can tell by his rank that he is younger than Othello. So why wouldn't Othello feel threatened and be jealous of Cassio? He feels threatened because he doesn't feel like he is enough for Desdemona and is insecure about himself overall.
If Othello was never jealous at all, then he would have seen through Iago's lies and the tragedy would have been avoided. But as we can see, jealousy can drive a man mad--even to the point of killing his own wife.
2-What should one consider when reading Shakespeare?
There are so many ideas one should consider when reading a piece written by Shakespeare. Although Shakespeare's work is different from what most people are used to reading syntax wise, he still incorporates many plot points that have been used throughout centuries. But in order to understand him, you have to learn the way he writes and with a variety of techniques, you'll be reading Shakespeare like a champion.
Read like Yoda
One embarrassing technique that assists me with reading Shakespeare, is the idea of reading the literature like Yoda. Since I'm very familiar with the star wars movies, it's like a second language almost. Yoda and Shakespeare talk the very same. Unlike how we talk in English today using Subject, Verb, and object, Shakespeare switches the verb and object around. Othello says "Prerogatived are they" (III.iii. 276); in modern English we would translate this to "They are prerogative." Therefore, reading in a Yoda voice helps the flow of reading Shakespeare if you are familiar with how Yoda talks.
Pay Attention to Diction
Some of Shakespeare's diction is familiar while some of it is foreign. Even though a good amount of sayings and quotes have originated from Shakespeare, there are still some words and phrases that are difficult to pick up or understand. In Othello Shakespeare writes,
"Some cogging, cozening slave" (IV.ii.132)--cozen means to deceive. In order to understand other words and phrases, you have to paraphrase to figure out what it means.
Read Slowly Until You Understand what you are Reading Better
Since Shakespeare's diction is quite advanced, reading slowly may help better your chances at understanding what you are reading. Reading really fast through Shakespeare will only harm you than help you. Just because you get through the reading fast doesn't mean that you understood everything that was happening. In order for me to take in what Shakespeare is trying to convey, I have to read slowly and sometimes re-read in order to actually understand what is happening. If you take your time reading Shakespeare then it will be more beneficial than reading through it super fast because you will have taken the time to get to know the material.
Annotating the Text
One technique that does wonders when reading a dense piece of literature is annotating the text. When annotating the text, I underline words I don't quite understand, circle important ideas, and write side notes that summarize what i just read in order to piece everything altogether more efficiently.
Listen to Audio Tapes to Help Visual what you are Reading
The last technique I use is listening to audio tapes while I follow along in the text. I use this technique when I get absolutely frustrated with the text and do not understand anything that is going on. It is helpful for me to listen to the tones of the actor's voices in order to understand the mood of the story. The tones and mood of a story help uncover the meaning of a variety of complicated words used that I am not aware of. So not only does it help me understand the mood of the story, but it helps me figure out some words that I find difficult to understand.
Read like Yoda
One embarrassing technique that assists me with reading Shakespeare, is the idea of reading the literature like Yoda. Since I'm very familiar with the star wars movies, it's like a second language almost. Yoda and Shakespeare talk the very same. Unlike how we talk in English today using Subject, Verb, and object, Shakespeare switches the verb and object around. Othello says "Prerogatived are they" (III.iii. 276); in modern English we would translate this to "They are prerogative." Therefore, reading in a Yoda voice helps the flow of reading Shakespeare if you are familiar with how Yoda talks.
Pay Attention to Diction
Some of Shakespeare's diction is familiar while some of it is foreign. Even though a good amount of sayings and quotes have originated from Shakespeare, there are still some words and phrases that are difficult to pick up or understand. In Othello Shakespeare writes,
"Some cogging, cozening slave" (IV.ii.132)--cozen means to deceive. In order to understand other words and phrases, you have to paraphrase to figure out what it means.
Read Slowly Until You Understand what you are Reading Better
Since Shakespeare's diction is quite advanced, reading slowly may help better your chances at understanding what you are reading. Reading really fast through Shakespeare will only harm you than help you. Just because you get through the reading fast doesn't mean that you understood everything that was happening. In order for me to take in what Shakespeare is trying to convey, I have to read slowly and sometimes re-read in order to actually understand what is happening. If you take your time reading Shakespeare then it will be more beneficial than reading through it super fast because you will have taken the time to get to know the material.
Annotating the Text
One technique that does wonders when reading a dense piece of literature is annotating the text. When annotating the text, I underline words I don't quite understand, circle important ideas, and write side notes that summarize what i just read in order to piece everything altogether more efficiently.
Listen to Audio Tapes to Help Visual what you are Reading
The last technique I use is listening to audio tapes while I follow along in the text. I use this technique when I get absolutely frustrated with the text and do not understand anything that is going on. It is helpful for me to listen to the tones of the actor's voices in order to understand the mood of the story. The tones and mood of a story help uncover the meaning of a variety of complicated words used that I am not aware of. So not only does it help me understand the mood of the story, but it helps me figure out some words that I find difficult to understand.
