How Does Othello Use Desdemona

The society in which Othello takes place is a patriarchal one, where men had complete control over women. They were seen as possessions rather than being just as equally human and capable of duties performed by men. All women of the Elizabethan were to obey all men, fathers, brothers, husbands, etc. Which leads me to the most reliable and trustworthy character of Desdemona, whom goes through many trials just to satisfy her love. Shakespeare brings the thought of Desdemona into the play by Barbantio, her father, “It is too true an evil. Gone she is.\...Oh, she deceives me\ Past thought! …” (1.1.163)(1.1.168-169), whom has just found she has taken off with Othello and firstly suspects they have been hitched. Shakespeare gives reader the

Othello insults and strikes Desdemona in public and Desdemona being horrified by these actions says that “I have not deserved this” (4.1.241). Desdemona finds Othello to be incorrect in his actions and she expresses her feelings to Othello. This proves Desdemona to be ahead of the time the play was written since unlike other women Desdemona defends herself and her beliefs strongly. Therefore, Desdemona is shown as an all-around powerful woman.

Desdemona’s mindset is easily swayed and by the other characters, showing how young and inexperienced she is with living as someone’s wife. Her being so innocent and good-hearted to the other characters seemed good at first but it was ultimately her downfall, as her being the way helped Iago’s plan go smoother. This is seen when she whole-heartedly helps Cassio with

By implementing a contemporary feminist viewpoint in “Othello”, contemporary responders are able to analyse and connect with the theme of womanhood and relate it to a modern context. In A.C. Bradley’s “Shakespearean Tragedy” (1957), Desdemona is described as “the sweetest and most pathetic of

At the time of Shakespeare women were restricted legally, socially and economically. Knox, a Scottish protestant described women as: “Weak, frail, feeble and foolish”. Desdemona showed none of these traits. Women were expected to keep silent and focus on house duties. Desdemona did show some level of domesticity in Act 1 scene 3 when Othello claims that “house affairs” would “draw her thence”, illustrating Desdemona as very domestic. But as we learn more about Desdemona we realise at times she could be the complete opposite.

She didn’t understand how she had been “[dis]loyal”(69) to her husband. For Othello to call her a “subtle whore”(68) acts upon how betrayal is caused by misunderstood envy and vengeance. Still, Desdemona respected and cherished Othello, calling him her “noble lord”(69). Her powerful affection was validated when blaming “herself”(85) while Othello was murdering her. Still, stubborn Othello considered her as a “whore” and a “liar [who has] gone to burning hell”(85).

Desdemona is shown as the most pure and proper of the women in Othello and is put into the center of all the drama. The men of the play manipulate her image of a naive lover to being a “ ...strumpet!” (V.ii.94). Desdemona is oblivious to what is going on around her and stays loyal to her morals but Iago’s rumours lure Othello to thinking otherwise. Desdemona’s true morals is her absolute devotion to her husband. She stayed loyal to her lover throughout the entire play and in the end it did her no good. “Nobody; I myself. Farewell! Commend me to my kind lord. O, farewell!” Desdemona on her deathbed, still defends her Lord’s actions. She does not fight back nor call for help, Desdemona begs for her life asking to “Kill me (Desdemona) tomorrow; let me live tonight!” (V.ii.97). She is not as strong-willed like the other ladies and is Shakespeare’s example of the archetype of the innocence and has the bases of a flat character. After the

However, in Othello, the character of Desdemona surpassed the norms of gender set for women of that time. There is no doubt to consider Desdemona is violating the social norms because she is willing to breach her social roles as a daughter and even as a wife at times. Through her “incorrect” gender performance, Shakespeare portrays Desdemona as a strong, independent woman who breaks away the gender barriers of patriarchal society. But at the end of the play, we know it is the consequence of her actions that have led her to death.

Iago then asks Desdemona why Othello would have said this to her, lying once again and pretending he does not know why this incident occurred; Desdemona responds, “I do not know. I am sure I am none such” (4.2.144). Desdemona, at the beginning, was very self-assured and confident in herself, but her husband’s cruel words and accusations truly hurt her consciousness. Rather than fully accepting that she is not a “whore”– for she knows that she did not commit any promiscuous acts nor

In the play of Othello, you can clearly see that Desdemona is not all beauty, but she’s also caring for other people besides herself. In the modern society, a woman who is strong and caring like Desdemona is considered a strong woman. In the play, you can see that Desdemona doesn’t care about Othello being a Moor, she cares about his adventures and not his appearance, while Desdemona does not seem like the typical wife, she’s a strong woman with a big heart for others like Cassio. Othello even called his wife his “fair warrior.” In act 2, scene 1, line 180.

Women, especially Desdemona but Emilia as well, are obviously targets of male violence in Othello. For some reason Shakespeare’s play often put the emphasis on the role of the female characters and their influence on the main male characters. For instance, the result of the passionate love of Romeo for Juliet, the effect of Ophelia’s insanity had on hamlet, and so on. In Othello, Shakespeare made Desdemona and the other women in the play no different; Othello’s jalousie and love made the play a tragedy. Shakespeare made Desdemona the faithful wife of Othello. She was such a kindhearted and wished to make everything work even when the situation where she lost her handkerchief she tried to fix the situation and calming Othello. However, her innocent sympathy towards Cassio made lago’s lies more credible. Overall, one can say that her naïve nature causes her to become a target for the men in the play.

Iago seems to master his own emotion, and his skillful character helps him to condition other people’s mind to have what he wants. Although, his materialistic character and all his passion for money makes him stay unsatisfied. However, Desdemona a young smart woman who decided to share her life with Othello based on her love, but it is possible that Othello with his big reputation has manipulated the youth’s mind. I believe that Desdemona’s priority was not money, but it was more profound that is why she stays as an icon of the female purity. In fact, Iago is being devastated and jealous toward the moor and prophesizes that Desdemona who is very attractive to the moor can be later spiteful to him once her eyes are open.

He searches for answers, clues, or anything else to prove her unfaithfulness. Feminist criticism focuses on the behaviors and power shown between male and female. Othello represents this because he changes the way he acts around Desdemona once he has heard of her wrongdoing. He is harsh, he doesn’t look at her, and he barely gives her conversation. In this day in age any man or boy would have acted this way because they are rarely the ones to get cheated on. The relationship between him and Desdemona changed his entire character of a man who trusted his wife with everything to a man who know doubted everything he knew about

Though in class we discussed that Desdemona was a very strong woman, I would like to point out that she was victimized female character. I think that her character develops over the play from being assertive to being submissive. She shows passion and asserts her wishes of following her husband to

Valerie Wayne in “Historical Differences: Misogyny and Othello” comments on the proper manner of interpreting Desdemona’s body as referred to by an irate Othello: