In the play, Othello, by William Shakespeare, the use of different sorts of animal motifs are used to differentiate between characters on or off the screen and to show mood.. To reference Othello, the use of beasts or gross animals are used to show the prejudice and racism throughout the play. In the beginning when Iago and Roderigo are talking to Brabantio they exclaim, "Because we come to do you service and you think we are ruffians, you'll have your daughter covered with a Barbary horse" (I.i.123-125). He references Othello as a Barbary horse, immediately telling the audience who they are talking about without them even having to see them. Othello hasn't even been shown on the stage yet but it is made obvious that they are referencing a black man with this racial slur. Later in that same conversation they say, "I am one, sir, that comes to tell you your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two backs" (I.i.129-131). This time they bluntly call him a beast just because he is of color. They continue to make these comments and rely on motifs to depict another character that isn't present at the time. …show more content…
In the final act, when Lodovico and Gratiano show up, Roderigo says, "O damned Iago! O inhuman dog." (V.i.74). Iago gets called a dog more than anything in the play, especially lieutenant, and that is exemplified in the final act. They are mad at him and they want to show it by offending him. In the second scene of the same act, Lodovico says, "O spartan dog." (V.ii.424). He is once again calling Iago a dog to let the audience know that he is mad at Iago in case they couldn't tell by his tone (if you are reading the play, you cannot). These are solely in the fifth and final act for Iago but as shown previously they can be used to reference any characters to reflect any tone or mood that Shakespeare wanted
The imagery enforces his role as the villain of the play, one who manipulates others for his own self interest. Firstly, Shakespeare uses animal imagery to show that Iago views others as less than him. This is first seen at the very beginning of the play, wherein Iago provokes Brabantio by telling him that “Even now, now, very now, an old black ram / Is
Untruths and misdirection’s are normal in the public eye, and numerous people veil their actual goals with a lacquer. In Shakespeare 's play Othello, the character Iago is the same as those tricky people. Behind his façade as a dependable ensign and companion, Iago is a multilayered, tricky and manipulative scalawag, coming up with disarray and bringing about setbacks toother characters for requital. Iago utilizes his deft and shrewd key demonstrations of control to undermine each character’s shortcomings. He misuses Roderigo’s love for Desdemona, Cassio under the appearance of companionship, and toys with Othello’s mind by playing on his self-question.
The following passage is significant to the play ‘Othello’ in retrospect to the plot progression, as it reiterates themes and introduces important facets to the plot development. Through Iago’s cunning manipulation and Shakespeare’s crafting of language, this passage is constructed as a pivotal point of the play, marking the transition of Othello’s personality and revealing his deepest insecurities that eventually lead to his downfall and tragic ending. Iago wields a lot of power over all the characters throughout the play, but in this passage in particular he is presented at his most powerful. The passage is riddled with subtle suggestions and insinuations by Iago to raise Othello’s suspicions of his wife’s fidelity, opening with the admonition to “beware, my lord, of jealousy!
A Cruel Game Unknown to Othello, Iago was motivated by a cruelty that demanded the utter destruction of Othello’s public and private life. In the play Othello, by William Shakespeare, Iago is the main antagonist to the protagonist of the story. Iago is motivated by cruelty; his final goal is see all of his adversaries suffer. Cruelty is an especially crucial theme to any story, for it reveals the ugly truth about a character who is primarily motivated by cruelty. The social and political gains of Iago’s cruelty display how the theme functions in a work of literature and what it reveals about both the perpetrator and victim.
In the beginning of the novel, Shakespeare describes Iago as a mastermind of manipulating others. Iago holds a grudge and resentment towards the Moor, Othello, because another soldier, lieutenant Cassio, has been promoted
Rhetoric is an incredibly powerful tool capable of seducing even the most obdurate of people. As one of the most illustrious playwrights ever, Shakespeare was no stranger to the power of rhetoric. Rhetoric served as the fountainhead of Shakespearian allure. We watch the dramatic works of Shakespeare because we enjoy having our emotions manipulated; we enjoy the catharsis and self-reflection that accompanies a trip to the theater. Shakespeare truly was a master manipulator, but his manipulation was generally beneficial.
As humans we all have been where rumors have been spread about us or where we do the opposite. They, however, all tend to do some harm to us and it can cause certain conflicts to occur during the process. Death can be the outcome of something like this because this did happen to three innocent people. They were all wrapped up in a bed of lies that ended their lives sooner than expected. Thesis statement: Othello Desdemona and Emilia ended up with unfortunate deaths because of Othello 's integrity towards Iago.
Iago’s constant animalistic language shows that he views others as animals rather than people, thus, Iago dehumanizing the other characters. In Act One, scene one, Iago describes Othello as an “old black ram” (Shakespeare 1276). This description of Othello is comparing him to a ram, and such animalistic references show that Iago does not view Othello an equal. In his view of Othello as unhumanistic, Iago is most likely willing to treat him as an animal. The audience sees this treatment through his constant manipulations of Othello’s mind, planting seeds of jealousy.
When people of one race believe themselves to be superior to those of another, only catastrophe can result. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, racism was extremely prevalent, and white supremacy was much more pronounced. In William Shakespeare’s play Othello, both covert and overt racism, assimilation, and jealous dispositions all foreshadow the untimely death of Desdemona and Othello. Most characters in Othello display both covert racism and overt racism towards Othello.
Using the character of Roderigo, Iago manipulates him into doing everything he wants. At the beginning of the tragedy, Iago and Roderigo are talking poorly about Othello. Roderigo, who is in love with Desdemona, is upset due to hearing that Othello and Desdemona have recently married. Iago, who just found out Othello did not give him
As the audience receives more information about his hatred for Othello, it is still vague on how and why exactly Iago wants to destroy him. Because of the lack of clarity, it creates a spark of interest to hear more of Iago’s
The exploitation of Othello’s race leads to the manipulation Roderigo, Cassio, Brabantio, the Venetians, and the audience to see Othello as inferior although, the only difference between him and the Venetians is his lineage. In the first act of the play, Iago and Roderigo go to Brabantio’s house to rile him out of his sleep. This is seen as the first step of defaming Othello’s character. The two
In the play Othello, William Shakespeare creates an elaborate tragedy with various in depth characters, enhancing the story with powerful characterization. Iago, the main antagonist of Othello, exemplifies Shakespeare’s use of characterization to create in depth and complex characters. Using his manipulative nature, intellectual mind, egotistical attitude, and dishonesty, Iago controls the other characters in order to achieve his goal, leading Othello to succumb to an overwhelming jealousy causing his downfall. In order for Iago to gain control of the characters in the play, he manipulates Othello, Roderigo, Cassio, and more to believe false information and turn on one another.
According to Kader Mutlu in “Racism in Othello,” Othello “has a harmony of racism. This harmony is provided by the tireless verbalization of ‘otherness’ in the words of ‘Moor’ and ‘Black’” (Mutlu 136). In addition to
Comparing Othello to an “old black ram” introduces animalistic imagery, and puts him at a level below humans on the Great Chain of Being. The coming together of an animal and a human would disrupt the chain, and was thought to also disrupt the laws of nature and cause bizarre events to occur. The descriptive word, “black” highlighted that in the Renaissance times, black stood for sin and evilness. Emilia’s views on men are discovered through the metaphor comparing men to “stomachs” and women to “food”. Men “eat us hungrily, and when they are full they belch us”, implies men get rid of women as soon as they have had enough of them, and therefore should not be trusted.