West Forsyth

Major Works Data Sheet

AP Literature and Composition
Class Period: 1B
Title of Work: Othello
Author: William Shakespeare
Date of Publication: 1604
Genre: Tragedy/Drama

Characteristics of the Genre:

A tragedy is a play dealing with tragic events and having
an unhappy ending, usually one dealing with the downfall
of the protagonist; in this case, Othello. He goes from
being the noble moor to killing the woman he loves and
then himself. He destroys the great life he had and drags
others down along with him. A drama is a story involving
conflict or contrast of character. Othello contains a great
deal of conflict. Brabantio is upset about Othello and
Desdemonas love and Iago wants Cassios place of office.
The central conflict is that Othello thinks Desdemona is
cheating on him with Cassio. Othello shows contrast of
character because he changes dramatically from the
beginning of the play to the end.

Historical Information about the Period of Publication:

Biographical Information about the Author:

Shakespeare did most of his work during the Elizabethan

Era in England. During the rule of Queen Elizabeth,
England transformed into a world power with the worlds
most powerful navy. The Elizabethan Era coincided with
the period of the Renaissance which began in the early 16 th
century and continued into the 17th century as well. Many
famous poets appeared during the Renaissance such as John
Milton. Many of the greatest works in Literature were
written during the Renaissance period, a time of great focus
on culture and literature.

William Shakespeare was born on April 23rd, 1564 in

Stratford-upon-Avon, England and had seven siblings. His
parents were John and Mary Shakespeare. Shakespeare
attended Stratford grammar school and married Anne
Hathaway, a much older woman. Shakespeares acting
group was originally called Lord Chamberlains Men and
later, The Kings Men. Shakespeare wrote thirty seven
different plays and one thousand seven hundred new
words were attributed to him. Shakespeares first play was
A History of King Henry VI and his last was The Tempest.
Shakespeare wrote Othello in 1603 and Shakespeare died
on his birthday in 1616. He was buried at Holy Trinity
Church in Stratford.

Plot Summary:
Othello and Desdemona fall in love with each other and plan to elope and become married. The reasoning behind their
elopement is due to the fact that Othello and Desdemona are not of the same race. Thus Desdemonas father will not
approve of their marriage. Meanwhile, Iago is devising a plan that will cause a tremendous amount of chaos. His plan is
to lead Othello to believe that his wife, Desdemona has been cheating on him with another man. Iago gets to Othello, and
causes him so much jealously that Othello can no longer take it. He then resorts to killing Desdemona, this shows how
manipulative Iago can be. To drive someone to the point where they feel like they have to kill someone simply over the
statements that someone else has said, which is very key to the personality that Iago possesses. Once Othello kills
Desdemona, Emilia soon discovers that Iago is responsible for all of this she tries to expose the truth, while trying to do
this though, Iago kills her. Othello then feels the crushing weight of guilt upon him and then stabs himself. In conclusion
everyone dies except Iago and Cassio. Iago refuses to give an explanation for his actions, and he then states that he will
never talk again.

Description of the Authors Style:

Example that Demonstrates Style and Explanation:

Blank verse is poetry written in unrhymed iambic

pentameter.

Blank verse is seen in Act I, Scene I, lines 97-102. This

style expresses Brabantios attitude toward Roderigo and
his daughter.

Rhyme is the repetition of identical or similar concluding

syllables in different words, most often at the ends of lines.
Rhyme is predominantly a function of sound rather than
spelling.
Prose is poetry that is straightforward with the audience. It
often makes use of striking imagery and figures of speech
and is densely compact.
A pun is a play on words that relies on a word having more
than one meaning or sounding like another word.
A metaphor is a figure of speech that makes a comparison
between two unlike things without using the words like or
as.
Rhetoric is the way in which the author persuades,
expresses, and communicates his thoughts and beliefs to the
audience/reader.

Meyer, Michael. The Compact Bedford Introduction to

Literature. 7th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2006.
Print.

