Analytical Essay of Shakespeare`s Othello

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Shakespeare 's Othello

Shakespeare is one of the greatest playwrights in English literature His plays are the most studied works in the literary world . The classics like Romeo and Juliet , Macbeth , and Othello are loved so much for the characters that they present . Shakespeare makes his characters very complex . His character development is as widely studied as are his plays . Who can forget the love of Romeo , the jealously of Othello , the treachery of Brutus , and the torment of Hamlet . In

Shakespeare 's masterpiece Hamlet , Hamlet is overcome by a physiological downfall Hamlet was a sensitive man who was destroyed by a corrupt environment Hamlet 's dead father , the deeds of his uncle and mother , and the amount of death caused the corruption of Hamlet

First of all , the loss of any close family member is very traumatic Hamlet is not immune to such effects . In the first of Hamlet 's soliloquies , Hamlet cries 'How weary , stale , flat and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world ! Fie on 't ! ah fie 'tis an unweeded garden , That grows to seed things rank and gross in nature Possess it merely (III . ii . 134-137 . It is obvious that this is a window to Hamlet 's tortured soul . This is only the beginning of the end for Hamlet . In Act I . Scene iv . Hamlet confronts the spirit of his dead father . This is also disturbing to Hamlet . John S . Wilks writes in J Leeds Barroll 's Shakespeare Studies how meeting the ghost of his father .throws his conscience into doubt and error , must naturally begin with the malign source of that confusion , the Ghost (119 . Hamlet is also incensed when he learns the reason for his father 's torture . Old Hamlet was murdered by his brother when he was sleeping . This leaves Old Hamlet walking in limbo for his afterlife . After learning this , Hamlet decrees 'O all you host of heaven ! O Earth ! What else ? And shall I couple hell (I . v . 92-93 . Also knowing that his father was miserable in the afterlife weighed heavily on Hamlet 's mind (Knight 20 . Clearly the death of his father and speaking to the ghost of his father started the corruption of Hamlet

The deeds of his uncle and his mother are also contributing factors to the corruption of the main character . Most importantly , Hamlet 's uncle Claudius is the main reason for all of Hamlet 's woes . Claudius kills Hamlet 's father and marries his mother . This is too much for Hamlet to take . His environment is crumbling around him . One scholar writes 'Whatever is wrong is wrong with Hamlet 's entire world . Not everyone is a prince in the midst of such parental decay (Skura 89 . In act III scene iii , Claudius is praying for forgiveness . Unknowingly to Claudius , Hamlet is in the room also . Hamlet does not kill him because he wants to kill Claudius at a better time . This may be the point where Hamlet is torturing the King 's conscience still written on his face , his eye a-glitter with the intoxication of conquest , vengeance in his mind his purpose altered only by the devilish hope of finding a more damning moment in which to slaughter the King (39 . Hamlet is also disgusted with his mother for the fact that she married Claudius so soon after Old Hamlet 's death . In the Queen 's room , Hamlet chastises his mother by saying 'Mother , you have my father much offended (III . iv . 9 . Indeed the actions of Hamlet 's parents are very distressful and helped the corruption of Hamlet

The various deaths that occurred in the duration play most definitely attributed to the downfall of Hamlet . First , the death of Hamlet 's father starts Hamlet down the road of mental corruption . Knight feels 'The horror of humanity doomed to death and decay has disintegrated Hamlet 's mind . From the first scene to last shadow of Death broods over this play (31 . Secondly , Hamlet kills Polonius by accident , but this seems to have no affect on Hamlet . After Polonius dies , Hamlet states 'A bloody deed ! almost as bad , good mother , As kill a king , and marry with his brother (III . iv . 28-29 . This is not the reaction on any sane man after he accidentally killed a man . The death of Ophelia hurts Hamlet greatly . Hamlet loves her . Her death must have caused Hamlet great emotional stress . After a fight with Laertes in Ophelia 's grave Hamlet states 'Be buried quick with her , and so will I : and if thou prate of mountains , let them throw Millions of acres on us (252-254 . His words and his fight with Laertes show how much he really cared for Ophelia . Death is used through out the play as one of the many things that breaks down Hamlet in to the shell of a human being that he becomes

The corruption of Hamlet can be attributed to the ghost of Hamlet 's father , the actions of his mother and uncle and the many deaths that occur in this play . Hamlet is a sensitive man who could not take all trauma of all the events that happened in his life . His corruption was the only way for him to escape the tribulations he faced

Studying the women in Othello one is able to gain an insight into their expected position according to the Elizabethan ethos . This is particularly evident when we examine how they are perceived , their role in relation to the male characters , their own actions and reactions , and importantly , their standing at the conclusion of the play

