Act II

Question 1

1.”Blessed fig’s-end! The wine she drinks is made of grapes.” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 1)

Answer 1

Device: Sarcasm; Irony

Annotation: Iago mocks the idea of Desdemona’s purity and love, reducing it to mundane physicality.

Question 2

2. “With as little a web as this will I ensnare as great a fly as Cassio.” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 1)

Answer 2

Device: Metaphor

(web/fly)Annotation: Iago boasts of his manipulative power, portraying himself as a cunning predator.

Question 3

3. “O, you are well tuned now! But I’ll set down the pegs that make this music.” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 1)

Answer 3

Device: Musical metaphor; Foreshadowing

Annotation: Iago likens Othello and Desdemona’s love to music, which he plans to disrupt.

Question 4

4. “Reputation is an idle and most false imposition; oft got without merit and lost without deserving.” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 3)

Answer 4

Device: Aphorism; Irony

Annotation: Iago dismisses reputation to manipulate Cassio, though he later obsesses over his own.

Question 5

5. “I have lost the immortal part of myself, and what remains is bestial.” – Cassio (Act 2, Scene 3)

Answer 5

Device: Metaphor; Contrast

Annotation: Cassio equates honor with his identity, showing the value placed on reputation.

Question 6

6.”And what’s he then that says I play the villain?” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 3)

Answer 6

Device: Rhetorical question; Dramatic irony

Annotation: Iago pretends to question his own morality, though the audience knows he is the villain.

Question 7

7.”I’ll pour this pestilence into his ear.” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 3)

Answer 7

Device: Metaphor

Annotation: Iago uses imagery of poison to describe how he will manipulate Othello.

Question 8

8. “So will I turn her virtue into pitch.” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 3)

Answer 8

Device: Antithesis; Metaphor

Annotation: Iago aims to corrupt Desdemona’s goodness, showing his moral inversion.

Question 9

9. “Divinity of hell! When devils will the blackest sins put on… they do suggest at first with heavenly shows.” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 3)

Answer 9

Device: Juxtaposition; Oxymoron

Annotation: Iago contrasts appearances with reality, revealing the deceptive nature of evil.

Question 10

10.”If I can fasten but one cup upon him… he’ll be as full of quarrel and offense as my young mistress’ dog.” – Iago (Act 2, Scene 2)

Answer 10

Device: Simile; Foreshadowing

Annotation: Iago plans to get Cassio drunk to provoke a fight, advancing his plot against him.