Hi guys,
As a class you need to use your shared writing skills to create a three paragraph response to this question about Othello:
How is love presented as a changing element in the play you have studied?
Enjoy - get competitive!
Miss C
Othello drives the most change in love through his anger and vulnerable emotion towards his "fair lady" Desdemona, despite it being a traditional concept that love conquers all ironically, in this play love is the cause of Othello's hamartia. It could be said that I ago causes this anguish in this play as his own change from love to hate is significant in the consequence of his actions.Alongside this, love could be interpreted as a disguise for a more practical advancement in rank, particularly for Desdemona as a woman, and I ago as a soldier. This would fit with Greek interpretations of tragedy where death is a result of romantic jealousy and power - therefore death is inevitable and love has to change on the play'store behalf.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, Desdemona and Othello's love is very passionate and necessary for each others existence at the beginning of the play play, as Othello refers to Desdemona as "O, my fair warrior!" - opposing Shakesperean women alike the "O, then, dear saint" Julliet. This metaphorical language is significant, as she isn't a warrior but Shakespeare portrays as a strong character to Othello's and how he thinks highly of her. This is unusual to the time period it was set in as women were seen as inferior however, Desdemona is respected by her husband and others creating controversy throughout the play. Alternatively, Othello's fatal flaw is derived from his inexplicable blinded love for Desdemona as Othello believes "if I were now to die, twere now to be most happy."
However you the end of the play we say a dramatic transition in Othello's emotions of unspeakable "content," driving him to become his own "greeney'd monster." Shakespeare use of love plots a story for tragedy rather than one of romantic happiness significantly portraying the irony of the play. This effective approach to the play enhances voyeuristic views of the audience, in attempt to oppose the typical fairytale ending. In contrast, Shakespeare may have emphasised this tragedy for effect - similarly in the play Macbeth, where death is an overriding theme - therfore making the play more appealing to an audience of the 16th century. Love is ultimately the cause of death, therefore concluding that Othello articulates the most change in love throughout the play - "no way but this, killing myself, to die upon a kiss."
Year 12: Lovely response. However please PROOF READ your work, and apostrophes! Excellent use of the AOs and starting to embed quotations nicely well done. You could include more one word embedded quotations and make context again a little more specific, BUT this is awesome, and hopefully the shared writing experience has enabled you to understand differences between GCSE and A Level.
ReplyDeleteI'll bring in some sweets/biscuits.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteMy phone number was playing up as I copied it out as they wrote it and the predictive text must have changed some words.
DeleteLove is presented as a consistently changing element throughout the play Othello. As Desdemona is reduced in Othello’s eyes from a “fair lady” to a “strumpet” in the last scenes of the play, the audience realises that Othello’s hamartia is in fact the driving force of the change in his attitude. Shakespeare portrays this using Othello to be “plagued” with naïveté, being easily manipulated by “honest” Iago’s intention of destruction to corrupt Othello using his weaknesses.
ReplyDeleteOthello’s hamartia is ultimately his naiveté. A plethora of factors contribute to his downfall. Firstly it can be examined that due to Othello being “haply black” his migration and misunderstanding of the Venetian culture makes him naïve. There is emphasis that he differs from the others for he is “rude in speech.” This is controversial as many characters Shakespeare creates speak softly rather than harshly. For example, Shakespeare uses delicate imagery within Desdemona’s speech for her “soul and fortunes [did consecrate.]” The imagery of “consecrate” emphasises the biblical diction and how angelic Desdemona is not only as a person but in presenting herself too. Othello however, uses metaphors of “poverty to the very lips” when kissing Desdemona. “Poverty” is dark imagery and shows the divide in cultures between him and the Venetian citizens, exemplifying his naïveté on Venetian culture.
On the other hand, Othello’s hamartia could also be seen to be Desdemona’s love, this is Iago’s target as Othello evidently trusts Desdemona; he “loves [her] and when [he loves her] not chaos [has] come again.” This shows how engulfed he is in Desdemona and the love he bares to her, which is later corrupted from Iago’s manipulation later in the play, which is the driving force of the plot.
Conversely, Queer Theorists argue that Iago manipulates and damages Othello’s marriage to such an extent because he harbours jealousy towards Desdemona’s position as his wife and yearns for Othello’s undivided attention and love. Iago is maddened by his oppressed sexual desires, and displaces it upon the marriage of his general and his wife. Iago only ever seems to use romantic language when addressing Othello, being “[Othello’s] own forever,” in which this mirrors marriage vowels, “forever” being a very intimate promise. Iago mistreats his wife - a sign that he is maddened by his oppressed sexual desires, and displaces it upon Othello’s marriage and his wife Emilia, addressing her as a “wench.” Iago begs Emilia for Othello’s handkerchief that he gave as a “gift” to Desdemona, which again is a vulnerable and personal treasure to Othello, Emilia’s role is “nothing but to please his fantasy” of winning the heart of Othello. Psychoanalytically, Shakespeare has repressed bisexuality in his texts as seen in poems like Sonnet 118, and undoubtedly, this would be made discrete to the Elizabethan audience; in which homosexuality was viewed as an abnormality, so when Iago “[lays] with Cassio” Shakespeare is trying to passively expand on his own repressed homosexual desires.