Rhyme is used in Act I, Scene iii, lines 202-209. This style

illustrates the dukes opinion on how Brabantio treats
Desdemona.
Prose is used by Iago in Act II, Scene I, lines 263-289.
This style gives a clear understanding of Iagos evil plans.
Shakespeare used puns throughout Othello for both
serious literary use and for comic purposes. In Act III,
scene iv, the clown uses a pun on the word lie (lines 2-9).
The clown is asked where Cassio lies and then the
clown turn the dialog into a pun by referring to the
untruthful meaning and the lodging meaning of the word.
The use of a pun in this scene gives comic relief from
what was becoming a violent act.
In Act V, scene ii, there is a metaphor portraying
Desdemonas innocence. The metaphor relates Desdemona
to a light that should be put out. Othello also states that
although he longs to kill Desdemona he does not want to
hurt her white skin. The metaphors using white and light
can be used to infer that Desdemona still has an innocent
heart.
Shakespeare while writing Othello must consider rhetoric
so that the actors will portray his ideals to the audience.
An example of the use of rhetoric can be seen by
contrasting the rhetorics of Othello and Iago. Othellos
rhetoric can be characterized by honest and truthful while
Iagos is full of lies. The rhetoric that is used by each
character tells the audience/reader a lot about the persona
of each character.

Memorable Quotations
Quotation (and Speaker):
1. Tis not a year or two shows us a man. / They are all but
stomachs, and we all but food; / To eat us hungerly, and
when they are full, / They belch us. Emilia
2. My lord, this would not be believed in Venice, / Though
I should swear I sawt. Lodovico

3. Reputation, reputation, reputation! O, I have lost my

Significance:
The quote shows how members of the underclass are often
more knowledgeable than one would expect. Emilia is
really the only character in the play capable of pointing
out that Othello is treating Desdemona badly, and she does
so succinctly.
This is Lodovicos reaction after seeing Othello slap
Desdemona. It serves the dual purpose of reflecting the
theme that Venice is a place of safety and sanity and
showing the level to which Othellos actions have
deteriorated.
The repetition of reputation signifies the importance that

reputation! I have lost the immortal part of myself, and

what remains is bestial. Cassio

4. Your wife, my lord, your true and loyal wife.

Desdemona

5. "Haply for I am black, and have not those soft parts of

conversation
That chamberers have, or for I am declined
Into the vale of years-yet that's not muchShe's gone. I am abused, and my relief
Must be to loathe her. O curse of marriage,
That we can call these delicate creatures ours,
And not their appetites! I had rather a toad
And live upon the vapor of a dungeon
Than keep a corner in the thing I love
For others' uses. Yet 'tis the plague of great ones;
Prerogatived are they less than the base.
'Tis destiny unshunnable, like death."- Othello

6. "I kissed thee ere I killed thee. No way but this,

Killing myself, to die upon a kiss"- Othello

7. I am one, sir, that comes to tell you your daughter and

the Moor are making the beast with two backs.-Iago

military status and power have for men in the play. The
ranking Iago is given is the main force that drives his
grand plan that affects everyone. Irony is also present in
this quote because Cassio is talking to Iago, the man who
caused him to lose his reputation, but Cassio is unaware
that Iago has planned this.
The static character of the loyal and oblivious Desdemona
is expressed through this quote as she questions Othellos
anger towards her. Desdemona refers to Othello as my
lord, exemplifying the inferiority of women. The fact that
Othello kills his loyal wife also displays the cruelty of
men. These differences between the genders are major
themes of the play.
This quote really defines the amount of racism throughout
William Shakespeare's writing of the play. Othello realizes
the impact that his race has on the outcome of his destiny;
people view him differently and do not measure him as
equivalent to those who are courtiers. He also begins to
question whether his skin color may be the reason
Desdemona has "not been faithful" (according to Iago) and
begins to believe it may be true. Also, Othello refers to
marriage as a curse and also refers to women as 'creatures'.
Shakespeare makes sexism aware in this quote because in
the time period of this play, women were seen as a prize to
be won instead of human beings. Othello also realizes in
this quote that death is unavoidable and at some point
everyone will face their destiny whether they like it or not.

