The Heroism of Othello - Research Paper Example

 The Heroism of Othello The theme of the tragic hero is one that runs through much of classic literature. It can be found in the ancient texts of the Greeks to the masterful plays of Shakespeare and beyond. To understanding the concept of the tragic hero, it is important to understand the criteria for the archetype that was defined by Aristotle (“Aristotle”, 1998). After studying the character types in a number of classic texts of his own age and earlier, Aristotle said there are six major elements required in the construction of a tragic hero. To start, these heroes (or heroines) must have three essential character traits. These include a noble stature, excessive pride and a tragic flaw. These three character traits must function in a way that leads that character through the three major actions of the tragic hero. These include his or her downfall from grace, their admission of guilt or responsibility for this downfall and the ability for them to be redeemed in the end though they are often only redeemed in memory at this point. In his final words in the play named for him, Shakespeare’s character Othello confesses that he has “loved not wisely, but too well” (V, ii, 353). This insight goes a long way toward explaining his essential nature as a tragic hero with his tragic flaw being his lack of appropriate discretion in determining where he should place his loyalties. Generally, heroism refers to a character that embodies our concepts of what is good and noble in the human race (Vest, 2002). Othello is a good example of this as he has risen, through his own hard effort, from the pits of slavery to the General of the Venetian ships which is revealed when he announces, “I fetch my life and being / From men of royal siege [rank]; and my demerits [deserts] / May speak unbonneted to as proud a fortune / As this that I have reached [are equal to]” (21-23). In true keeping of a hero, though, Othello’s prestige is attested to by the Duke himself as he tends to call upon Othello at times of great need: “Valiant Othello, we must straight employ you / Against the general enemy Ottoman” (48-49). Othello’s nobility lies not just on the surface level of his earned position in society, but is also evident in his own moral judgment. This is shown when he is faced with an angry father and his warlike supporters: “Keep up your bright swords, for the dew will rust them / Good signior, you shall more command with years / Than with your weapons” (59-61). In this scene, his inner nobility shines through as he defends his wife’s honor while also acknowledging the respect he owes to his elders by refusing to cross swords with them. Another element of the classic hero is for them to have an excessive sense of pride in themselves which contributes to their downfall as they become unable to discern truth from reality (McAlindon, 2002). Although it is harder to see in Othello because he constantly strives to keep his speech humble as a minority member of society, pride, perhaps justly earned, is still evident as one of his foundational characteristics. While he has sufficient reason to be proud of his accomplishments thus far in life, his greatest pride is placed in his power to love – his loyalty, which is exactly where he will fail. A more classical definition of the heroic figure would indicate that the character’s tragic flaw is the trait that they’re most proud of and which eventually leads to their downfall. In the simple statement made at the end of his life, Othello recognizes his tragic flaw was in his pride of his ability to love and remain loyal to that love. His greatest pride, his steadfast loyalty for those he loves, manifests itself as his tragic flaw as it becomes obvious that he is incapable of judging which of his contemporaries he should trust with it. Although Cassio is clearly Othello’s favorite officer as he promoted Cassio over Iago, when Othello finds Cassio brawling in the streets with gentlemen and drunk, he immediately demotes him by saying “Cassio, I love thee; But never more be officer of mine” (II, ii, 239-240). Othello can no longer respect Cassio because of the light he has been painted in by Iago and Othello’s confidence in his own judgment is thrown into doubt. For Othello, the doubt and suspicion growing in his mind regarding a possible relationship between Cassio and Desdemona which is constantly built by Iago’s insinuations, was started with Desdemona’s own father at the beginning of the play. Her father warns him, “Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see: / She has deceived her father, and may thee” (292-93). Iago uses this doubt and suspicion, as well as Othello’s own love for others, to Othello’s destruction. Once Othello decides to love and trust Iago, he finds it impossible to doubt him, even when it is Iago who is telling