“Be thou
assur’d, good Cassio, I will do / All my abilities in thy behalf.” -Desdemona
-showing Desdemona’s commitment to doing what she believes is right
“Thy solicitor
shall rather die / Than give thy cause away.” -Desdemona
- showing Desdemona’s commitment to doing what she believes is right
- Ironic as Desdemona does die partially due to her insistence of talking to Othello about Cassio
“Ha!
I like not that.”
- Iago is planting ideas
- shows Iago’s ability to subtly put his plan into action while remaining innocent to everyone
“Was not that
Cassio parted from my wife?”
- Iago is planting ideas
- shows Iago’s ability to subtly put his plan into action while remaining innocent to everyone
“Cassio, my lord?
No, sure I cannot think it / That he would steal away so guilty-like, / Seeing you coming”
- Iago is planting ideas
- shows Iago’s ability to subtly put his plan into action while remaining innocent to everyone
“I have been
talking with a suitor here”
-Desdemona saying this comment meaning one meaning of suitor but Othello may think it odd that this line is said after Iago’s previous hints and think of the other meaning
“and when I
love thee not, / Chaos is come again.”
- Chaos means before the world was created, saying that the world would have to end for him to stop loving Desdemona
- Even when he is about to kill Desdemona he talks about how he loves her
- He did keep this promise
“As I confess
it is my nature’s plague / To spy into abuses, and oft my jealousy / Shapes faults that are not”
- links with Emilia saying that men are “not ever jealous for the cause”
- By talking about jealousy he is making Othello think about it more
“O beware,
my lord, of jealousy: / It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock / The meat it feeds on”
- dramatic irony
- creates tension as we can now truly see the extent at which Iago lies and we know only bad can come from this
- foreshadows what is to come
“when I d
doubt, prove”
“Away at once with love or jealousy!” -Othello
-Othello doesn’t stick to this
-Tries to act as if he is above such feelings as jealousy but he is in fact just like every man that Emilia says are “not ever jealous for the cause”
“she did
deceive her father, marrying you” -Iago
- Repeating what Brabantio says to Othello in act 1 scene 3 when he says “She has deceiv’d her father and may thee.”
- repeating this increases any doubt that Othello is feeling
- the fact that it has happened twice means it is more likely to be true
“Why did I
marry? This honest creature doubtless / Sees and knows more, much more, than he unfolds.” -Othello
-Shows how good Iago is at planting Ideas into Othello’s mind and leaving him to panic about it and blow his comments out of proportion and to think about what else there is that Othello doesn’t know
“Note
if your lady strain his entertainment / With any strong or vehement importunity- / Much will be seen in that.”
- Iago is ensuring that his plan will work as he has already got Desdemona to talk to Othello about Cassio a lot
- shows how intelligent Iago is to have his plan come full circle and how Desdemona will now cause her own downfall
“Haply
for I am black, / And have not those soft parts of conversation / That chamberers have”
- Shows Othello’s insecurity at his place in Venetian society
- His insecurities are what make him the most susceptible to jealousy and this is why he ends up unable to be convinced of Desdemona’s loyalty
“or for
I am declin’d / into the value of years”
- Shows Othello’s insecurity at his place in Venetian society
- His insecurities are what make him the most susceptible to jealousy and this is why he ends up unable to be convinced of Desdemona’s loyalty
“My wayward
husband hath a hundred times / Woo’d me to steal it”
- Iago is leaving a lose end by involving Emilia
- Iago’s plan is well thought out as he knows that he needs and has thought ahead to the next step
“To have a
foolish wife.”
-degrading towards the person he is supposed to love
“It is a
common thing”
-degrading towards the person he is supposed to love
“I will in
Cassio’s lodging lose this napkin”
- The use of “lose” shows us Iago’s intentions to keep his presentations of innocence and to remain as far removed from the events as possible
- this builds suspense as we know something dramatic is about to happen
“Trifles
light as air / Are to jealous confirmations strong”
- Iago knows that this is not enough evidence to draw this conclusion alone but with the combination of Othello’s already raging jealousy Iago know that Othello will believe it
- this shows Iago’s ability to plant ahead and strategically work out his plan so that is has the desired outcome
“Which at the first
are scarce found to distaste / But, with a little act upon the blood, / Burns like the mines of sulphur.” - Iago
- Iago knows that this is not enough evidence to draw this conclusion alone but with the combination of Othello’s already raging jealousy Iago know that Othello will believe it
- this shows Iago’s ability to plant ahead and strategically work out his plan so that is has the desired outcome
“Give me the
ocular proof” -Othello
-Iago knows now that he will have to think of plan to confirm his accusations, hence the handkerchief
“Behold
her topp’d?” - Iago
“Death and damnation! O!” -Othello
-Iago is leaving Othello’s mind to fill in the blanks
-this leads to Othello dramatising the situation in his head with no end to these images as there is not a definitive answer, increasing Othello’s jealousy
“In sleep
I heard him say, ‘Sweet Desdemona, / Let us be wary, let us hide our loves.’” -Iago
- For Othello this also works in place of “the ocular proof” which is not valid evidence at all
- Foe Othello this confirms the affair and his mind can no longer be shifted to think otherwise
- shows Iago’s ability to manipulate situations to work in his favour
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Originally10
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The Way My Mother Speaks10
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Valentine7
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War Photographer7
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Mrs Tilscher's Class5
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Mrs Midas24
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Iago quotes5
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Othello quotes8
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Desdemona quotes6
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Cassio quotes4
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jealousy quotes13
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Deception and treachery7
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appearance and reality1
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Justice3
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Flowers38
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Act 1 Scene 1 summary10
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Act 1 Scene 1 Key Quotes0
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Othello 3.328
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Othello 3.45
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Othello 3.12
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Othello 4.120
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Othello 5.246
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Othello 5.116
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Introduction Essay4
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Appearance and Reality Essay4
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Othello 1.115
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Othello 1.24
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Othello 1.314
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Othello 2.111
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Othello 2.21
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Othello 2.316
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Othello 4.214
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Othello 4.33
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Mrs Mida Links5