3- Marriage and How this could have been avoided.
Not only in Othello, but in several other literature pieces including Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare married his main characters very early--or at least made them fall in love so quickly. Shakespeare does this on purpose; in order to have a solid relationship, the couple need to build a foundation of trust which so happens to not happen when they fall in love so quickly. So in other words, Shakespeare purposely sets his stories up for failure.Genius.
First off, when people marry too fast they don't know the other person very well. In order to know if you want to marry that person, getting to know them is highly suggested. Othello could have the most traumatizing snore known to man kind, but Desdemona wouldn't have known that because she would have already been married to him. Desdemona could be the most pickiest eater but Othello wouldn't have known that because the two would have already been married. It's very highly encouraged to get to know the person well not only to gain respect, trust, and a solid relationship, but for the pure fact that they might have habits that the other one can't tolerate or because they aren't the person who they thought they were.
Othello and Desdemona married too fast, and therefore they had no sense of trust for each other. Since these two never trusted each other in the first place, it was easier for Iago to deceive and convince Othello that Desdemona was being unfaithful. To make Othello second guess Desdemona he told Othello that ,"She did deceive her father, marrying you" (III.iii.206) and then Othello replying with "And so she did" (III.iii.208). Marrying someone without approval of the father was considered deceiving. So Iago was able to convince Othello that Desdemona is very deceitful--this doesn't help her case.
When Desdemona's father, Barbantio, found out that Desdemona married Othello he first came to the assumption that Othello charmed her and used magic to make her marry him. Barbantio states "Judge me the world, if 'tis not gross in sense That thou hast practised on her with foul charms, Abused her delicate youth with drugs or minerals That weaken motion" (I.ii.292-295). Barbantio believes that Othello used witchcraft on Desdemona because of how fast they were married. In today's society, nobody married within the first few days of knowing each other and by the way that Barbantio suspects the use of magic, we can infer that the same idea applied back them as well.
The entire reason why everything that happened in this tragedy happened, was because there was a lack of trust and communication. The whole situation between Desdemona and Othello could have been avoided if Othello simply went up to Desdemona and asked her about the situation before deciding to kill her off. Maybe the situation would have turned out differently, maybe not, but it would have been the most logical thing to do since they are a married couple and are suppose to have a good foundation of trust.
Although marriage was a huge factor in this tragedy, it was created like that because it was intended to be a part of the plot. If Othello and Desdemona had a better communication system and foundation of trust, then the story wouldn't have ended the way it did.
First off, when people marry too fast they don't know the other person very well. In order to know if you want to marry that person, getting to know them is highly suggested. Othello could have the most traumatizing snore known to man kind, but Desdemona wouldn't have known that because she would have already been married to him. Desdemona could be the most pickiest eater but Othello wouldn't have known that because the two would have already been married. It's very highly encouraged to get to know the person well not only to gain respect, trust, and a solid relationship, but for the pure fact that they might have habits that the other one can't tolerate or because they aren't the person who they thought they were.
Othello and Desdemona married too fast, and therefore they had no sense of trust for each other. Since these two never trusted each other in the first place, it was easier for Iago to deceive and convince Othello that Desdemona was being unfaithful. To make Othello second guess Desdemona he told Othello that ,"She did deceive her father, marrying you" (III.iii.206) and then Othello replying with "And so she did" (III.iii.208). Marrying someone without approval of the father was considered deceiving. So Iago was able to convince Othello that Desdemona is very deceitful--this doesn't help her case.
When Desdemona's father, Barbantio, found out that Desdemona married Othello he first came to the assumption that Othello charmed her and used magic to make her marry him. Barbantio states "Judge me the world, if 'tis not gross in sense That thou hast practised on her with foul charms, Abused her delicate youth with drugs or minerals That weaken motion" (I.ii.292-295). Barbantio believes that Othello used witchcraft on Desdemona because of how fast they were married. In today's society, nobody married within the first few days of knowing each other and by the way that Barbantio suspects the use of magic, we can infer that the same idea applied back them as well.
The entire reason why everything that happened in this tragedy happened, was because there was a lack of trust and communication. The whole situation between Desdemona and Othello could have been avoided if Othello simply went up to Desdemona and asked her about the situation before deciding to kill her off. Maybe the situation would have turned out differently, maybe not, but it would have been the most logical thing to do since they are a married couple and are suppose to have a good foundation of trust.
Although marriage was a huge factor in this tragedy, it was created like that because it was intended to be a part of the plot. If Othello and Desdemona had a better communication system and foundation of trust, then the story wouldn't have ended the way it did.
Works Cited:
Shakespeare, William, and Barbara A. Mowat. The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. New York: Washington Square, 1993. Print.
Shakespeare, William, and Barbara A. Mowat. The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. New York: Washington Square, 1993. Print.