him he should doubt. Through his shattered emotions, Othello has determined that only Iago has known him long enough and repaid him faithfully enough to deserve Othello’s love and loyalty. Miller (2004) suggests that although he is often seen as evil incarnate, creating mischief just to be doing something, Iago is actually working on many of the same insecurities he instills in Othello. “Motivated by the same thing – suspicion of infidelity – Othello commits nearly the same crimes, yet the audience feels sorry for only him, and not Iago … if one looks deeper into his [Iago’s] motives, it is apparent that he is no less of a sympathetic character than is Othello” (Miller, 2004). Seen from this perspective, it becomes less surprising that Othello might operate with a strong sympathy toward the man he sees even if he remains unaware of Iago’s true motives. This also serves as testament to the justifiable nature of Othello’s pride in his ability to love as his faith in Iago begins to work some growth and change on the villain. A close study of Iago reveals that even this character finally comes to the realization in the end that the downfall he’s experiencing is the result of his own actions, making him a lesser, or more common man’s, tragic hero. This is revealed in his statement regarding Cassio, “He hath a daily beauty in his life / That makes me ugly” (V, i, 19-20), expressing a sentiment that would not have been conceived of by this character earlier in the play. “How impossible such an attitude would be to the scornful Iago of the first acts! We have thus a measure of the moral awakening of Iago. His very crimes lead him to a purer sense of the values of life” (Brooke, 1918). Othello’s great mistake regarding Iago lies in believing that because he has opted to love Iago, Iago has already accomplished this growth and therefore must necessarily return the sentiment. It is only at the end that he finally realizes he has abandoned his earlier noble nature in response to Iago’s manipulations. As Othello confronts the results of his actions, he understands that his choice on whose love to have faith in was unwisely made. Thus, throughout the play, Othello demonstrates he has both the three character traits established by Aristotle as being necessary to the tragic hero as well as his progression through the three essential actions of the tragic hero. Through his demonstration of a noble nature in his previous deeds, his current position and his ability to deal well with others even in a tense situation, Othello is quickly established at the outset of the play as a noble man. His tragic flaw becomes apparent as he almost arrogantly relies on his ability to love as a means of overcoming all adversity, thus revealing the required excessive pride that leads the tragic hero to his downfall. As the story progresses, it becomes more and more apparent that the aspect he takes greatest pride in remains his ability to love others and to both give and receive respect and loyalty, setting him up for a perfect rendition of the tragic flaw scenario brought forward by Aristotle. This fierce love that he takes such pride in thus becomes the machine that drives Othello’s downfall as it is manipulated and directed by Iago. However, these actions are still recognized by Othello, in the final scenes of the play, as being of his own doing – it was always up to him to choose which of the people around him to award his faith and he chose unwisely. This thus fulfills the second required action of the tragic hero. Finally, Othello is redeemed in the end by his surviving friends who finally piece together what happened to create such a violent reaction in their commander and make the proper apprehensions so that Othello’s memory will continue to carry the honor, nobility and courage that he demonstrated throughout the greatest portion of his life. It is the hallmark of the tragic hero that even though his or her good name is reaffirmed or forgiven its mistakes, the hero himself is no longer capable of being fully restored to their former glory and a happily ever after sort of ending. Works Cited “Aristotle.” Critica Links. The University of Hawaii, (1998). December 10, 2010 Brooke, Tucker. “The Romantic Iago.” The Yale Review. Vol. 7. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1918. McAlindon, Tom. “What is a Shakespearean Tragedy?” The Cambridge Companion to Shakespearean Tragedy. Ed. Clare McEachern. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, (2002), pp. 1-22. Miller, Katie. “Perplex’d in the Extreme.” (October 26, 2004). Shakespeare, William. “The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice.” The Complete Pelican Shakespeare. New York: Penguin Books, 1969. pp. 1018-1060. Vest, Rob. “Shakespearean Tragedy in Othello: The Moor of Venice.” Late Plays of Shakespeare. (2002). December 10, 2010 Read More