Othello initial Qs

1. Iago and Roderigo wake Brababtio to inform him that his daughter has married the moor.
2. Brabantio believes Othello won Desdemona by using magic.
3. Othello believed he won Desdemona through the tales of his war victories.
4. Othello appeared before the senate as they were under the assumption that he had abducted Desdemona because he is needed for a military decision.
5. He was a slave in Africa.
6. Othello is described as ‘the moor’ by his own wife. He is also called ‘more fair than black’.
7. Brabantio’s rhyming couplet ‘Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see. She has deceived her father, and may thee’ gives a sense of foreboding for the audience because Othello is convinced by Lago that Desdemona does betray him and has an affair with Cassio.
8. The dramatic irony is ‘my life upon her fate’ because Othello ends up killing Desdemona instead of protecting her.
9. Iago persuades Roderigo to give him money.
10. The audience/reader learns character traits of Iago; for example his spitefulness and manipulation, also his determination to seek revenge against Othello.

Othello Act 1 Scene 1 Task

Act 1



1. How does Shakespeare present the world of Venice in the first act, and how does he construct the interactions of his central characters (Iago, Othello, and Desdemona) with that Venetian world and with each other. How are these interactions complicated by the fact that Othello is a Moor and that Desdemona is a young women?


2. What sort of person is Iago, as he appears in act 1? Are you satisfied by the reasons he gives for hating Othello? What is Iago's relationship with Roderigo?


3. What sort of language does Iago use? What sort of language does Othello use? What might be the significance of this difference?



1. Venice is depicted to be a relatively quiet and orderly place by Shakespeare. This is apparent in the first act as Barbantio is shocked at the idea of him being robbed; hence "What tellâst thou me of robbing? This is Venice; My house is not a grange." Shakespeare constructs the interactions of his central characters with the Venetian world as Roderigo's foolish behaviour would not be tolerated on the streets of Venice in the night; hence why Iago is quick to escape the scene before Barbantio and his guards appear outside. It would not be socially acceptable to awake (and insult) a powerful man without adequate reasoning in the Venetian world. The fact that Othello (moor) has now married Desdemona (young woman) causes complications as this would be frowned upon within society. Barbantio immediately tries to find an excuse for such a thing to occur by using the mention of 'witchcraft' to imply his daughter could not possibly be truly in love with a black man without being under some kind of spell.

2. In Act 1 Iago appears to be a false and cunning character. This is highlighted through the line 'I am not what I am' - Roderigo fails to recognise this as a warning. Iago himself even knows he has a dishonest soul as he states 'such a one do I profess myself'. We also learn here that he is very manipulative as causes chaos throughout the play, often by deceiving characters.
I don't believe Iago has satisfactory reasons for hating Othello, despite Othello promoting Cassio in his place when Iago wanted it and considered himself more superior than Cassio. Iago also believes Othello's relationship with his wife is illegal and he is not capable of being the spouse to such a beautiful and caring woman, predominantly because of his race. However, he should have overcome past indifferences with Othello and befriended him by now - Othello is undeserving of his fate.

Iago's relationship with Roderigo is merely bonded by their joint hate for Othello. Iago only uses Roderigo rather than aiming to be his companion - this is depicted by his soliloquy that summarises is attitude towards Roderigo 'thus do I ever make my fool my purse'. Roderigo is cleverly used by Iago as it is him who takes the blame for the shouting in the street, when in fact it is Iago who makes the most unpleasant and crude comments towards Barbantio.



3. Othello has such confidence in his skill with language at the beginning of the play, his pride becomes visible here as he is exceptionally proud of his achievements and his public stature. As well as this he is proud of his wife's affection for him, which he reiterates by saying how he would not give up their unique bond 'for the seas' worth'. Iago's duality is shown through his language as his tone changes between friendly and sour as soon as Othello moves away. Iago pretends to be supportive of Othello's marriage to Desdemona, but upon Cassio's arrival his uncomplimentary metaphor to describe the coupling suggests otherwise - 'he tonight hath boarded a land carack'. Iago's diction and metaphor choice here depict Othello as some kind of pirate whom is stealing Desdemona's love, while reducing Desdemona into a mere prize. The difference between the two characters language in this act may be a reflection of the difference in character traits shining through as Iago is cunning hence his duplicity, as opposed to Othello's confident and caring nature at first.

Classical Tragedy

Classical Tragedy

Classical tragedy preserves the unities -- one timespan, one setting, one story -- as they originated in the Greek theatre. It also defines a tragic plot as one with a royal character losing, through his own pride, a mighty prize. Modern tragedy redefines the genre, with ordinary protagonists, realistic timelines and settings, and multiple plots.

The genre of tragedy originates from ancient Greece. 5^th century BCE Athens had a sophisticated theatrical culture.

Earliest examples of classical tragedies include;

Oedipus Rex – first performed in 429 BCE,

Prometheus Bound – first performed 430 BCE,

The Oresteia  - first performed 458 BCE,

Aristotle

Aristotle (384–322 B.C.E.) numbers among the greatest philosophers of all time. He was judged solely in terms of his philosophical influence. He was also sent to Athens and studied under Plato for 20 years. His work (through translation) became the basis of western education for centuries.

Aristotle wrote his study of tragedy entitled Poetics

Aristotle noted tragedies should excite the emotions of pity and fear by bringing about catharsis. Its action should be simple and complete; presenting a reversal of fortune. It should involve persons who are ‘held in great esteem’.

According to Aristotle there were 6 essential components of a tragedy;

Six main elements: plot, character, diction, thought, spectacle (scenic effect), and song (music), of which the first two are primary.

Aristotle goes on to discuss the structure of the ideal tragic plot and spends several chapters on its requirements. He says that the plot must be a complete whole — with a definite beginning, middle, and end — and its length should be such that the spectators can comprehend without difficulty both its separate parts and its overall unity. Moreover, the plot requires a single central theme in which all the elements are logically related to demonstrate the change in the protagonist's fortunes, with emphasis on the dramatic causation and probability of the events.

Aristotle has relatively less to say about the tragic hero because the incidents of tragedy are often beyond the hero's control or not closely related to his personality. The plot is intended to illustrate matters of cosmic rather than individual significance, and the protagonist is viewed primarily as the character who experiences the changes that take place. This stress placed by the Greek tragedians on the development of plot and action at the expense of character, and their general lack of interest in exploring psychological motivation, is one of the major differences between ancient and modern drama.

 

Since the aim of a tragedy is to arouse pity and fear through an alteration in the status of the central character, he must be a figure with whom the audience can identify and whose fate can trigger these emotions. Aristotle says that "pity is aroused by unmerited misfortune, fear by the misfortune of a man like ourselves." He surveys various possible types of characters on the basis of these premises, then defines the ideal protagonist as. . . a man who is highly renowned and prosperous, but one who is not pre-eminently virtuous and just, whose misfortune, however, is brought upon him not by vice or depravity but by some error of judgment or frailty; a personage like Oedipus.

Define the following elements/ingredients of Classical Tragedy:

1.Hamartia – the idea that the tragic hero makes a mistake- they cannot be someone who is completely all good or bad.

2.Tragic flaw - It is worth noting that some scholars believe the "flaw" was intended by Aristotle as a necessary corollary of his requirement that the hero should not be a completely admirable man.

3.Hubris – not listening to people and doing as you please anyway. A kind of excessive pride that causes the hero to ignore divine or important warnings, and to break moral codes. Thereby committing hamartia.

4.Peripeteia – opposite of hamartia; where the opposite of what was planned or hoped for by the protagonist takes place

5.Anagnorisis (recognition) - the point when the protagonist recognizes the truth of a situation, discovers another character's identity, or comes to a realization about himself. This sudden acquisition of knowledge or insight by the hero arouses the desired intense emotional reaction in the spectators.

6.Catharsis – should purge the pity and fear brought about by the tragic action being performed. The audience should feel content at the end and satisfied with how the plot ends.