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The Ins And Outs Of Othello

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The In's and Out's of Othello

Carly Scheiner

A tragedy without meaning ‘Othello’ is not, as the very genre of tragedy seeks to imitate action and life, both of which have an inherit meaning. In some ways, Shakespeare’s work can be considered didactic as in the case in classical tragedy, the hero’s falls arises as fault of a hamartia on his part, a fault which plagues humanity. In fact, throughout the work, Othello is revealed to have many more faults and weaknesses than a man of his stature should posses, providing a reason for his downfall. The work’s main protagonist, the scheming Iago, ultimately has his own reasons for his actions; actions, which on surface value, might appear to be inherently evil and motiveless. A third variable here, the role of the setting, and its part in the tragedy also helps to explain the reasons for it. Through Iago’s motives, and Othello’s inherit weaknesses, the tragedy of the play is meaningful for the audience.

By examining Iago’s actions and his soliloquies the audience is able to discern that Iago does indeed have motives for his actions, however weak they may be. Despite Iago recognizing that indeed the moor ‘is of a free and open nature’ (Oth Act 1 Sc. 3), he still does despise him. Iago has to be examined closer to discover his motives: of course, he is jealous of Cassio’s appointment as Othello’s lieutenant and this is an ultimate irony in itself as he later mocks Othello for his own jealousy, having succumbed to the ‘green-eyed mo...

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Submitted by: 4freeessays
Date Submitted: 02-06-2007
Category: Novels
Words: 2029
Pages: 8.12