Analysis of Othello by Shakespeare - Book Report/Review Example

?Shakespeare – Othello Introduction “Othello” by William Shakespeare was written tentatively around 1603 and is based on one of the famous Italian short stories bearing the title, “Un Capitano Moro”, which in English means, “A Moorish Captain” and was composed in the year 1565 by Cinthio. The play is regarded as one of the finest love tragedies that revolve round the characters like Othello who is a general in Venetian army, where he is Moor, his wife Desdemona, the antagonist and his trusted ensign, Iago and the lieutenant, Cassio. This particular play of Shakespeare is very universal and timeless because it captivates themes and social issues like race, jealousy, romance, treachery and betrayal. Along with it, the play also encapsulates perspective which can be judged from myriad social cone. The feminist and the racist approach to the play amid them is the most prominent. Thesis Statement The play “Othello” by Shakespeare captivates myriad themes like, jealousy, love, revenge and betrayal. All these themes are incorporated in the play which helps it to move forward and reveal the subtle bent of human psychology, which the playwright wishes to project through various characters and their interaction with the other characters in the play. This essay intends to explore the manifestation of these themes through the symbols, characters and motifs of the play throughout its plot. Myriad Themes Captivated within the Multi-layered Plot of the Play Despite being a tragedy, the importance and influence of the play “Othello” in the history of the English theatre cannot be undermined at all. The theme of love in the play is manifested through the love of Othello for Desdemona whom he treats as the extension of his own self. Desdemona is treated by Othello as an object of romantic passion with a feeling of exaltation. The destruction of Desdemona is actually treated as self-destruction for Othello. And the murder of Desdemona is viewed as a prelude to his self-killing. Iago, in such situation, can be viewed as an object of temptation that is persuading Othello relentlessly to view and regard himself from a perspective of Venice. Gradual provocation compelled him to accept the fact that he is an alien to the Venetian society and the lady of his love, who is an embodiment of that Venetian culture, also treats him alien. Othello desired for an ideal beauty and ideal love which he found in Desdemona. Desdemona, on the other hand, is incarnation of pure spiritual love and embodiment of ideal beauty. She is not the icon of love but the reason for love in others. It is under the influence of Iago with his tainted mind, Othello started viewing his beloved as a threat and her sexuality started becoming unbearable for him. Othello under the spell of his frailty mind gradually moves away from the platform on which the sensual and spiritual love were harmonised. Slowly Desdemona’s erotic beauty became an eye-sore for him and her devotion and love seemed “proof” of infidelity. The failure of Othello to harmonize the two aims of love leads him to encounter a fear and loathe of secularity which puts him into an aura encapsulated by physical frailty and extreme dependence on Desdemona. The horror and pity displayed by Othello transcends every spectacle of love and takes him to a paradigm far beyond the complete and noble concept of love undermined by a filthy and self-hatred state of mind. Even the failure of Othello as a romantic lover does not end with the bodily collapse of Desdemona. It is only the destruction of the symbol of life by the lover. And even after the murder of his beloved, the experience of love continues. This is the reason as even after Desdemona perishes, Othello is posited in a “full possession of this heavenly sight” reflected from the sight of his dead beloved. Theme of Jealousy “Othello” is a play that explores sexual jealousy at myriad levels of its plot. The seat of jealousy evolves in the play from the outset of the play; the audiences are encountered with Iago. Iago can be viewed as the embodiment of sexual jealousy with his genius representation of it. Incarnation of evil that Iago is, he is considered as malicious without any motif. His intentions cannot be measured from any external cause. Among all the characters only Emilia, Iago’s wife could perceive after watching Iago from a close quarter that such malicious attitude is not a culmination of any external factor but is undoubtedly a mental disorder and is a sort of self-induced apathy towards everyone around. Emilia tries to warn Desdemona by saying: “Jealous persons are not ever jealous for the cause, but jealous for they are jealous. It is a monster begot upon it, born on itself”. Iago’s self testimony bears the indication of being possessed by a monster of some kind. Iago’s nature of jealousy is self-destructive and completely irrational. It is something inherent in his character: “I do suspect the lusty Moor/ Hath leaped into my seat, the thought whereof/ Doth like a poisonous mineral, gnaw my inwards” (Shakespeare, W. & Et. Al., “The Complete Works”).  