Othello's life ends with this last line showing his remorse
for killing Desdemona which is part of the anagnorisis. In
the end the only thing left for him to do is die too because
his tragic flaw led him to making a huge mistake, leaving
him with nothing.
This quote, which Iago says this in Act I scene I to
Barbantio, Desdemonas father, helps to move Iagos plan
of getting his revenge on Othello into action by alerting
Barbantio to Othellos and Desdemonas marriage.

8. Confess yourself freely to her; importune her help to put

you in your place again.-Iago

Iago says this to Cassio after he had just gotten fired from
his job as lieutenant. This goes to show how malicious and
devious Iago is because he knows that while Cassios
motives are pure, Othello will over react to the fact that
Cassio and Desdemona will be spending so much time
together.

9. Every day thou daffst me with some device, Iago, and

rather, as it seems to me now, keepst from me all
conveniency than suppliest me with the least advantage of
hope. I will indeed no longer endure it, nor am I yet
persuaded to put up in pace what already I have foolishly
suffered. - Roderigo

While this quote appears to communicate Roderigos longdue revelation concerning the true intentions behind his
friends words, it actually serves to demonstrate
Roderigos idiocy in that their conversation concludes
with Roderigos falling into Iagos latest trap

10. She is abused, stoln from me, and corrupted by spells

and medicines bought of mountebanks. For nature so
preposterously to err, being not deficient, blind, or lame of
sense, sans witchcraft could not.- Brabantio

Characters Name:
1. Othello

2. Desdemona

While Brabantios statement concerning his daughters

love for Othello only being possible by means of
witchcraft demonstrates his vehement narrow-mindedness,
it also upholds the element of racism portrayed throughout
the play. Whereas Desdemona is blind to Othellos race
and elopes without her fathers consent, Brabantio is
thoroughly disgusted and confused by her actions.

Major Characters
Significance (Why is this
character significant to the
story?):
He is the protagonist and the
He is the reason for the main
hero of the story. Othello is
conflict of the plot. His race
the general of the army in
creates the conflict between
Venice
him and Brabantio about
Othello and Desdemona
getting married. He is also the
center point of Iagos plan to
gain power. Also he is
significant because he is the
one who takes Desdemonas
life and also his own. Without
him there would be no
tragedy.
Desdemona is the daughter of Desdemona is an important
Barbantio and the wife of
character because she a
Othello. She was secretly
symbol of strength in the
married to Othello and was
play. Many of the other
eventually put to death as a
characters are unstable and
result of Othellos distrust in
rely on others to feel secure.
her. Even though she was
But Desdemona is
verbally and physically
independent and does not let
attacked by her husband she
the untrue lies corrupt who
stayed true to her beliefs
she is on the inside.
throughout the play.
Role (What role does this
person have in the story?):

Character Traits (What sort of

person is this?):
powerful, eloquent, jealous

dignified, charming, bold

3. Iago

His role is Othellos ancient

and second hand man.

He plays the antagonist of the

play and causes all the evil to
occur.

Evil, Murderous, and

Manipulative

4. Roderigo

Roderigo is madly in love

with Desdemona and will stop
at nothing to be with her. He
agrees to give Iago money in
hopes that he will help him
win Desdemona over, but this
does not work out as well as
he planed. He also agrees to

Roderigo is an important
character because without
him Iago would not be able to
get back at Othello for not
making him lieutenant. He
also is a figure that shows
how easily people can be
manipulated.

jealous, greedy, foolish

kill Cassio but this back fires

because he too ends up getting
killed.
5. Cassio

Cassio is Othellos lieutenant

and due to his high ranking
position, Iago resents him.
Cassio serves as the man who
essentially causes the rift and
lack of faith and trust that
Othello has in Desdemona.
Although Cassio respects and
admires Othello, Iago tricks
Othello into thinking that
Cassio is trying to and has
wooed Desdemona, while
Cassio is simply attempting to
regain Othellos trust after he
takes part in a brawl with
Montano. Othello loses his
trust in Cassio after this fight
and demotes him.

Cassio progresses Othellos

distrust in Desdemona once
Iago instills in his mind that
Cassio is wooing Desdemona.
Without Cassio, Othello
would have no reason to no
longer have trust in
Desdemona. Cassio
unintentionally acts as the
progressing factor that leads
to many characters deaths.

naive, charming, responsible

6. Barbantio

He plays Desdemona's father

and a senator of Venice.

