Ruled by Passion - Othello as Tragic Hero Othello as Tragic Hero From Hamlet, an ideal prince, and other essays in Shakesperean interpretation: Hamlet; Merchant of Venice; Othello; King Lear by Alexander W. Crawford. Boston R.G. Badger, 1916. In the matter of Othello and Iago, it cannot fairly be maintained that Iago was the sole cause of the calamities that befell Othello. It is this very conception of the consuming and destructive power of passion that marks the superiority of Shakespeare's conceptions over that of his contemporaries. Beginning, then, with this passion, it is the art of Shakespeare to place his characters under those conditions that will show the true nature of their passion and develop it to its fullness and to its fated end. It was under the sway of this conception that Shakespeare brought Othello into his fatal conflict with Iago, for this drew from him all the hidden passion of his nature. This, however, it is impossible to admit. FOOTNOTE 1: Cf. FOOTNOTE 2: Of. Related Articles Othello as Tragic Hero
Othello No Fear Shakespeare puts Shakespeare's language side-by-side with a facing-page translation into modern English—the kind of English people actually speak today. Table of Contents Characters Act 1 Act 1, Scene 1 Act 1, Scene 2 Act 1, Scene 3 Act 2 Act 2, Scene 1 Act 2, Scene 2 Act 2, Scene 3 Act 3 Act 3, Scene 1 Act 3, Scene 2 Act 3, Scene 3 Act 3, Scene 4 Act 4 Act 4, Scene 1 Act 4, Scene 2 Act 4, Scene 3 Act 5 Act 5, Scene 1 Act 5, Scene 2 How to Cite No Fear Othello Why is Othello black? Understanding why Shakespeare made his hero a Moor. Photo by Afro American Newspapers/Gado/Getty Images Is Othello black? With the news that David Oyelowo will play Othello opposite Daniel Craig’s Iago and that the Metropolitan Opera is finally discontinuing the practice of blackface in productions of Otello, we may see a revival of this oft-asked question. What people mean when they ask if Othello is black is: What did Shakespeare mean when he called Othello black? Would we say Othello is black today? It’s an understandable question. Photo courtesy Library of Congress While the question is logical to me, as a reader, a director, and a lover of Shakespeare, it’s not the most interesting one. A much more interesting question, really, is: Why is Othello black? Would you believe the answer to all of this might involve pirates? Before we hoist the Jolly Roger, we should consider more practical explanations for Shakespeare’s choice. Unfortunately for Shakespeare, in between Abd Anoun’s visit and Othello’s premiere, Queen Elizabeth died.
Othello Synopsis Characters | Download PDF | Return to Synopses Othello, a Moorish general of Venice, has promoted Cassio as his lieutenant; Iago, who was hoping for the promotion himself, makes plots against both Cassio and Othello to exact revenge. Othello has secretly married Desdemona, the beautiful daughter of Venetian senator Brabantio, and Iago determines to use Desdemona as the means of his revenge. When Othello is posted to Cyprus by the Duke of Venice, Iago escorts Desdemona there to meet him, taking along his own wife, Emilia. This accomplished, Iago goes straightaway to Othello so that he can lead him to where Desdemona and Cassio are talking. His smoldering rage now beginning to bubble over, Othello tells Iago to kill Cassio and then angrily confronts Desdemona. Dramatis Personae:
The complete text of Othello: Scenes from Shakespeare's Othello Othello Stage History Come on, come on; you are pictures out of doors, Bells in your parlors, wild-cats in your kitchens, Saints m your injuries, devils being offended, Players in your housewifery, and housewives' in your beds. Othello (2.1), Iago, on women One performance of Othello, produced in 1660, starred an actress by the name of Margaret Hughes in the role of Desdemona.
Tragedy and Metatheatre: Essays on Dramatic Form Tragedy and Metatheatre: Essays On Dramatic Form. By Lionel Abel. New York: Holmes & Meier, 2003; pp. vi + 250. $40.00 cloth, $18.00 paper. The term "metatheatre" now so casually bandied about, and sometimes with little acknowledgement of its origins, was first coined by Lionel Abel in 1963. It behooves me, therefore, to briefly consider Abel's legacy in light of current scholarship, reflecting back across the intervening four decades. The primary critical attraction of this collection lies in moments scattered amongst the main tragedy-versus-metatheatre argument.
Othello Navigator Othello Navigator Basic Navigation: Scene Index: Links to scenes, with a brief summary of each scene. Each line of the text is numbered. Search: Search the text of Othello for any word or words. More Navigation: Notable Quotes: Famous quotes in Othello explained. Scene Summaries: Links to detailed scene summaries. Major Characters: Annotated links to passages that illustrate aspects of the characters of Othello, Desdemona, and Iago. Minor Characters: Annotated links to all appearances of a character and all mentions of that character by other characters. Themes and Motifs: Annotated links to passages particularly relevant to significant themes and motifs. Also: —Cinthio's Tale: The Source of Shakespeare's Othello. —A Note on "The Motive-Hunting of Motiveless Malignity": Coleridge's famous comment explained. How to Cite this Site | Our e-mail address. AddThis Sharing Buttons
Ian Johnston, "Dramatic Structure: Comedy and Tragedy" [The following has been excerpted from Ian Johnston's introductory lecture to his English 366: Studies in Shakespeare course at Malaspina University College in British Columbia; it is the best introductory discussion I have ever read on the subject of dramatic comedy and tragedy, and it is especially useful as an introduction to the major themes of King Lear. The full version of this lecture can be accessed here.] Dramatic Structure: Comedy and Tragedy Shakespeare's plays are all about one great general theme: disorder. This may sound like a profound statement, but, as we shall see in a moment, it applies equally well to almost all drama. All dramatic stories always involve conflict. Then, something unusual and often unexpected happens to upset that normality. The terms comedy and tragedy commonly refer to the ways in which dramatic conflicts are resolved. The ending of a tragedy is quite different. Comedy and Tragedy as Visions of Experience Why are these people worthy of our attention?
About the play | Othello Othello the Moor, a general employed by the Venetian state, has secretly married Desdemona, a daughter of the senator Brabantio. Daughter disowned Iago, a lower-ranking officer, nursing resentment against Othello, enlists the help of Rodorigo, a disappointed suitor of Desdemona. They wake Brabantio in the middle of the night with the news of his daughter's elopement. Suspicion grows Once in Cyprus, Iago plants the suspicion in Othello's mind that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him with Cassio. The plot unravels Iago acquires a treasured handkerchief that belonged to Desdemona and uses it as 'proof' of the affair.
Shakespeare's Othello - Tragedy of Passion Lecture on Othello - Play Construction and the Suffering and Murder of Desdemona From Shakespearean Tragedy by A. C. Bradley. There is practically no doubt that Othello was the tragedy written next after Hamlet. But in point of substance, and, in certain respects, in point of style, the unlikeness of Othello to Hamlet is much greater than the likeness, and the later play belongs decidedly to one group with its successors. What is the peculiarity of Othello? I will not dwell now on aspects of the play which modify this impression, and I reserve for later discussion one of its principal sources, the character of Iago. (1) One of these has been already mentioned in our discussion of Shakespeare's technique. (3) The mere mention of these scenes will remind us painfully of a third cause; and perhaps it is the most potent of all. (5) One result of the prominence of the element of intrigue is that Othello is less unlike a story of private life than any other of the great tragedies.