OTHELLO

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OTHELLO

• The Tragedy by
• William Shakepeare
• Ms. J. Neighbours

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The Tragedy of Othello
Venice, Italy the Setting of Othello
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Othello A Shakespearean Tragedy

• Othello is a Shakespearean Tragedy
• It encompasses elements of tragedies such as
• It ends with the death of numerous characters
  including the title character
• It encompasses historical and military details
• The protagonist is admirable, but flawed, with
  the audience able to understand and sympathise
  with the character.
• The protagonist is capable of both good and evil
• Free will is insisted upon the protagonist must
  always be able to back out of a situation or to
  redeem themselves but always towards their
  inevitable doom.

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The worlds greatest

• By the time hed written Othello (around 1604),
  Shakespeare was considered the greatest
  playwright of his day.
• Many feel that Shakespeare's later plays show a
  darker, more pessimistic view of the world than
  his early plays.
• Under King James I (his rule is referred to as
  the Jacobean period), England lost some of its
  power and prosperity.
• Conflicts between Catholics and Protestants led
  to civil strife.
• Shakespeare's earlier plays reflected Elizabeth's
  golden reign. By 1604, when Othello was first
  produced, the glory of the Elizabethan period was
  recent history.
• This is reflected in the fact that, unlike his
  other tragedies, there is no resolution to the
  conflict caused at the end of the play.

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Othello Themes
Passion
Hypocrisy
Prejudice
Jealousy
Revenge
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Principal Characters

• Othello A Moorish general in the service of
  Venice
• Iago Othellos ensign from Florence
• Michael Cassio Othellos lieutenant
• Roderigo A Venetian suitor of Desdemona
• Branbantio Desdemonas father
• Gratiano Brabantios brother
• Montano Former Governor of Cyprus
• Desdemona Branbantios daughter, Othellos wife
• Emilia Iagos wife
• Bianca A Courtesan in Venice, friend and lady
  in waiting to Desdemona

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Plot Elements

• Genre Romantic Tragedy
• Time Shakespeare probably intended the time to
  be early 1500s
• Setting Venice, Italy and Cyprus
• Year Produced 1604

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About the Plot

• The plot for Othello was developed from a story
  in the Italian author Cinthio's collection, The
  Hecatommithi, which it follows closely (1565).
• The only named character in Cinthio's story is
  "Disdemona", which means "unfortunate" in Greek
• The other characters are identified only as "the
  standard-bearer", "the captain", and "the Moor".

• The first known performance of the play occurred
  on November 1, 1604 at Whitehall Palace in London.

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(No Transcript)
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Cyprus was off the coast of Syria and Turkey.
Venice is up the Adriatic Sea.
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The Venetian coastline looks vastly different
from that of Cyprus.
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Venice was known for its wealth and prosperity
during the Renaissance. Cyprus was not.
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Othello a moor

• Othello is described in the play as a moor, and a
  general in the Venetian Army.
• The origin of the word moor comes from the word
  mauri which was used to describe a group of
  people called the Berbers, who came from North
  Africa.
• It can also be supposed that he was from Morocco,
  although Libya is sometimes referred to as
  Moorish

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What does it mean to be Moorish?

• Moors were characterised in Elizabethan England
  as being alternately or simultaneously noble or
  monstrous, civil or savage.
• It was often the case (in literature) that a moor
  was presented as someone accepted by society to a
  certain point, but then rejected due to other
  factors.
• The majority of Moors were Islamic whereas
  Venice would have been Christian

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Traditional Moorish, Moroccan People

• Moorish skin tone varies, but most definitely
  stood apart from the traditionally Romanesque
  feature of northern Italians from Venice.

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The Great Villain Iago

• Iago is one of Shakespeares most sinister
  villains, often considered so because of the
  unique trust Othello puts in him, which he
  betrays while maintaining his reputation of
  honesty and dedication.
• Shakespeare contrasts Iago with Othellos
  nobility and integrity.
• Iago is a malcontent he has a bitter and
  cyncial view of the world around him.

• The name Iago is a shortened version of the
  Spanish name Santiago or St James.
• Saint James of Spain was also known as St James
  the Moor Killer which seems appropriate within
  the play.

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Othello Plot
Othello is a general, a military leader, in
Venice hundreds of years ago.
But he is an outsider because he is from another
countryand of another race.
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Othello Plot
When Othello secretly marries the young,
beautiful and noble Desdemona,
Her father, Brabantio, wants Othello to be
arrested.
But Desdemona loves Othello and doesnt care that
he is an outsider.
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Othello Plot
At the same time, the men in the army under
Othello cant be trusted.
Cassio means well but is open to bad influences.
Iago pretends to be Othellos friend, but
secretly resents him for passing him over for
promotion.
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Othello Plot
Iago is determined to get revenge.
He decides to attack Othello in his most
vulnerable spot
his love for Desdemona.
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Othello Plot
Will Othello be able to see through Iagos
schemes?
Or will jealousy and revenge turn to murder?
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Othello Plot
Othello is from North Africa, while Desdemona is
from Venice, in Italy.
Their marriage is a meeting of cultures and
races.
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Othello Plot
Othello, again, is sometimes referred to as the
Moor. Moors are people with mixed Berber and
Arab groups living in northwestern Africa.
Shakespeare included Moorish characters in other
plays The Merchant of Venice and Titus
Andronicus. He used them to represent outsiders.
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Othello Plot
Racism is an important concept in Othello,
As is the idea of judging others on the basis of
their appearance rather than whats in their
hearts.
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Othello Plot
The way a character speaks in Shakespeares plays
signals the way his or her mind is working. It
can also tell you what kind of person the
character is.
Othello often uses animal imagery.
Desdemona often speaks about her faith.
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Othello Discussion Starters

• What groups are sometimes treated as outsiders in
  the United States today?
• Why are they seen by others as outsiders?
• How do others react to them?