He sets the play in motion by

allowing his newly wedded
daughter to accompany her
husband to Cyprus. He also
presents foreshadowing in the
future by the betrayal of his
daughter.

Loving, Worried, and

Hypocritical

7. Emilia

Wife to Iago; maid to

Desdemona

In the story, Emilia

contributes to some key
points of the plot. Emilia
steals Desdemonas
handkerchief, and gives it to
Iago. This act results in
Desdemonas death, because
the handkerchief is Othellos
supposed visual proof -the
justification of his murderous
actions. Emilia also reveals
the truth of Iagos plan to the
other characters. In relation to
literary significance, Emilias
final act of exposing Iago
provides the needed
agnorisis for the the other
characters, resulting in
audience catharsis. Emilia
also suffers from her own
tragic flaw; her desire to
please her husband, no matter
his treatment of her, results in
her friends death. To
essentially atone for her

Indelicate- Emilia
occasionally makes crude
statements when speaking
with Desdemona.Loyal Despite Iagos treatment of
her, Emilia tries her best to
please him, which results in
Desdemonas stolen
handkerchief. Emilias loyalty
changes to Desdemona in Act
V, when she sacrifices herself
to clear Desdemonas name.
Outspoken - Emilia is not
afraid to speak her mind to
Othello, Desdemona, or to the
small group gathered in
Othello and Desdemonas
chamber in Act V.

mistake, she ends up giving

up her own life, but she
cannot undo the damage her
actions cause. The two
elements of a tragic flaw, and
agnorisis and catharsis are
essential in making Othello a
tragedy. Emilia also has
symbolic significance in
relation to the handkerchief,
because she supplies the
symbol in the first place.
8. Montano

The governor of Cyprus

He tells the updates on the

war and waits no the return of
the Venetian ships

trusting, easily manipulated

9. Lodovico

Lodovico acts as a messenger

from Venice to Cyprus and is
the witness of Othello
slapping Desdemona. He also
informs others of Iagos plot.

Lodovico informs others of

the situations going on and in
Act Four he informs all that
Cassio is replacing Othello.
He reprimands Othello for
killing Desdemona and helps
discover Iagos plan because
he finds the note declaring
that Cassio is to be killed.

respectable, trustworthy

10. Duke of Venice

Duke of Venice; Friend to

Othello

The Duke of Venice is not a

main character throughout the
play, however, the
appearances he does make are
significant. He can be
credited for everything that
happens in Cyprus, because
he makes the decision to let
Desdemona accompany
Othello on his journey. The
Duke acts as mediator
between Othello and
Brabantio in Act I, urging
Brabantio to accept
Desdemonas marriage. The
Duke of Venice is also
representative of the order,
and rationality, associated
with Venice. As a location,
Venice is very significant
because it contrasts the chaos
of Cyprus. Moreover, the
Duke being the official voice
of that location carries great
significance.

Wise - When Brabantio calls

on the Duke of arrest Othello
for stealing his daughter,
the Duke demonstrates his
wisdom by letting each side
explain themselves. The Duke
can be credited with
reconciling Brabantio and
Othello. Benevolent - The
Duke listens to Desdemonas
pleas to stay with her
husband, and kindly grants
her wish.

Description of the Setting(s) and the Mood the Setting(s)

Create:
The setting change from Venice to Cyprus indicates there
would be a turning point in the play, which that Othello has
no control over for his authorities as it was in Venice, and
the change allows that Destimona lost her trust from
Othello and has no control over her fate. The change
foreshadows the upcoming events in the play and the tragic
stories also.

Significance of the Opening Scene:

Shakespeare does well to begin the play in media res which
gives the reader a feel of ignorance and slight confusion,
parallel to the state of most of the characters throughout the
play whether they are aware of it or not. The opening scene
is the initial platform for Iago to show his dishonesty by
admitting to his lies to Othello and also by his obvious
manipulation of Roderigo. It shows Iagos dark and
mischievous nature when he speaks to Barbantio from the
shadows and doesnt allow him to know his identity. The
first scene only consists of three actors while the final scene
has eight. This is significant because the scenes in which
Iago is alone or with one other character shows his secrecy
and how he controls so much behind the scenes and
unaware to others.

