THE CHARACTERS: HOW They Are Presented Initially and WHY

OTHELLO BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

THE CHARACTERS: HOW they are presented initially and WHY.

OTHELLO: A noble Moor in the service of Venice. He was initially a mercenary, climbing the ranks in the army because of his brilliance on the battlefield. He is calm and totally in control of his emotions and situation. He is also brave. He is derived from Moorish nobility and is able to demand and command respect. He has gained the respect of the Venetian senate despite the fact that he is a Moor. Note that he is also a devout Christian.

IAGO: (ANTAGONIST / VILLAIN) Othello’s ancient and standard bearer : the man who carried the flag on the battlefield. Because the flag identified the location of the army in battle, it was crucial to allowing the soldiers to find their position. The ensign/ancient had to be extremely courageous and loyal, maintaining his position in the face of death. Iago resents his rank, which does not require intellectual skills like that of Cassio (trained in battle strategy). Iago is third in command to Othello, behind Cassio. He is immediately churlish and bitter and wants revenge without any real reason or plan. He displays no loyalty towards his General (Othello) ; he is formidable, deceitful, manipulative, brutal, selfish and Machiavellian ( Describes a person's tendency to be unemotional, and therefore able to detach him or herself from conventional morality and hence to deceive and manipulate others.)

N.B. Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli was an Italian historian, politician, diplomat, philosopher, humanist and writer based in Florence during the Renaissance

DESDEMONA: Othello’s wife; daughter to Brabantio a Venetian senator. She is immediately presented as STRONG and LOVING. She is a wealthy, virtuous, principled and highly respected heiress. She is prepared to defy society and her father to stay with her ‘unsuitable’ husband.

BRABANTIO: Senator of Venice. Highly esteemed and has powerful ‘connections’ in Venetian society. Confused and acts hastily – he is very concerned about his daughter’s (only child) elopement to Othello. Extremely racist and derogatory towards Othello.

EMILIA: Iago’s wife and Desdemona’s attendant. She appears confident and feisty, witty and pragmatic (sensible). She lacks the social graces of Desdemona but is also intelligent. She is desperate to gain her husband’s approval and steals Desdemona’s handkerchief to appease him.’

CASSIO: Othello’s lieutenant. He is respectful, charming and sociable; he comes from Florence a city know for its high culture; he is also educated (an ‘arithmetician’) and has fine manners. He is very popular with both genders and is seen as a ladies’ man.

RODERIGO: Venetian gentleman. He owns land and is quite affluent (wealthy). Desperately in love with Desdemona, Iago exploits this knowledge in order to extract money from him by promising that he will ensure that Desdemona will look favourably on Roderigo. Very naïve, gullible and foolish. Gives Iago jewels to pass on to Desdemona in the hope of wooing her. Iago pockets these for his own gains.

MONTANO: Othello’s predecessor in the Cyprus Government. He does not mind Othello taking over his post as governor: he has great faith in Othello’s leadership ability. He also greatly admires Othello for his calm demeanour and skill as a soldier.

IMPORTANT SCENES

TEMPTATION SCENE HANDKERCHIEF SCENE

BROTHEL SCENE DEATH SCENE

IMPORTANT CONCEPTS TO UNDERSTAND:

The difference between betrayal and deception is that betrayal is an act of dishonesty or breaking of trust;

deception is the act of misleading someone or to make someone believe something which is actually false or not fully true.

Note: Othello is a tragic hero. It refers to someone of high position; in this time period, that meant royalty. He is 'universal,' meaning that everyone everywhere can relate to the kinds of problems or sufferings or emotions that the hero experiences. He has a 'tragic flaw' - this could be a personality trait (like greed, lust, ambition, jealousy, etc.) OR an error in judgement (a bad decision). This 'tragic flaw' leads to his downfall - usually ruins his career, reputation, power, etc. He is enlightened at the end of the story, meaning he realizes where he went wrong, he is humble, and he accepts the consequences.

THEMES:

Love

In Othello, love is a force that overcomes large obstacles and is tripped up by small ones. It provides Othello with intensity but not direction and gives Desdemona access to his heart but not his mind.

Iago often falsely professes love in friendship for Roderigo and Cassio and betrays them both. For Iago, love is leverage. Desdemona's love in friendship for Cassio is real but is misinterpreted by the jealous Othello as adulterous love.

