Othello Essay

Othello, Shakespeare’s’ Aristotelian tragedy, plays upon a twofold focus to portray the demise of the general to ‘martyrdom’. Initially, the responder is drawn upon the manipulative power of Iago as he exposes not only the fragility of Othello, but also Roderigo, Cassio, Emilia and Desdemona. Then as the play progresses, Othello’s trust in Iago and ultimately himself is questioned nearly towards the point of gullibility. Shakespeare relies upon on dramatic structure, motifs and manner to convey the deception of Othello. Ultimately it his exploration of binary opposition in an isolated society (Cyprus), vulnerable to devices of villainy, that allows him to conform towards Aristotelian manifesto.

Iago’s orchestrating power more than Othello exposes the fragility that engulfs Othello’s mind even though undermining the trust Othello places in this villain. Shakespeare capitalizes on Iago’s cryptic manner of speaking exemplified by the binary oppositions “an old black ram is tupping your white ewe” and “I am not what I am” to highlight his source of power, deception. The binary oppositions including black/white, honest/dishonest, light/dark play as underlying notion to exaggerate Othello’s visible and character difference. Deception is evident once Iago notes “she did deceive her father marrying you” placed in an elliptical style. Iago’s insinuations about Desdemona have taken Othello, in a mere 100 lines from belief in his conjugal happiness to belief in his abandonment. These 1st feelings of abandonment cascade to eventuate in the general’s downfall as he murders Desdemona. Othello’s imagery finds Desdemona being a mere “creature” of “appetite” and imagines himself as being a “toad” in a “dungeon”. The recurring motifs of animals and militarism with “dungeon” imparts upon the theme from the incompatibility of military heroism and love. This theme is pursued extra as Othello cries out "Arise, black vengeance, inside the hollow cell!” Othello uses images of darkness in...