Major Symbols, Motifs, Images:

Symbols:
1. The handkerchief: For Desdemona, the handkerchief
represents Othellos love since he gave it to her. For
Othello, the handkerchief symbolizes faithfulness and
marital fidelity since his mother used it to keep Othellos
father faithful to her. Also, the pattern of strawberries on
white cloth of the handkerchief represents bloodstains from
a virgin left on white bed sheets on the wedding night, also
having the handkerchief represent virginity.
2. The song Willow: This song is about a woman who has
been betrayed by her husband. Desdemona sings this song
as she prepares for bed in Act V and anticipates her death.
Desdemonas maid, Barbary, was the one to teach
Desdemona the song and Barbary had suffered an
unfaithful act from someone as well as the woman in the
song and died singing the song. For Desdemona, this song
represents a sad and melancholy acceptance of the Othellos
recent alienation of love and affection towards her. It also
symbolizes Desdemonas thoughts of infidelity.
3. Candle: Before Othello smothers Desdemona, he blows
out a candle. The candle symbolizes Desdemonas life.
Desdemonas life is fragile as she went from belonging to
her father, Brabantio, to belonging to her husband, Othello,
for a short time. Othello makes the realization that he can
blow out a candle numerous times, but can only kill
Desdemona once.
Motifs:

Significance of the Ending/Closing Scene:

The closing scene is an unveiling of sorts where Iago is
exposed in front of multiple characters. The final scene
shows the protagonists mistake and the result of Iagos lies
but also shows Othellos heroic resolve and how the truth
always comes out.

Inability to see.
-Almost every character throughout the play at some point
gives reference to Othello as the moor, meaning someone
descended from Northern Africa, except Desdemona.
Desdemona is able to truly see His honours and his valiant
parts even if Othello is not able to see it.
-Iago tells Othello that Desdemona has been unfaithful, but

Othello demands Ocular Proof. Though he truly doesnt

need the proof because he doesnt want to see Desdemona
in the vile act.
Flora
-Our bodies are our gardens, to which our will are
gardeners-Iago. Iago knows if he plants seeds of deceit,
they will grow if left unchecked. Iago himself considers
himself a good gardner both for himself and of others.
-The Moor already changes with my poison, Dangerous
conceits are in their natures poisons. Iago not only grows
these conceits but also plants them into the mind of
others.
Fauna
-Iago in Act 1 tells Brabanzio that Othello and Desdemona
are making the beast with two backs. Cassio says that
when his is becomes drunk he is presently a beast.
Roderigo says that he would change his humanity with a
baboon for Desdemona. Emilia during the last scene says
that she will play the swan and die in music. These
references to animals said throughout the entire play every
character acts as animals drawn with primal forces instead
of a logical society.
Themes:
The Danger of Isolation-When the setting is switched from Venice to Cyprus the scenery isn't the only thing that changes
the people do as well. When the characters are in Cyprus they aren't surrounded by the people that they would normally be
around and they only have themselves to prey upon. Iago's plan works well in this setting because the characters are
more likely to turn on each other.
Military Heroism-Even Othello himself during he trial scene states that he and Desdemona fell in love was because she
found him heroic and he admired her because she found him heroic. They fell in love over his war stories, he is hero, and
he is noble. Othello the Noble Moor of Venice... this title was gained because of his heroism in the wars between the Turks
and the Veniatians.
Green- Eyed Monster- The whole reason this story and all this tragedy even happened is because of Iago and his jealousy
over Cassio. This is a theme of this play that it never ends good when it starts with jealousy.
Possible Topics/Questions for Discussion:
How does the attitude towards women, specifically stemming from Iago, contribute to his evil plan in the play?
Would you consider Othello more of a victim or villain? Give specific examples to support your claim.
How does Shakespeares use of irony contribute to the development of the plot?
Should Othellos statement about the fact that he loved only too well be defended or rebutted?