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Othello Discussion Starters

• Othello depicts many problems that arise from
  jealousy and greed.
• Do these emotions still cause problems today?
• If so, what problems have you seen them create?

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MORE THEMES AND ISSUES IN OTHELLO
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Winning a fair lady

• Men were expected to go through distinct stages
  of courtly love in order to woo a woman.
• It was thought that love wasnt entirely
  platonic, but that it was based on sexual
  attraction.
• As the etiquette of courtly love became more
  complicated, the knight might wear the colours of
  his lady blue or black were the colors of
  faithfulness green was a sign of unfaithfulness.

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• The stages of courtly love
• Attraction to the lady, usually via eyes/glance
• Worship of the lady from afar
• Declaration of passionate devotion
• Virtuous rejection by the lady
• Renewed wooing with oaths of virtue and eternal
  fealty
• Moans of approaching death from unsatisfied
  desire (and other physical manifestations of
  lovesickness)
• Heroic deeds of valor which win the lady's heart
• Consummation of the secret love
• Endless adventures and subterfuges avoiding
  detection

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The Wifes Status

• The husband, in the accepted role as head of the
  household, gives moral direction to his wife and
  children--who sit obediently listening.
• Ye women, submit your selves unto your own
  husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is
  the wife's head, even as Christ is the head of
  the Church, and he is the saviour of the whole
  body. Therefore as the Church in congregation is
  subject unto Christ so likewise let the wives be
  in subjection unto their own husbands in all
  things (The Book of Common Prayer)

• A typical wife receiving her instruction

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Evil Women!

• The men in Othello have differing views of women
• Othello who idolizes his wife (Desdemona) to
• Iago who sees love as "merely a lust of the blood
  and a permission of the will.
• The attitudes of the audience at the time are
  likely to have been varied too.

• In the Elizabethan times there was a long and
  well established tradition in the Church of what
  we would now call misogyny
• Women were distrusted simply because they were
  women. At the time it was assumed that women
  would cheat it was part of their nature!

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The Cuckold

• Any man whose wife cheated on him (without his
  knowledge) was known as a cuckold.
• The word derives from cuckoo the bird known
  for laying their eggs in anothers nest.

• It was highly undesirable to be considered a
  cuckold.
• All of the community would find out about it and
  it was considered a public humiliation.
• Cuckolds were often described as having horns a
  hangover from the days when a cuckold was forced
  to parade around his town wearing antlers as a
  sign of his wifes infidelity.

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Jealousy

• Jealousy was viewed as something irrational and
  linked to the deadly sin of envy.
• It was viewed as a sudden infection against which
  there was no prevention or cure.
• It was thought of as eroding trust and it
  dissolved the bonds holding together marriages,
  families and social frameworks.
• Being jealous could let in evil and chaos and it
  was a state greatly feared by Shakespeares
  audiences.

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Task

• On the following slide are some lines spoken by,
  or about, various characters in the play
  consider what you think each quotation reveals
  about the person speaking/being spoken about and
  what they are like as a character.

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• Iago - describing Othello loving his own pride
  and purposes
• Iago - speaking about his relationship with
  Othello I follow him to serve my turn upon him
• Iago - speaking about himself I am not what I
  am.
• Iago - speaking about Othello The state cannot
  with safety cast him for hes embarked with such
  loud reason to the Cyprus wars
• Othello - speaking about himself My parts, my
  title and my perfect soul shall manifest me
  rightly
• Othello - about Iago A man he is of honesty and
  trust.
• Othello to an angry Brabantio Hold your
  hands, were it my cue to fight , I should have
  known it.

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Jealousy and Deception

• Do you consider yourself to be a jealous person?
  Why?
• Have you ever deceived anyone? Why?
• Is jealously acceptable in a relationship?
• Is it ever okay to knowingly deceive someone?

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Quotations on Jealousy Do you agree?

• Love sees sharply, hatred sees even more sharp,
  but Jealousy sees the sharpest for it is love and
  hate at the same time
•       Jealousy is nothing more than a fear of
  abandonment
• In jealousy there is more of self-love than
  love.
• A competent and self-confident person is
  incapable of jealousy in anything. Jealousy is
  invariably a symptom of neurotic insecurity.
• Jealousy is a disease, love is a healthy
  condition. The immature mind often mistakes one
  for the other, or assumes that the greater the
  love, the greater the jealousy -- in fact,
  they're almost incompatible one emotion hardly
  leaves room for the other. Both at once can
  produce unbearable turmoil...

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Quotations on Deception Do you agree?

• We are never deceived we deceive ourselves.
• Deception is a cruel act... It often has many
  players on different stages that corrode the
  soul.
• It's better to get something worthwhile done
  using deception than to fail to get something
  worthwhile done using truth.
• Truth lives on in the midst of deception

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Todays society - TASK

• Think about the cultural rules that you live by.
• Look at the questions opposite and discuss/make
  notes.

• What rules dictate the behaviour of young men and
  women in relationships today?
• What are the things nice girls just dont do?
• What are the things nice boys just dont do?
• What do you think the consequences are of
  breaking these rules?