Appearance and Reality OR Deception

Iago is deceptive by nature and he puts on an ‘honest’ face with the intention to deceive characters into trusting him implicitly and then he uses this information to betray them.

Jealousy

Jealousy is what appears to destroy Othello. Iago has noticed Othello's tendency to insecurity and overreaction. Jealousy contaminates Othello’s mind completely. The idea that Desdemona has betrayed him with Cassio, unhinges Othello whose very existence seems to be linked to his love for his wife. His jealousy eclipses Othello's reason, common sense and respect for justice.

Prejudice

Iago's scheme would not have worked without the underlying atmosphere of racial prejudice in Venetian society, a prejudice of which both Desdemona and Othello are very aware. Brabantio, Iago and Roderigo all display racist attitudes to Othello.

Betrayal

Othello is deceived and betrayed by Iago who lies to him about Desdemona’s affair with Iago. Brabantio is betrayed by his daughter who elopes with the Moor; Othello betrays Desdemona by listening to and allowing Iago to manipulate him; Roderigo is betrayed by Iago who promises him that he will get Desdemona to love / marry Roderigo if the latter pays him for this service. Iago betrays Cassio by making him drunk and instructing Roderigo to start a fight with him, knowing that the ensuing melee will infuriate Othello and lead to Cassio’s demotion; Emilia betrays Desdemona by giving the handkerchief to her ‘wayward husband’ – which ends up being the ‘ocular proof’ Othello needs to prove his wife’s infidelity; Emilia betrays her husband when she realises his role in the scheme; Iago betrays Emilia by killing her in the end – stabbing her from behind.
ACT 1

SCENE 1
Iago persuades Roderigo to wake Brabantio and tell him Othello has eloped with his daughter and is now virtually raping his daughter!
‘…an old black ram / Is tupping your white ewe…(Act 1, Sc.1). ‘the devil will make a grandsire of you.’
Iago shows his true colours IMMEDIATELY! / Iago uses others (Roderigo), makes lewd (vulgar) suggestions but keeps his distance!
Shows his resentment
“Follow him to serve my turn upon him”
“In following him I follow but myself’
“I am not what I am”
“I must show out a flag and sign of love”
Brabantio is frantic – looks for Othello at the same as the duke’s men. Othello has been summoned to the senate, to lead a fleet to defend Cyprus against the Turks (Ottoman threat). / Othello is very calm; it is not his first choice; refuses to fight Brabantio.
SCENE 2
Brabantio accuses Othello of Witchcraft: a serious allegation! He cannot believe that his daughter would fall in love with Othello out of her own free will. / ‘For nature so preposterously to err/ Being not deficient, blind or lame,/ Sans witchcraft could not.’
SCENE 3
Othello defends himself eloquently and with much dignity against this lethal accusation.
He impresses the senate with his sincerity and calm demeanour. / He was welcomed into Brabantio’s home; spent time with the family engaging them with tales of his life’s adventures.
His stories impressed Desdemona.
‘She loved me for the dangers that had passed and I loved her that she did pity them.’
Desdemona defends her choice publically: very unusual for a woman of her time. / Proclaims her duty and loyalty towards her husband. She is confident and brave. She defies societal conventions by marrying a black man, albeit a general.
Brabantio is bitter and devastated. He also realises that the senate has been partial to Othello because of his skill on the battlefield.
Note: this is the last time that father and daughter will see each other. / Warns Othello of her duplicity towards her father.
‘Look to her Moor if thou hast eyes to see
She has deceived her father and may thee’
Othello will remember these words later in the play!
Desdemona requests to accompany her husband to Cyprus.
Iago persuades Roderigo to go too. / ‘Put but money in thy purse.’ (said 8 times)
Iago’s intentions become clear but his motives remain cloudy. / ‘Twixt my sheets he’s done me office’
(Vague rumour of Othello and Emilia having an affair: allegation never referred to again in play.
Iago uses Othello’s virtues against him.
Shows that he knows Othello very well. / ‘He holds me will – the better shall my purpose work on him.’
‘Hell and night must bring this monstrous birth to the world’s light’(Truly evil)
Iago is BRILLIANT but EVIL, MALICIOUS, PREMEDITATED, SADISTIC and PERVERTED. Will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. Enjoys watching others’ pain and agony; enjoys destroying unwitting souls. Like a chess master, Othello, Roderigo, Cassio, et al are merely his PAWNS.
They do not know what he plans BUT WE KNOW! (Dramatic irony)

ACT 2: Note the STORM at beginning of the play foreshadows ‘stormy’ events which occur later in this act and in the play viz. Othello waging war against himself, Cassio and Desdemona. The storm also heralds the unleashing of Iago’s evil plans.