Even on the night of the final predicament, Iago is showing resentment against Cassio and anti-campaigning against him which could be possibly for the reason of jealousy. Iago is suffering from a kind of feeling of inappropriateness and it is through reducing others particularly Othello to that stature Iago gets a feeling of satisfaction as he himself suffers from all those malice. The theme of jealousy is embodied in the character of Iago and he through his acts of malevolence and manipulations raise it to a level of psycho frenzy within the play. Theme of Revenge The theme of revenge is commonplace in the Elizabethan high literature and Shakespeare’s dramatic genius, “Othello” is not an exception either. Like jealousy, Iago is presented as the embodiment of revenge in the play and the tool cannot be merely seen as a theme incorporated in the play. Far from being a simple theme to the play and just serving as a platform on which some issues can be dealt with, the theme of revenge is also used as a mechanism to device the tragic fall of the tragic hero. Revenge is used in the play also to project the themes of a totalitarian power, corruption and faction. The initiation of the revenge through Iago takes place when he fails to achieve the position of the lieutenant as he feels himself the rightful heir of the position. When Iago sees that the position is going to be taken by Cassio, a much younger and less experienced soldier, he gets determined to destroy Othello and his entire family. The only resolution to the consuming situation before Iago was to take revenge and he leaves no stone unturned to execute that, “IAGO: Why, there’s no remedy; ‘tis the curse of service”. Iago is so blind with the rage of vengeance that he thinks only God is liable to punish him and audience and thus he muses: “IAGO: …Heaven is my judge…” (Shakespeare, W. & Et. Al., “The Complete Works”). In destroying the life of Othello in the play, Iago does not only affect and ruins the life of Othello but also devastates the lives of Cassio, Desdemona, Brabantio and Emilia. Even the fire of his revenge consumes Iago himself. But Iago’s malicious nature which culminated into an inexplicable jealousy cannot be justified with any law. It seems after a deep delineation of the plot of the play that Iago is in need of justice and not revenge. But undoubtedly his nature of revenge has evolved from his malice which remains unjustified. Theme of Betrayal The element of revenge in Elizabethan tragedy is often viewed as the catalyst to the phenomenon of revenge. The theme of betrayal evolves out of the structure of relationships inherent in the play. Or in other words, it can be viewed that the failure of the trust between individuals results in the feeling of betrayal. Othello’s selection of Cassio instead of Iago as his able lieutenant results in the feeling of distrust and betrayal. Iago had the feeling that he is no more valued upon and that he did not receive the deserved position. He felt being shattered and betrayed. This culminated into his urge of taking revenge which he successfully accomplishes. Conclusion The tragedy of Othello crafted by the century’s most accomplished dramatic genius somewhere surpasses the thin line of revenge, betrayal, love, jealousy and launches it into a platform where the play is perceived as a tragedy of a great man who was unable to fit into the alien world of an unknown culture. The failure of communication or the breakdown of communication in mankind is the greatest threat and disaster to humanity. This recent theme of postmodern literature was perceived by the genius dramatist centuries back. And this type of element incorporated into the play makes it universal and timeless, transcending the barriers of themes and symbols, making it the greatest icon of human relations under the barriers of race and colour. Bibliography Alexander, C. S. M. The Cambridge Shakespeare Library: Shakespeare Criticism. Cambridge University Press, 2003. Halliday, F. E. A Shakespeare Companion 1564-1964, Baltimore, Penguin, 1964. Shakespeare, William. Four Tragedies: Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth. Bantam Books, 1988. Shakespeare, W. & Et. Al., The Complete Works. Oxford University Press, 2005 Read More