I will show understanding of the plot, character and themes and Shakesperes use of language and dramatic devices within the play.
The ability of passion to bring destruction upon the lives of the unsuspecting is illustrated in Shakespeare’s Othello with the use of both manipulation and deceit. The curse of fierce passion fell namely on Othello as he transitioned from a respected general to an unstable murderer. His downfall is demonstrated through his increasing self-doubt, lack of ability to articulate, and violence. In the start of the play, he is an accomplished general and happy newlywed, and has yet to be significantly held back due to his being a Moor and outsider in Venetian society. As passion overtakes him, however, Othello truly ingrains the idea that he is less than, and those around him begin to blame his actions on the nature of his ethnicity. He has completely lost his identity to his desires and is unable to think rationally. Shakespeare juxtaposes this version of Othello with his initial composed self in Venice to demonstrate the damage of ignorance to logic and heighten the sense of tragedy. The effects of an overwhelming passion involving love, jealousy, and revenge are shown through Othello’s degradation and loss of stability.
The characterization of Othello contributes to theme in many different ways. Othello is someone who everyone seemed to trust. “This only is the witchcraft I have used. Here comes the lady. Let her witness it.” (pg.41). This quote analyzes how Othello is honest, he is proving that if others were asked about a certain event, they would
The play has been contemporised. Modern day language is used this makes it easier to understand. Colloquialism of ?sod? and ?bollocks? are used these are words that are often spoken today. Being rewritten to modern day language has really helped me to understand the play more. In my opinion if I was to read the play before it was adapted I don?t think I would of understood it.
"The course of true love never did run smooth" is one of the play's most famous quotes. However, when you look at the
Shakespeare was very specific, in 1603, about his choice of words when he wrote the play, “Othello”. The three language devices – “words as power”, “words as character” and “words as conversation” with the audience – are used to create characters’ identities and fates, and also to drive the plot of the play (Krieger, 2012).
The differences in styles of language truly brings alive the plays' various characters, from the lowliest drawer to the noblest knight. The playwright's audience would have been composed of a similarly diverse spectrum of society, from the groundlings at the foot of the stage, to the members of the court in attendance, and these disparate members of the audience might very well have come away from the plays with different interpretations of
In the play the audience is also told in so many words that there has
Nearly every character in the play at some point has to make inferences from what he or she sees, has been told or overhears. Likewise, nearly every character in the play at some point plays a part of consciously pretending to be what they are not. The idea of acting and the illusion it creates is rarely far from the surface -
In his essay in Bad Shakespeare, Anthony Dawson seems to disagree with this interpretation of the story. He states that this universal and idealized approach to the play is ineffective for a number of reasons. He
This short soliloquy allows the audience to see Othello’s feelings, whereas he is, at this point, keeping them from
Othello’s speech to Brabantio and the Duke in Act 1, Scene 3 is of major importance in describing Othello’s personality. This long speech, found in lines 149 to 196, shows Othello for the first time as a person with depth and less as a soldier. This speech is important to the book as a whole because it is a testimony to the strength of the love between Othello and Desdemona, which will later play a major role in the plot. It is also one of the first times that we see Othello trying to influence his audience with his words. The speech given by Othello is intended to convince Brabantio that Desdemona is with him willfully, and not by “spells and medicines bought of montebanks” (line 74).
this is his role in the events of the play. This, and the fact that
“Clara” by Roberto Bolano is about a guy who meets the love of his life, Clara. She’s attractive, addictive, aloof. After their breakup he continues to love her in the most peculiar way. He watches her loose her youthfulness, and become sick with cancer. After the diagnosis Clara runs off to die leaving every one behind. Though this seems like a tragic love story the gender roles demonstrated leaves the reader to wonder if the narrator loves Clara at all. It begins with the way the narrator focuses on the physical aspects of Clara, the way he continually belittles her intelligence, and it ends with the codependence that the narrator thinks Clara should have with him. A lot of the time when Clara is mentioned it is in reference to her physical appearance, weather it be her body, or her smile: the narrator doesn’t seem to look at her as a person, he sees her as an object. Clara’s intelligence on the other hand is used against her; the narrator makes it a point to undermine her as some ditsy, unintelligent, bimbo. He puts Clara, through what seems like, a very disturbing relationship: then, expects her to come back to him in the end.
Othello is one of the greatest plays due to its variety of character and themes. The immorality seen in Iago, the gullibility in Othello, and the desperation of Desdemona make the story. The theme of social status plays a huge role in the story. In addition, the theme of appearance versus reality also plays a huge role in how each tragedy happens. In the critical essay “Othello” it discusses the idea that the characters are cast as outsiders due to false interpretation of what is happening or what is being said. On the other hand, the piece “Othello Character Analysis” emphasizes how characterization reflects the greatness of the piece.