Othello: Emilia’s Metamorphosis Essay example

Emilia acts similarly when she defies her husband in the final Act of the play. She is of a middle class and serves as a maid and a loyal friend to Desdemona. Her character is somewhat different as she follows her husband, Iago, diligently but speaks disparagingly of men and believes them to be foolish and perverse. This is particularly evident in Act 4 Scene 3 “let husbands know their wives have sense like them: they see, and smell, and have palates both for sweet and sour” and “what is it that they do when they change us for others? Is it sport? I think it is”. She expresses the inequality between men and women living in this time

In Othello the Moor, Shakespeare combines destiny with a fatal character flaw and that flaw is jealousy.  Shakespeare's tragedy allows one character to hold the key to the entire web he has spun and that character is Emilia. Emilia is the lone character who garners the knowledge to all circumstances of the events surrounding the characters in Othello the Moor.  Although other characters in the play are privy to certain details of the unfolding events, Emilia is the character that uses this knowledge to the benefit of the play.  Emilia's character is minor yet necessary.  Without her character the play would have no means of unraveling the confusion created by the author.  Emilia, wife

These two instances when Emilia calls out the evil doer (not realizing she is actually referring to her husband) also builds on the dramatic tension that is ultimately released when Emilia tells the truth and exposes her husband in Act 5, scene ii.

Despite her loyalty to Desdemona, Emilia chooses to impress her husband over her mistress not knowing Iago’s master plan. Emilia uses hyperbole to emphasize the amount of times her husband has asked her for this very symbolic handkerchief. Not expecting much harm, she gives the precious handkerchief to Iago who then helps Othello confirm that Desdemona is unfaithful. The lady in waiting takes into consideration the meaning and value of the handkerchief and how “wayward” her husband is but she still trusts Iago. Emilia finally finds out that Iago is the evil mastermind to the death of Desdemona when she finds out her husband framed Cassio and Desdemona’s relationship. Emilia explains to Othello the truth about the handkerchief “ that handkerchief thou speak’st of I found by fortune and did give my husband… he begged of me to steal’t ”(5.2.222-226). Emilia realizes her blindness to Iago's desperate want of the handkerchief costing her mistress's’ life. After Emilia reveals the truth to everyone, Iago stabs his wife and flees. Emilia dies an innocent death due to her blindness to her husband's true nature as she was deceived and manipulated in Iago's plan of revenge.

            Hero does not get a chance to mull over the idea of Claudio as a husband.  Even the audience knows little about her going into the now famous “shaming scene.”  Details about Hero’s virtues and personality are purposely left out, partially to satisfy the dominant male perspective in the play, but also to give more clout to the heinous claim that Claudio makes during the wedding.  The reactions of Hero’s father and others indicate that a woman’s virtues are only as good as a man says they are.

The most pivotal scene in the play (act 4 scene 1) is between the marriage of Leonato's daughter Hero to Claudio. In this scene the blush of Hero after being said to have slept with another man is set too signify “guiltiness not of modesty” to Claudio. However the Friar of the town believes that Hero's blush is that of her “innocence and virtue.”

This is the main cause of Desdemona’s death. To be specific Emilia cares for her friend deeply on the other hand; she is also loyal to Iago and wants to make him happy in the process of doing so she takes the handkerchief.

    In William Shakespeare’s tragic drama Othello, the wife of the protagonist, Desdemona, is the main female character. Secondly, there is the ancient’s wife, Emilia, who is morally ambivalent. Thirdly, there is the girlfriend of Michael Cassio, Bianca, who makes her appearance later in the drama. This essay will analyze the roles of these three women.

Throughout the play, yes, Emilia certainly has her moments of shining independence and strength, and it is important to recognize those instances in order to decipher to what extent Emilia truly vouched for fair treatment and equality. In the midst of Shakespeare’s characterization of Iago as someone who disrespects women, Iago comments on his his spit fire of a wife by saying, “Sir, would she give you so much of her lips / As of her tongue she oft bestows on me / You’ll have enough.” (II.i.100-102). Iago shares a glimpse of how emilia behaves when nobody else is around, saying that she talks without end, given Iago’s demeaning nature it can be interpreted that he

Emilia is the wife of Iago and Desdemona’s maidservant. Emilia, much like Desdemona, does not have much power but once again her presence has an effect. Her role in the play, apart from being Desdemona’s maid, is to fetch

In addition, Emilia proves her underrated intelligence by standing up for what she believes is right. Desdemona, Othello's wife, and Emilia's relationship grows because of her great loyalty towards her. At the end of the play Emilia stands up for Desdemona because Othello kills her. She explains Desdemona's true love for him and would never do anything to hurt him, which proves Desdemona's innocence. Not only does Emilia stand up for Desdemona, but she also voices her opinion to Othello. Emilia shows no fear standing up to Othello to prove to him that his wife has always been faithful. At first Othello finds it implausible but then Emilia says, "Thou art rash as fire, to say that she was false. O, she was heavenly true!" (Shakespeare V: ii, 165-166).Women are looked at in Othello as unintelligent and unfaithful, but Emilia changes that stereotype by standing up to the men. From the start Emilia and Iago's relationship always seemed rocky. Emilia's confidence in herself shows that she is not afraid to stand up to her husband. Emilia realizes the danger she puts herself in when she stands up to Iago. In order to make things right, she does whatever it takes, even if that means ruining their marriage or taking her life.

In the play Othello The Moor of Venice, by William Shakespeare, Emilia's speech (4.3.84-103) has been called renaissance plea to women's liberation. This is because she tells of what she has experienced with her husband Iago, and what is bound to happen to her mistress Desdemona. Comparing their both lives in her speech, it vividly explains what happens to so many women in who are in a relationship, who find themselves in the same problem. According to her speech, there are some married women who do cheat on their husbands, there are problems in marriage relationships that men are the cause of them and she warns men that women can do what men can do.

Coupled with Emilia’s obedience to Iago, his ploy can finally convince Othello of Desdemona’s unfaithfulness. Emilia does not agree with her husband, Iago very much, but she does obey him when she has the opportunity to do so. However, Emilia picks up Desdemona’s handkerchief, with no thought, only that it will please her husband, “what he will do with it /heaven knows, not I; /I nothing but please his fantasy,” (OTH.III.III.297-289). Subsequently, this handkerchief may not have much meaning to Emilia at this moment, but once she finally discovers the truth about her husband, she immediately accuses her husband of being a villain, and dies by his hands. Correspondingly, Emilia is also loyal to her husband, to such an extent as to lie to Desdemona about where her handkerchief has gone. As Desdemona worryingly searches for her handkerchief, Emilia denies knowing where she could have lost it, and suggests a different reason for Othello’s uneasiness, “I know no madam… /Is he not jealous?” (OTH.III.IV.14, 20). Emilia knows where the handkerchief has gone, but remains silent because her husband, Iago has told her to. As a result of Emilia’s loyalty Iago does not need to worry about others discovering where Othello’s handkerchief

Emilia’s silence while her mistress lived is fully explicable in terms of her character. She shares with her husband the generalizing trick and is well used to domestic scenes. The jealous, she knows,

Furthermore, she realizes that she has played an unintentional part in the tragedy by following Iago’s request to steal Desdemona’s handkerchief. It has all been a plot by Iago to destroy Othello, and this is finally revealed to everyone, including Emilia (Kennedy and Gioia, V. II. 179-182, 187-189). To see Emilia come to full awareness is to see first the emotional breakdown caused by this revelation, and then to see it begin to build, as she shows heartbreak, guilt, awareness of betrayal, and recognition of supreme cruelty on the part of someone she has trusted with her life. She finally speaks with the words, “Villainy, villainy, villainy!” (Kennedy and Gioia, V. II. 197), knowing she has to persuade everyone of Desdemona’s innocence. Recognition again occurs in Act V Scene II when Emilia hears Othello mention the handkerchief, after he has killed Desdemona: "With that recognizance and pledge of love / Which I first gave her. I saw it in his hand; / It was a handkerchief, an antique token / My father gave my mother" (Kennedy and Gioia, V. II. 221-224). At the same time, the attending visitors and soldiers, who have been called into action by Emilia’s cries in Act V, Scene II, are also realizing the truth of these terrible events. The reversal occurs as Emilia discloses that it was she who stole Desdemona’s handkerchief, “She give it Cassio? No, alas, I found it, / And I did give’t my husband” (Kennedy and Gioia, V. II 236-237). Immediately Othello knows that