N.B. The setting moves from sophisticated Venice to barbaric and chaotic Cyprus.

SCENE 1: Cassio arrives first on the island; he has been separated from Othello and is concerned about him. / Very loyal and respectful;
Will be DEVASTATED when demoted later.
Desdemona, Emilia, Roderigo and ‘honest’ Iago arrive.
Cassio is extremely attentive, polite and courteous towards Desdemona and kisses her hand in greeting. / Iago is ironically placed in charge of Desdemona’s safety.
Iago sees this minor act as an opportunity to ‘give birth’ to his ‘monstrous’ plan viz. If he can arouse Othello’s jealousy, he can take revenge on both Othello and Cassio.
Finally Othello arrives / Makes a GRAND entrance. Receives a hero’s welcome; saviour to restore peace and order on island.
WAR OVER: Cassio placed in charge of island while inhabitants rejoice. / ‘Iago is most honest,’ says Othello.
Othello and Desdemona retire: not to be disturbed. They are after all, on honeymoon! / “If it were now to die, / Twere now to be most happy, for I fear / My soul hath her content so absolute.” Foreshadows his torment.
Words ring very true: becomes tortured soul when he thinks Desdemona is unfaithful.
SCENE 3: Iago makes Cassio drunk: knows imbibing alcohol transforms him into an aggressive, violent, abusive drunkard.
Iago suggests to Montano that Cassio is an alcoholic.
Roderigo provokes Cassio to start a fight.
Montano intervenes; Cassio attacks him.
Iago shouts loudly to rouse Othello and create more chaos.
Pretends he does not know cause of the incident. (Dramatic Irony)
Othello admires Iago for ‘defending’ Cassio. / ‘I have very poor and
unhappy brains for drinking’
“I do know Cassio well and would do / Much to cure him of this evil.”
“Thy honesty and love doth mince this matter making It light to Cassio” believes Othello.
Othello is disgusted and demotes Cassio.
Cassio is devastated. / “Reputation, reputation, reputation- O I have lost
My reputation, I ha’ lost the immortal part of myself, / and what remains is bestial”
Iago has just the SOLUTION: Ask Desdemona to plead Cassio’s case with Othello
Cassio thanks Iago for his ‘advice’. / ‘..the general’s wife is now the general..’
“Good night honest Iago,” Cassio naively says.
Iago becomes MEANER.
He has no compunctions about destroying Desdemona by using her virtues to serve his knavish purposes viz. her generosity and loyalty.
He will tell Othello that Desdemona is appealing Cassio’s suit because they are having an affair. / “Divinity of Hell, when devils will their blackest sins put on They do suggest at first with heavenly shows.”
“I will turn her virtue into pitch”
“I will pour pestilence into his ear.”
“She repeals him for her body’s lust.”
“...by how much she strives to do him good/ she shall undo her credit with the Moor.”
Iago will ask Emilia to set up a meeting with Desdemona and organise an occasion for Othello to witness their assignation. / “Myself a while to draw the Moor apart, /Bring him jump when he may Cassio find / Soliciting his wife.”

ACT 3

SCENE 3
Cassio is brought before Desdemona and she promises to do everything in her power to plead his case. Emilia is present at the meeting.
Desdemona encourages Cassio to speak to Othello; he is too embarrassed and slinks away. / “I’ll intermingle everything he does with Cassio’s suit.’
Iago keeps characters apart.
“I’ll at ease / Unfit for mine own purpose”
A grave mistake: it seems as if he is hiding a secret affair.
Iago sees Cassio leaving Desdemona’s rooms; suggests Cassio’s behaviour is suspicious. / “ha! I like not that!” Perfect innuendo.
“I cannot think why he would steal away so guilty-like.” Note Iago’s word choice.