appearance and reality Flashcards
motif of blindness
desdemona only person at the beginning who seems to be blind to othellos otherness/ how doomed their marriage always is
the play relies on people not seeing everything due to its deceptive nature
brabantio about desdemona to othello
“look to her moor… eyes to see”
warning othello that desdemona has decieved one man and has the ability to do it again; however ironic bc “eyes to see” does not always mean gaining understanding or truth and iago exploits this
iago in front of rodrigo (following an evil soliloquy)
“what wound did ever heal but by degrees”
juxtaposition of private and public iago, his previous soliloquy of disease, decay and destruction versus the healing discussions in front of rodrigo- putting up a front
iago to othello
“men should be what they seem;”
massively ironic + fake ethos and connotations with janus
emphasis on danger of iago, doing not what he should but what he wants, completely undetected
iago to othello
“by janus”
janus is a roman god with two faces
reflects iagos dedication to his deception, and early warning of his devotion to his image vs his desires and his own deification of himself and his immorality/disconnect with christianity
othello before killing himself
“it was a sword of spain”
the sword that eventually kills him spanish, as is iagos name
metaphor for iagos role in the destruction of othello
but the suicide aspect doesnt diminish othellos own role, iago may be the sword, but othello pushes it in
(othellos weakness and prejudices that cause desdemonas death triggered by iagos plan and manipulation)
othello a bit before he dies
“naked as i am”
the tragic downfall from military to criminal, wanted man
reflecting the honour and repsect he was given, and the futility of it all- underneath he is still just a man, capable of evil and vulnerable to manipulation
othello to desdemona
“cold, cold, my girl?”
othello interrogation of desdemona
“i took you for that cunning whore of venice
that married with othello
3rd person, othello the character becoming disconnected with his action
tragic loss of identity
othello becoming an agent of misogyny, relying on the stereotypes of women (venician in and in general)
desdemona to iago after her interrogation
“good friend, go to him”
ironic as she doesnt know that iago will only worsen the situation
reminder of iago as an ‘invisible enemy’ - impossible to fight against
“your son in law is far more fair than black”
the avoidability of these opressions, people can ignore divisions when it benefits them,
but shakespeare’s point is that divisions costs everyone all the time
othellos “speak of me as i am” vs. iagos “i am not what i am”
humans deserve compassion because they make mistakes
being humane is better than being societally ‘perfect’ / ‘submissive’?
following societal rules of morality, reputation, revenge, etc, just causes destruction
