The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice

1. The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice By William Shakespeare

2. Major Character • Othello–- a military general from Africa who is now living in Venice, Italy. He captures the heart of a young nobleman’s daughter, and later suspects her of infidelity.

3. Major Character • Desdemona-- an extremely lovely and naïve girl who weds Othello. She is loyal to Othello and bewildered by his accusations.

4. Major Character • Iago-- Othello’s vengeful underling carries out a deceitful scheme after he is passed over for promotion. He also suspects Othello has committed adultery with his wife in the past, but has no proof.

5. Minor Characters • Cassio—Othello’s lieutenant whom Iago alleges is having an affair with Desdemona • Emilia—Iago’s wife and the servant of Desdemona who tries to defend her mistress • Bianca—a lady of questionable repute who is manipulated by Iago. • Brabantio—Desdemona’s father who is angry that she secretly eloped

6. Plot Summary --Othello beguiles young Desdemona, and they elope. --Her father is upset that she kept her relationship a secret and that her new husband is a Moor. --Othello then angers Iago by passing him over for promotion and appointing Cassio second in command. --Iago vows revenge and hatches a plot to convince Othello that Desdemona and Cassio are lovers.

7. --Othello and his men are sent to Cyprus to defend the Venetians from the Turks. --There Iago arranges to get Cassio drunk and to lure him into a fight so that he will lose his job. --Iago then counsels Cassio to enlist Desdemona’s help to get his position restored. However, Iago secretly hopes to replace Cassio himself. --Cassio meets with Desdemona to plead for her help, and Iago uses their meeting to suggest to Othello that the two might be having an affair.

8. --Iago torments Othello with suggestions that his wife is unfaithful, and promises to provide “ocular” proof. --Desdemona is baffled by her husband’s accusations and denies she has done anything wrong. --Iago finally arranges to plant one of Desdemonas scarves, a gift from Othello’ s mother, in Cassio’s lodgings as proof. --Iago also arranges for Othello to eavesdrop on a conversation of Cassio’s that seems to confirm Othello’s worst fears about Desdemona.

9. --Othello calls Desdemona a whore, and he decides to kill her even though she still maintains her innocence and part of him still loves her. -- Emilia tells Othello that he was wrong about Desdemona and that her own husband Iago is to blame for the lie. --Othello realizes his error and considers suicide saying, “…speak of one that loved not wisely, but too well.” Act 5, Scene II, line, 340. 1

10. Themes • Questioning the wisdom of interracial unions • Iago yells out to Desdemona’s father, “…an old black ram/ is tupping your white ewe. Arise, Arise!” Act 1, Scene I, line 85 • Brabantio questions, “Whether a maid, so tender, fair, and happy,/…shunned the wealthy, curled darlings of our nation.” Act 1, Scene II, lines • Despite the fact that Othello is a well-respected military leader, there are clearly derogatory references to him throughout the play. • His resorting to violence to punish his wife is linked to his base nature. • Even Othello is convinced that his wife’s attachment to him must be short-lived because of his race.

11. Themes • Exploring the difference between fact and appearances • Brabantio warns, “…if thou hast eyes to see:/She has deceived her father and, and may thee.” Act 1, Scene III, line 286-7 • Othello bemoans, “Her honor is an essence that’s not seen;/They have it very oft that have it not./ But for the handkerchief—” Act IV, Scene I, lines 16-18 • There are many incidents of deception in the play. Most of them are manipulated by Iago, but even the enemy Turks use deceptive military strategies. • Almost all of the characters put their trust in Iago and seek his counsel, despite the fact that he is the most duplicitous of all. • Othello ultimately misconstrues the loss of Desdemona’s handkerchief as proof of her infidelity.

12. Themes • Revealing the ugly consequences of jealousy and revenge • A Duke cautions, “ To mourn a mischief that is past and gone/ Is the next way to draw new mischief on.” Act I, Scene III, line 201 • Iago refers tells Othello that jealousy, “…is the green-eyed monster, which doth mock/ the meat it feeds on.” Act 3, Scene III, lines 166-7 • Shakespeare uses dramatic irony to reveal to the audience that Othello’s jealousy is unfounded. • Iago doesn’t ever come out and say directly that Desdemona is unfaithful, but Othello’s rage at being cuckholded makes it is easy to fuel his suspicions. • Othello rants, “I’ll tear her all to pieces!” Act 3, Scene III, line 28

13. Conflicts • Gender: Othello wants to have control over and certainty regarding his wife’s sexuality. Iago and others claim that all women are deceitful whores. • Race: Othello is insulted repeatedly because he is black. He even doubts his own attractiveness because he is a Moor. • Internal conflict: Othello is torn between his love of Desdemona and his anger at the thought of her as an adulteress. • Personal ambition/retribution: Iago’s hatred for his superior, Othello, drives him to unleash evil on Othello, Desdemona, Cassio, and even his wife Emilia.

