Othello

Question 1

Othello as a mediator at the start of the play

Answer 1

• he is initially portrayed as a prudent, level-headed individual who seeks to resolve conflict rather than cause it - evident in Act 1, seen 2, where he says: ‘keep your bright swords, for the dew will rust them;’ - he is portrayed as someone who doesn’t view violence as a solution, and brabantio ails to provoke his temper
• when he goes to the senate to convince them that he should be allowed to marry Desdemona, eh uses the strength of his voice to prove himself worthy, justifying their relationship
• therefore it is initially suggested that he is immune to the type of toxic masculinity that defines so many heroes in Jacobean literature and Venetian military culture

Question 2

Othello as a leader at the start of the play

Answer 2

• Othello is an ambassador to the moors and a well-respected military general in the Venetian army
• shakespeare shows that he takes his role seriously, putting his obligations to others often before his own needs
• perhaps the fact that he prioritises his military duties over his domestic ones is a catalyst for his downfall

Question 3

Othello as a loving husband

Answer 3

• Shakespeare portrays Othello’s devotion to Desdemona, conveying the mutual respect that the couple share.
• He breaks concession by allowing Desdmeona to fight her own case in a time when women had no authority in the public sphere
• ‘I love the gently desdemona’
• ‘she loved me for the dangers I had passed/and I loved her that she id pity them’; - Shakespeare therefore illustrates the strength he draws from her support
• love is also shown to brighten Othello’s spirit: ‘my soul’s joy/ if after every tempest come such calm/may the winds blow till they have weakened death’ - he is optimistic, love is seen as powerful.

Question 4

what is Othello’s hubris

Answer 4

he is overconfident, believing himself immune to the feelings that would compromise rational thought

Question 5

How is Othello presented as a tortured soul by the end of the play

Answer 5

• His resolve crumbles, ad he gives into paranoia and doubt
• ‘thou has set me on the rack’ - a metaphor, connoting medieval methods of torture, reflecting Iago’s growing power over Othello and the incessant doubts plaguing him
• ‘farewell the tranquil mind! Farewell content’ - Othello’s greatest nemesis is his own mind
• His paranoia leads him to rely too heavily on ‘ocular proof’ - this obsession with evidence is a precursor to the ordeal with the handkerchief

Question 6

Othello as a bloodthirsty warrior

Answer 6

• he regresses to a warmongering soldier,r reacting to conflict with violence and fury. He loses his military authority, becoming instead a foot soldier to Iago
• ‘pride, pomp and circumstance of glorious war’ - glorified military violence
• ‘arise, black vengeance from thy hollow hell’ - It serves almost as a war cry
• he now views love as a weakness

Question 7

Describe Othello and justice - Othello as the judge , jury and executioner

Answer 7

• paranoia is shown to lead to an insidious sense of self reliance, making him immune to voice or reason, fighting his own personal war
• he executes a death warrant for Cassio and Desdemona: ‘to confess and be hanged for his labour. first to be hanged, and then to confess’ - this paradoxical statement reflects his broken sense offend, having lost an awareness of justice - clearly he craves the death of his enemies over truth
  ‘the justice of it pleases’ - delusion, he now views himself as capable of making life and death decisions

Question 8

Othello as a cuckhold

Answer 8

• he feels that his identity is reduced to cuckholdr upon Desdemona’s betrayal, stripping him of his manhood, qualities and triumphs - he seeks revenge, as seen in his speech full of ‘death and damnation’
• ‘I’ll tear her all to pieces… I will chop her into messes. cuckhold me?’ - he craves not the truth, but rather the validation and reinstating of his masculinity
• ‘she must die, else she’ll betray more men’ - her death is therefore symbolic for him of the victory of men over cuckholdry and deceitful female sexuality

Question 9

Othello’s relationship with Desdemona

Answer 9

• their relationship is initially strong
• unknown territory of Cyrprus adds strain to their marriage - one of the key conflicts in the opening acts is their attempt to consummate their marriage - repeatedly they are denied time alone together, showing the fact that the general objection to their relationship still effects then. The chaos that erupts, andcassio’s subsequent demotion adds more tension as their contrasting perspectives on duty and war become evident
• in the downfall of their relationship, Shakespeare highlights the malignancy of self-doubt and insecurity, particularly a man’s insecurity n his own masculinity
• Othello’s love for Desdemona is usurped by paranoia, and his wife becomes a source of fury and humiliatoon
• he eventually believes that it it his duty to murder her in order to save others from the fate of a cuckhold, viewing her death as a sacrifice for the benefit of all men, choosing male solidarity over romantic love.

Question 10

Relationship with Iago

Answer 10

• Othello views Iago as a close advisor and a friend
• ironically, he sees him as ‘honest iago’ - however immediately undermined by Iago’s secret conversation with Rodrigo in which he confesses to resenting Othello for passing him over for the promotion to lieutenant - therefore, their relationship is fundamentally imbalanced - Othello’s regard for Iago is genuine whereas Iago’s loyalty to Othello is merely a facade
• Othello appears unaware of the offence he has caused
• Iago insinuates that Othello’s decision was made based on rank and reputation over skill - this accusation suggests that the uneven distribution of power within society is another barrier to male friendship
• Othello and Iago’s friendship is ill-fated because men must compete with one another for authority ]0 iago successfully bends Othello to his will - filling his mind with hatred, lies and fury
• he udermines his relationship with others. His ability ro convince Othello of Desdemona’s infidelity and his own honesty conveys the power of male homosicalism and solidarity, Iago’s word is worth more than Desdemona;s love
• their relationship could perhaps even be seen as an allegory for colonialism - iago the white man destroys Othello’s identity, replacing it with his own

Question 11

describe Othello’s relationship with brabantio

Answer 11

• they used to be close: ‘her father loved me, oft invited me’ - but upon discovering Othello’s marriage to his daughter, brabantio is enraged - viewing their union as unnatural, convinced Othello stop ehis daughter from him.
• this highlights how the fight for ownership of women was a prominent barrier to male friendship