The Influence Of Desdemona's Identity In Othello

She is then disowned by Barbantio with no further words directed to her by him but is referenced as a liar and should be kept on watch for her conniving ways by him towards Othello. Which then begins Shakespeare’s in depth writing on Othello and Desdemona’s relationship where she is as “a child to chiding” (4.2.119-120). Not even a moment after her father leaves Othello commands Iago to tell his wife, Emilia, to tend to Desdemona as a babysitter. Irony occurs within (2.1.169-171) where Desdemona challenges Iago and stands as an independent woman for Emilia objecting to his conclusion, that women no matter how beautiful or intelligent play the same “foul pranks”. However, as Othello’s jealousy and rage arises throughout the play it seems as her character has to fight even harder to breathe under his control; symbolic for her death of suffocation. Desdemona is a gentle women living under her love’s control with no power to object even if she had opposed this type of controlling relationship. As a higher class woman she had more power and respect over other women characters such as Emilia or Bianca, but is this dominance enough to feel in control of oneself? It is believed that Shakespeare added the 2 other

This warning from Brabantio is the first look into the possessiveness over his daughter, Desdemona. Not uncommon for the era, Brabantio considers his daughter to be his property; her marriage to be under his control. Consequently, this is why his daughter’s betrayal in eloping with Othello is so devastating towards him.

“Othello” begins in middle of an argument between Roderigo and Iago. Desdemona and Othello’s wedding is the main topic of their argument. Desdemona is a Venetian beauty who is treated as a possession of her father, Brabantio, but by marrying an outsider Othello, she goes against the tradition of venetian custom which she is expected to marry a rich man to maintain her family’s honour. Iago reports Brabantio that his daughter is being stolen by Othello. “Awake! What ho, Brabantio! Thieves, thieves!” (1.1. 76). This quote depicts how unmarried women were treated back in 16’s century. However, while everyone in the play thinks that Othello has stolen Desdemona to marry him, Desdemona speaks herself to prove that she truly loves Othello. “That I love the Moor to love with him” (1.3. 246). Also, she even asks for her permission to go to Cyprus with Othello because she can’t stand the thought of remaining at home, which doesn’t have any adventure. There is a comparison between her social class and her

In Othello, Desdemona proves to be very strong and liberated. Since the beginning of the play Desdemona is portrayed to be strong and independent. Desdemona makes her own decision to wed Othello denying her

Shakespeare's “Othello” is a tragedy written about a black lieutenant and his terrific outcome. Being manipulated by the villain Iago, drives him to kill his own wife. Othello is responsible for Desdemona's death because he allowed Iago to manipulate him, he didn't trust Desdemona and strangled her while she slept.

to be weak and naïve in the eyes of her father. We can tell this from

Desdemona is portrayed as a very inquisitive women, whom loves to explore the things and people outside of her class. She fell in love with Othello because of her curious nature and being attracted to his acts of bravado. Her intentions are sincere; however her curiosity in this act is seen as folly. She asks her cousin Lodovico about his arrival and informs him of Cassio’s dismissal. This angers Othello as she is praising another man, taking a persona of being proactive about him. For Othello this concludes that she is disobedient and has dishonored him - to put her in place, he resorts to violence:

In Shakespeare’s Othello, Othello and Desdemona’s marriage was doomed from the start. They did not start well; their marriage was controversial because of their race and Othello’s failure to follow proper etiquette while he was courting her. However these issues could have been overcome with time. The biggest problem is Othello’s attitude to Desdemona. Othello’s model of Desdemona prevents him from considering her a person. He thinks of her instead as superior to himself in every way, to the point that she is a god. Her race, beauty, and status make her godly in his mind. She becomes untouchable in Othello’s mind, and he begins to distance himself from her. Because Othello thinks of Desdemona as “Alabaster”(5.2.5) he will never consider

She begins the play as a independent and thoughtful person, but she must struggle against all odds to make Othello believe that she is not too independent. Desdemona is a symbol of innocence and helplessness. However in the beginning of the play, she seems to be mature and quite insightful of events around her. Iago often tells Othello that she is unfaithful. It seems that she refuses to accept what Iago is doing. She has a tendency to be sympathetic towards other people's situations, like Cassio. This also further inspired Othello's jealousy when Iago pointed out that Cassio and Desdemona were speaking in private. She often pays attention to other people’s thoughts, yet remains distrustful if they differ from her own. She has a loyalty to her husband in all aspects of life,

"You don't love someone because they're perfect, you love them in spite of the fact that they're not” (Picoult, 384). This quote is the definition of true love, something the two protagonists of this play sadly never had. The tragedy Othello is about a general of the Venetian army, and his beautiful wife Desdemona, whose lives are completely ruined by the deceitful, cunning, and cowardly Iago. One of Iago’s biggest accomplishments was breaking up Othello and Desdemona's relationship by getting it into Othello’s head that Desdemona was cheating on him. This really made the reader question Othello’s feelings towards Desdemona as for someone who claimed to have love Desdemona with a passion, Othello sure was quick to believe Iago’s lies and turn on Desdemona. Based on his actions towards Desdemona, Othello proved that he does not truly love Desdemona because he is insecure, lacks trust, and is a very jealous person.

Identity is a very key, important thematic issue in William Shakespeare's tragic drama, Othello. Identity, or what may be better explained as a character's public perception, is highly valued in the Elizabethan Age in which Othello is set. There is a varying range between the characters in the extent that how they are perceived in public is not how they behave in private or how they really are, thus creating more than one identity per character. A character's identity is the overall essence of that character, however, in plays such as Shakespeare's there must always be an element of tragic flaw to the play thus creating conflict. In Othello, conflict ultimately arises through the plotting and scheming of one central, manipulative

Desdemona was the daughter of a senator, a well regarded, upper class man. Othello was a General in the Venetian Military, and while that was a highly classed job, it was considered below Desdemona’s class. In the late sixteenth century, the man was generally from a higher class then the woman, hence why Desdemona and Othello’s relationship was objected to. Social position was an influence in Othello’s belief of Desdemona’s betrayal, as he thought that he wasn’t good enough for her.

He has a disrespect for most things and cannot even be truthful to himself. He declares that Heaven will be his judge. This is unfortunate, taking into account the sort of curses he uses. Desdemona is described by others before the audience sees her speak for herself. Despite Iago's coarse references, her father and husband describe her as being a gentle, loving woman. Even Iago dares not refer to Desdemona in anything other than glowing terms in the presence of her father. Brabantio's assumption that she must have been drugged to fall in love with Othello stems not only from his racial bigotry, but also from his belief that his daughter is "tender, fair and happy" (1,2,66)

In Shakespeare’s play “Othello” the main characters Othello and Desdemona suffer a tragic fate due to their actions and unforeseen circumstances. A majority of Desdemona’s suffering is down to Iago’s manipulation. However, it could also be argued that Iago is not completely to blame for the misfortune of Desdemona. We as the readers can see evidence of this at certain points in the play where Iago has planted the seeds of despair and Desdemona and Othello have fallen for his plans. In this essay, I will look at key moments in the play where Desdemona is presented as a tragic victim by the writer and justify why she is a tragic victim using quotes from the play.

Othello’s immediate trust for Iago’s speculations demonstrate the truth of the matter that Othello is not close with his wife to be able to hear the truth from her. Othello exhibits assurance in Iago and goes to him for advice. In return, Iago deceives Othello by pointing out Desdemona’s actions saying “She did deceive her father” by marrying a Moor (III.iii.206). Iago is implying that Desdemona is not to be trusted because she lied to her father. Othello now disregards Desdemona and changes his attitude towards her. Othello believes that if she was able to lie and hide a relationship from her own father, she is capable of hiding her cheating ways from him. Othello is persuaded that Desdemona has what it takes to go behind the backs of the people she loves and this creates