Thought Questions from OTHELLO
Name ______Per ______
- What makes Othello a tragic figure? Is his tragedy self-inflicted or is it beyond his control? What is his tragic flaw? Recognition?
- Compare Othello’s speeches from the beginning, middle, and end of the play (Acts I, III, and V). Explain the significance of their differences in style and tone.
- Iago is a resourceful and clever character who knows how to manipulate people. Explain how he manipulates Roderigo, Cassio, and Othello.
- What reason does Iago give for seeking Othello’s destruction? Does this seem an adequate or a credible motive?
- How does Emilia’s role help us to better understand Iago? In what ways is she a foilto Desdemona? What other characters serve to balance each other?
- Of what significance is Bianca’s role in the play? Brabantio’s?
- Othello has a duel setting – Venice and Cyprus. With what values and ideas is each place associated, and how are these related to the actions and themes of the play?
- What ideas about love are expressed by Othello and Desdemona? What images of the sexual bond emerge in the speech and actions of Roderigo, Iago, and Emilia?
- How does Shakespeare use Desdemona’s handkerchief dramatically and symbolically? In which scenes is it most important? With what is it associated?
- Examine the scene in which Othello kills Desdemona (Act V, Scene II). Read his speech beginning, “it is the cause” (lines 1-22). Explain how Othello sees himself at this point, and describe his state of mind.
- Examine the scene in which Othello secretly watches Cassio talking to Bianca (Act IV, Scene I).
- Explain how Iago controls Othello’s perception, leading him to interpret what he sees. In what other scenes does Iago direct other characters to misinterpret one another’s actions and speech?
- Any staging of Othello requires careful attention to lighting. Single out two scenes in which lighting is especially important, and explain how you would stage them.
- Look carefully at the beginning and ending of any two acts. Consider how Shakespeare guides the audience’s responses at these points. Consider also the effectiveness of each beginning and ending in relation to the development of the plot.
- Locate two scenes in which character’s speeches shift between prose and verse. Explain the significance of these shifts.
- What judgment does Shakespeare’s Othello make about jealousy? About the power of evil over goodness?
- How effectively do you think Shakespeare dramatizes Iago’s power over others? Explain with textual support.
Consider/refutein class discussion each of the following options listed undereach of the statements.
- Othello is justified in believing Iago and killing Desdemona because…
- Iago deceives everyone
- Iago shows definite evidence with the handkerchief
- He felt he was atoning for Desdemona’s dishonor (he expresses sorrow, not anger; reasons, not rantings)
- Renaissance men had power of life and death over their wives
- He truly loves her- -“not wisely but too well”
Comments:
- Desdemona’s handkerchief …
- is given by Desdemona to Othello at his demand
- is given by Iago to Emilia
- is given by Bianca to Cassio
- is given into the hands of the six most central characters
- is given as a symbol of how sexual reputation passed from person to person
Comments:
- Among women in Othello…
- Desdemona is too innocent
- Bianca is too crass
- Emilia is just right: the balanced model of what women ought to be
- Emilia is just right, as is evident in her excellent marriage
- Every woman is too easily ruled by men
Comments: