Othello Thoughts (1 Viewer)

bored of sc

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I have noticed alot of you do Othello as your english text. I do too. What are your thoughts on it? Who's fault is it? What's your interpretation?

I believe Iago is showing us the base truth associated with stereotypes (Othello ends up commiting the beastily act of murder therefore fulfilling the stereotype as the black "barbary horse"). Iago is testing the conscience/moral reasoning of Othello and it is thus apparant that Othello is too narrow-minded to see the evil surrounding him (perhaps blacks are generally narrow-minded). He is caught up in an ideology of moral goodness and justice - "...living the life of a chivalric warrior in a world run by money and self-interest" (Sean McEvoy). It is ultimately Othello's selfishness and lack of an informed conscience that is his antagonistic characteristics.

I reckon Iago is the good guy and Othello, the villian. Pretty 'out-there' I know, but I hope I can pull it off in my essay. Just need quotes/examples/techniques.
 

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bored of sc said:
I reckon Iago is the good guy and Othello, the villian. Pretty 'out-there' I know, but I hope I can pull it off in my essay. Just need quotes/examples/techniques.
Iago is the villain, as he causes catastrophe to many characters whilst playing with their minds, including Othello when he murders Desdemona, and the occurence of the Roderigo vs. Cassio fight, when Cassio wounds Roderigo, then cheaply, Iago sneakly wounds Cassio and runs off. Iago is full of lies, and continues to cause negative impacts towards each character, such as violence and hatred

But Othello could be the villanous character, because he should've controlled himself by not murdering his 'loved one' Desdemona. If Othello was more wise, the murder of Desdemona and violence may not have happened, but it did. Therefore Othello is the one to blame.

It's hard to pull it off, saying 'Othello' is the villanous character, but 'Iago' is the good guy.

I recommend you to use this source: www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/othello

Good luck :)
 

bored of sc

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Razizi said:
Iago is the villain, as he causes catastrophe to many characters whilst playing with their minds, including Othello when he murders Desdemona, and the occurence of the Roderigo vs. Cassio fight, when Cassio wounds Roderigo, then cheaply, Iago sneakly wounds Cassio and runs off. Iago is full of lies, and continues to cause negative impacts towards each character, such as violence and hatred

But Othello could be the villanous character, because he should've controlled himself by not murdering his 'loved one' Desdemona. If Othello was more wise, the murder of Desdemona and violence may not have happened, but it did. Therefore Othello is the one to blame.

It's hard to pull it off, saying 'Othello' is the villanous character, but 'Iago' is the good guy.

I recommend you to use this source: www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/othello

Good luck :)
Thanks heaps :), yeah, doing Othello as the villain is going to be difficult but I will stand out nonetheless. I think my argument has enough quotes to back it up. I just have to find them now! :p

Thanks again.
 

dizzyizzy

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..bored of sc- the idea is decent but i have a feeling you'll be marked down for racist connotations in your theories, even if you don't intend them =(

we start it next week =)
 

bored of sc

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dizzyizzy said:
..bored of sc- the idea is decent but i have a feeling you'll be marked down for racist connotations in your theories, even if you don't intend them =(

we start it next week =)
Oh yeah! Thanks for pointing that out. But what I can say is that Shakespeare intended to do this to keep the dominant audience (whites happy). Back in the Elizabethan period; the English people were exceptionally racist. Buit yeah, when writing my essays I will try to keep the stereotype idea as least racist as I can, or maybe I will go all out racist to justify my opinion! I don't know, english is so hard and I HATE IT~!!!! But by the looks of it, you love english.
 

Aplus

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I doubt there were many black people around England in Elizabethan times anyway.
 

Pharoah200392

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Razizi said:
Iago is the villain, as he causes catastrophe to many characters whilst playing with their minds, including Othello when he murders Desdemona, and the occurence of the Roderigo vs. Cassio fight, when Cassio wounds Roderigo, then cheaply, Iago sneakly wounds Cassio and runs off. Iago is full of lies, and continues to cause negative impacts towards each character, such as violence and hatred

But Othello could be the villanous character, because he should've controlled himself by not murdering his 'loved one' Desdemona. If Othello was more wise, the murder of Desdemona and violence may not have happened, but it did. Therefore Othello is the one to blame.

It's hard to pull it off, saying 'Othello' is the villanous character, but 'Iago' is the good guy.

I recommend you to use this source: www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/othello

Good luck :)



Iago stabs Roderigo after he has fought with Casio, so he doesnn't kill Cassio otherwise he never would've become Governor of Cyprus. but other than that you are right.:uhhuh:
 

Starless

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This play sucks, it's so confusing. *laughs*

Iago is definetely the villain: It's hard to feel sympathy for him, no?
 

Pharoah200392

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I liked Othello except now in our assignment we have to relate all authority back to Othello and that really sucks. Anyone else gotta do an "Anthology of related texts"?
 
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gabrielleh

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Hmm good luck =]
I personally wouldn't go that direction though..
At the end, when Iago refuses to speak again, it gives an undertone of how malicious (spelt right?) he really is..if you get my drift ^.~

Not to mention all throughout the play how he manipulates/controls everyone just for 'revenge'. (Even his reasons for hating Othello change throughout the play)

Ergh. Now i get to look forward to my own Othello essay XD
 

x.Exhaust.x

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Pharoah200392 said:
Iago stabs Roderigo after he has fought with Casio, so he doesnn't kill Cassio otherwise he never would've become Governor of Cyprus. but other than that you are right.:uhhuh:
I didn't say Iago killed Cassio, I said Iago 'wounded' Cassio.

Definition of wounded:

Wounded: hurt: suffering from physical injury especially that suffered in battle.

:)
 

Rhanoct

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Any decent teacher will fail you if you argue Shakespeare is presenting blacks negatively- sure, Othello (the Moor) is manipulated, but so are the other white characters.
 

bored of sc

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Did my Othello essay today and agreed with the question so wrote a pretty basic essay. I am aiming for a B-grade cause I don't think I'll get an A. :(
 

agua.fuego

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The whole thing with Othello confused me. But here's what I think, anyway.
I thought that the reason it was written was not to show the whole tragedy of Othello, but to display the social conventions - what they were and SHOULD have been, according to Queen Lizzie. Because Shakespeare wrote to please the royalty of the time, that was where I got it from. So to me, Othello's actually a play about society.
So from that, I got that Iago's actually the one who's meant to matter (you know, the whole "delayed entrance" and stuff, we see him from the start so it's kinda like a big neon light going "IAGO IAGO IAGO" so even if Othello's getting a rep before he appears, we're actually finding heaps about Iago). He's, to me, the audience itself. Kind of displaying every idea that the audience has ever had for that time (going back to the whole "inherent racism", and not even inherent), and that audience made up every walk of society itself. You had your nobles and plebs, and we've all done Shakespeare so we know how it goes.
So from that, I get that Othello's a play about society. Either the guy's trying to subtly make a point, or he's just flowing with the tide.
My essay in a nutshell.
:bomb:
My mind after writing it.
 

agua.fuego

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dizzyizzy said:
..bored of sc- the idea is decent but i have a feeling you'll be marked down for racist connotations in your theories, even if you don't intend them =(

we start it next week =)
I had one of my ideas, saying that in the Elizabethan context it'd be seen as Othello's fault for dying as he refused to assume his "proper" place in society and just lived to his ideology of democracy in the true, Ancient Greek sense of it, not the flawed Elizabethan and even contemporary definition of it. Pulled the idea for the same reason - getting marked down for the whole racism thing wasn't really a thing I wanted to get, considering that it wasn't what I believed for myself.

If that makes sense.
 

nikitadhami

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iago is the catalyst behind the events that unfold in the play othello.

notice how emilia's toughts on men, quitely sum up exactly wat iago is.

notice how iago manipulates othello's thoughts to almost make it seem as if --cassio is wat iago is. the villian, we see iago's personality in wat he says abt cassio.

the play othello-- shows every character as being multilayered.
ie. we see under othello's calm composed layers, lies a true "beast" inside (when his metal health deterioates,when iago feeds him with graphic images of cassio and desdemona).

also did anyone notice how complacent desdemona starts to seem as the play progresses. her extremely non-confromist action of marrying othello has me expecting her to be more of a fiery spirited person. but apparently not.

brabantio also "foreshadows" (HSC word, good to use) on hoe desdemona might betray othello.---though not true, we can see how othello might have hung on to his comment, by how easily he believed iago.


doode, there is no "fault" (u just analyse it forget whose fault it is), iago just used the situation to his advantage (thus the "catalyst"). sooner or later othello's insecurity abt himself will hav had him going crazy anyway.


also find the lowest point in the play. differs for everyone. most ppl like to say it is when othello kills desdemona. i believe differently.

oh and i think iago is a homosexual.



now that i've fineshed writing.



hi.
 
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bored of sc

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nikitadhami said:
iago is the catalyst behind the events that unfold in the play othello.

notice how emilia's toughts on men, quitely sum up exactly wat iago is.

notice how iago manipulates othello's thoughts to almost make it seem as if --cassio is wat iago is. the villian, we see iago's personality in wat he says abt cassio.

the play othello-- shows every character as being multilayered.
ie. we see under othello's calm composed layers, lies a true "beast" inside (when his metal health deterioates,when iago feeds him with graphic images of cassio and desdemona).

also did anyone notice how complacent desdemona starts to seem as the play progresses. her extremely non-confromist action of marrying othello has me expecting her to be more of a fiery spirited person. but apparently not.

brabantio also "foreshadows" (HSC word, good to use) on hoe desdemona
might betray othello.---though not true, we can see how othello might have hung on to his comment, by how easily he believed iago.


doode, there is no "fault" (u just analyse it forget whose fault it is), iago just used the situation to his advantage (thus the "catalyst"). sooner or later othello's insecurity abt himself will hav had him going crazy anyway.


also find the lowest point in the play. differs for everyone. most ppl like to say it is when othello kills desdemona. i believe differently.

oh and i think iago is a homosexual.



now that i've fineshed writing.



hi.
gee, thanks for your input - where were you 2 weeks ago when I needed you?? lol, just kidding :)
 

agua.fuego

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nikitadhami said:
iago is the catalyst behind the events that unfold in the play othello.

notice how emilia's toughts on men, quitely sum up exactly wat iago is.

notice how iago manipulates othello's thoughts to almost make it seem as if --cassio is wat iago is. the villian, we see iago's personality in wat he says abt cassio.

the play othello-- shows every character as being multilayered.
ie. we see under othello's calm composed layers, lies a true "beast" inside (when his metal health deterioates,when iago feeds him with graphic images of cassio and desdemona).

also did anyone notice how complacent desdemona starts to seem as the play progresses. her extremely non-confromist action of marrying othello has me expecting her to be more of a fiery spirited person. but apparently not.

brabantio also "foreshadows" (HSC word, good to use) on hoe desdemona might betray othello.---though not true, we can see how othello might have hung on to his comment, by how easily he believed iago.


doode, there is no "fault" (u just analyse it forget whose fault it is), iago just used the situation to his advantage (thus the "catalyst"). sooner or later othello's insecurity abt himself will hav had him going crazy anyway.


also find the lowest point in the play. differs for everyone. most ppl like to say it is when othello kills desdemona. i believe differently.

oh and i think iago is a homosexual.



now that i've fineshed writing.



hi.

We had so many discussions in class about that, it's one of the best topics to get into... you can go for hours and hours and hours...

And agree about Othello's insecurity. I think that's one of the main points Shakespeare's trying to get at: insecurity of ourselves can actually be our downfall; there may be truth or lies in what people tell you but it all comes back to how we view ourselves.
 

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