14. Historical Context Othello is one of William Shakespeare’s 10 tragedies, written around 1604 and often described by critics as one of his best. Like many of his other works, it is thought to be an adaptation of an Italian work—Of the Unfaithfulness of Husbands and Wives by GiraldiCinthio. It is believed that Shakespeare never traveled to Italy or Cyprus, the settings for the drama. 2

15. Synthesis of Criticism • “Historical Differences: Misogyny and Othello.” In The Matter of Difference: Materialist Feminist Criticism of Shakespeare, edited by Valerie Wayne, pp. 153-79. New York: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1991. • Wayne and other feminist critics argue that Puritan mores of female submissiveness, obedience to male authority, and women being treated akin to property were commonly held Renaissance values. While modern feminists may balk at Desdemona’s loyalty to Othello despite his abuse of her, his attitude and the slurs against women expressed by Iago may have been accepted by viewers in the 1600’s.3

16. Synthesis of Criticism • “Shakespeare after Columbine: teen violence in Tim Blake Nelson's ‘O’.”Semenza, Gregory M. Colon. College Literature 32 . 4 (Sep 22, 2005) : p99(26).(11452 words). • In this article, Semenza makes the case that teen adaptations often “dumb down” the conflicts in Shakespearean dramas and work from the unproven assumption that teens are not sophisticated enough to deal with complexity in situations and characters. Accordingly, the producers of Tim Blake Nelson’s O decided not to release the film directly following the Columbine shootings because it might contribute to teen violence. The author contends the film aims to help to “understand such senseless tragedies, not to incite them.”4

17. Modern Film adaptation • This period film features Kenneth Branagh as Iago and Laurence Fishburne as Othello. It is fairly faithful to the original text. 5 1995 Movie Trailer

18. YA Adaptations • Graphic novels:Othello, an adaptation by Oscar Zarate, Oval Projects Ltd (1985). It was reprinted in 2005 by Can of Worms Press and includes the complete text of the play. • Manga: 2009 adaptation was published in the United Kingdom, with art by RyutaOsada. It is part of the Manga Shakespeare series by Richard Appiganesi, and is set in Venice in carnival season • This information and more at gradesaver.com/Othello/wikipedia/adaptations-and-cultural-references

19. YA Adaptations • Film: 2001 O, a modern update, set in an American high school. Stars MekhiPhifer as Odin (Othello), Julia Stiles as Desi (Desdemona), and Josh Hartnett as Hugo (Iago). Odin is a black soccer star in an all-white school.6 • http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0184791/?ref_=fn_al_tt_6 • Television:2001 Othello. British made-for-TV film. A modern-day adaptation in modern English, in which Othello is the first black Commissioner of London's Metropolitan Police. Made for ITV by LWT. Scripted by Andrew Davies. Directed by Geoffrey Sax. Starring Eamonn Walker, Christopher Eccleston and Keeley Hawes. 7 • http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0275577/ • This information and more at gradesaver.com/Othello/wikipedia/adaptations-and-cultural-references

20. Exposureby Mal Peet • Published in 2009 and Winner of The Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize in the U.K. Positively reviewed there.8 http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/oct/18/mal-peet I found the use of all the character names from Othello to be a bit contrived and something of a distraction, but the story was interesting on its own. • The novel tells the story of a successful black soccer player, Otello, who weds a famous white pop star, Desmerelda. The two are manipulated by his agent, Diego. Aside from the obvious naming similarities, the novel also depicts Otello’s fall from grace. • While the subjects of race and gender are common to both the original play and the adaptation, the clash between Otello’s wealth and the poverty of the neighboring street children is also highlighted in Peet’s work. • Set in a modern, South-American city, the novel includes many details of politics, media, sports mania, and conditions in the slums.

21. Mal Peet • Mal Peet was born in England in 1947.He did not embark on his writing career until he was middle-aged. In addition to his more recent prize for Exposure, he received U.K. literary awards for his debut novel, Keeper in 2003 and for Tamar in 2005. Three of his five novels include fictional South American sports journalist Paul Faustino and the sport of soccer. All of his novels are for young adults.9http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mal_Peet

22. References • 1. Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Othello. Ed. X.J. Kennedy. Boston: Little, Brown & Company, 1987. • 2. More info available at the Folger library website. http://www.folger.edu/Content/Discover-Shakespeare/Shakespeares-Works/The-Plays/Othello.cfm • 3. For more on this and other criticism see http://www.iupui.edu/~elit/shakes/oth/othref.html • 4. For text of the article see http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-138400336.html • 5. Othello. By William Shakespeare. Dir. Oliver Parker. Perf. Laurence Fishburne, Kenneth Branagh. 1995. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114057/fullcredits#cast • 6. O by Tim Blake Nelson. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0184791/?ref_=fn_al_tt_6 • 7. Othello by Geoffrey Sax. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0275577/ • 8. http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/oct/18/mal-peet • 9. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mal_Peet