Cuckold references context?
- Traces to Medieval Europe/ existed in Shakespeare time.
- Cuckold: husband unaware of his wide cheating.
- Wife’s chastisity part of men’s honour –> embarassing for men.
- Man would wear “cuckold horns” if wife cheated.
Why does Cassio wish to speak to D in Act 3 Scene 1?
- Wants D to put a good word in with Othello.
Cassio = Florentine.
Context of this place?
- Place: Florence, Italy (at time play published.)
- Associated with Renaissance, refinement.
- Known for courtly manners.
Iago revealing his plans to audience in plain sight.
- “draw the Moor out of the way” pg.58.
Desdeomona vs Emiliar juxtaposition sc.3.
**1.) Silent obedience vs independent! **
- D: “My Lord” –> worships/ respects/ obedience.
- E: “my husband” –> not same respect/ foreshadows calling out hubby at end of play.
2.) Emilia intelligence/ D naiievety.
Motif
D’s loyalty.
- “rather lose my purse full of crusadoes” than handkerchief.
D foreshadowing own death?
Quote.
- “solicitor shall rather die than give thy cause away.” (pg. 61)
Theme of Iago questioning throughout. Examples? Significance?
- Example: pg. 61 “was that not Cassio parted from my wife?”
- “did Cassio when you woo’d my lady know of your love?” pg.63
- Allows characters to come to their own conclusions/ linguistic control.
Iago planting seeds.
- “that he would steal away so guilty-like.” pg.61 ~ ref. Cassio.
- Exits/ enters scenes in stealth manner.
D naiivety.
- “I have no judgement in an honest face.”
- “why then tommorrow night, or Tuesday morn or Tuesday noon….”
- “are you not well?”
- “why do you speak so rash?”
Appearance vs reality theme.
- Iago’s continued deciet –> double-nature.
- “I am your own forever” (Iago) pg. 78.
- “Men should be what they seem” ~ Pg. 65 (Iago)
- “my manhood, honesty, wisdom” ~ pg. 66: triplet.
Motif
Repeated positive phrase Othello uses to D ?
- SWEET
- “sweet Desdemona.”
- “tasted her sweet body.”
- “fresh as Dian’s visage” –> virgin Godess, Greek myth
D’s obedience throughout.
- “My Lord.”
- “Here I kneel…”
- “whatever you be, I am obedient.”
Motif
Religious imagery
- “Perdition catch my soul” (let me be damned if I don’t love you)
- Their love = salvation for him.
Othello feelings towards D after Iago revelation?
**- Juxtaposition **
- Between nice talk and deep hate.
- Examples: “sweet Desdemona”/ “excellent wretch!” (oxymoronic)/ “chuck.”
- Asides exemplify this!! pg. 80
Syntax of Iago speech.
- Cut off.
- Hyphenated.
- Subtle hints, allowing full ideas to be formulated by Othello himself.
- “My noble Lord -“/ “Nothing my Lord or if - “
- Trying to seem innocent.
Structure of Iago’s speech.
- Questioning.
- Mirrors language of Othello: “Indeed” –> “Indeed?”
- “Honest” —> “Honest my lord?”
- Mirrors Emilia language. “what handkerchief?”/ “what handkerchief?”
- Simple phrases poison Othello’s mind. Tragedy of it all.
Othello: “chaos is come again” pg. 63. Elizabethean belief?
- Elizabetheans believed end of world will have chaos that existed before creation.
Conversation between Iago/ Othello structure when Iago convinves Othello of wife cheating.
- Stichonmythia.
- Conversation going back and forth.
Jealousy motif
Green-eyed monster idea.
- “O monstrous” –> repeated throughout!
- “jealousy… is the green-eyes monster.” ~ pg. 65.
- “monster” pg.86. repeated word
Othello ref. Iago.
- “Honest Iago.” THROUGHOUT!
- “thou’rt full of love and honesty.” pg. 64.
Othello’s broken syntax.
- Contradictory statments ie. “I am bound”/ “I am not bound” within 1 line.
- Believes D honest then changes his mind in space of 1 line. pg. 69.
- “O misery!” Repetition of “O!”
- Exclamatories.
Reputation motif continued…
- “Good name.” pg.66.
- “fliched from me my good name”/”robs me.” ~Iago
- Robbery motif.
- Iago, urging Othello to view D in same way.
Othello defending D Act 3 Sc 3.
- “my wife is fair, sings, plays and dances well.”
- Virtuous wive.
- Adhering to Jacobean standards.