There are only three women among the multitudes of men and the carnage of war in this play : a lady , a slave , and a prostitute . When not being utterly adored by the men - acclaiming Desdemona as possessing "beauty wit and fortunes (Act I , Scene I , 132 ) and with the strapping Cassio kissing Emilia and making love to "my most fair Bianca (Act 3 , Scene 4 164 ) - they are treated with utter disrespect . They are physically used and verbally abused by the men they love , all at times called a "wench a "notable strumpet " and a "villainous whore . Both extremes , women as the exalted and the abhorrent , are inaccurate . Shakespeare does not present a balanced view , and in playing up to the mores of the time does his women a disservice

In fact , such stereotyping brings into question their exact purpose in the play . They seem to hold importance solely through their connection with men . They are used by Shakespeare as a credible way of bringing to ruin the men about them . Desdemona is the device serving to bring about that jealousy which will prove Othello 's fatal flaw and condemn him to hubris . By all accounts , this "valiant Moor " is noble , accepted into polite society , a great fighter , a respected General . He has overcome prejudice and fought many battles to reach "the trust , the office I do hold (Act 1 , Scene 3 , 118 , and yet it takes one seemingly unfaithful woman to bring him to complete ruin and despair "my heart is turned to stone (Act 4 , Scene 1 , 173 "It is the cause (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 1 , and a believable one at that to Shakespearean audiences

Desdemona is also the indirect killer of Brabantio "thy match was mortal to him (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 204 , and the unwitting tormentor of the fool Roderigo , who is a man both of means and position , yet one who dies in the errant quest for her affection "it is my shame to be so fond (Act 1 , Scene 3 , 311

Iago realizes how useful the guiles of women are in achieving his sinister aim , the bringing down of Othello , Cassio and Roderigo . It is only through their weakness towards women that Iago - not equal as a fighter , not more able , not of a higher class - is able to "enmesh them all (Act 2 , Scene 3 , 328 . His main motivation for wreaking malice - the suspicion that his wife has been unfaithful "he 's done my office (Act 1 , Scene 3 , 370 . Emilia has made him vulnerable and is to prove the downfall of Iago , giving away his secrets and bringing his crimes to light "you told a lie , an odious damned lie (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 179

And so , it seems Othello would be a specific warning to men that all women , good or evil , will only bring destruction . This serves well to incite the male to ensure the female is subjugated and given limited power

How the women behave in the final act of the play is particularly interesting . Bianca the whore is cuffed-off early on and exits the stage weeping over her injured lover , never to be thought of again . Emilia and Desdemona , however , have a more violent end

Emilia blossoms in Act 5 into a powerful , strong woman . She defies her husband 'Tis proper I obey him , but not now (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 195 , she betrays the male and tells the truth "I will not charm my tongue (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 183 , she challenges Iago 's masculinity "Disprove this villain , if thou be 'st a man (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 171 . She is faithful only to Desdemona "lay me by my mistress ' side (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 235 and so alone in this world of men , this outspoken , disobedient creature must die . She is stabbed by her husband for daring to act out of moral obligations rather than social . She is not mourned

In direct contrast to her servant , Desdemona 's actions are decidedly weak . She becomes the stereotypical gentle , womanly , sacrifice . At first , the wronged wife attempts to reason with her murderously-intent husband "I never gave him token (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 72 , but soon resigns to being 'fatally feminine : crying , pleading "kill me not " and ultimately submitting . Never once is she violent , never once does she try to run away and never once does she cry for help . Desdemona is completely passive , clearly feeling that Othello is acting within his rights as her husband and master . And it would seem that if Desdemona had indeed been promiscuous , Othello would have felt little guilt "I did proceed upon just grounds to this extremity (Act 5 , Scene 2 , 139 . The audience are led to see her as a victim because she was wrongly accused and martyred herself , not because she was executed for infidelity . Women are clearly second-class citizens

As the females women are marginalized by gender in the play , so is Othello treated differently because of his race

First introduced by Roderigo and Iago , two laddish white men , in the beginning of the play , he is described as a dangerous beast with "thick lips " and a "lascivious " nature . Even before the character appears in person , the audience is already aware that Othello is a black man , and a dangerous sexual animal . The two men are merely reflecting the accepted racist , view of the society they lived in and the society of their author

Shakespeare then twists convention , for now enters Othello , who is in fact a brave and "valiant " fighter , well loved and admired in court . He has the support of the Duke of Venice , and although her father thinks it a "treason of the blood (Act 1 , Scene 2 , 99 , he is permitted to marry Desdemona , a white lady who "did love the Moor to live with him (Act 1 Scene 3 , 244 . Now the ingrained beliefs of the audience have been challenged , and presented before us is a true hero , despite the color of his skin

Works Cited

Knight , G . Wilson . The Wheel of Fire . London : Oxford University Press 1930

Mack , Maynard , et al , eds . The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces Sixth ed . Vol 2 . New York : Norton , 1992

Skura , Meredith Anne 'Hamlet and Psychoanalysis ' Shakespeare : The Tragedies . Ed . Robert B . Heilman . Englewood Cliffs : MLA , 1984 . 84-93

Wliks , John S 'The discourse of Reason : Justice and the Erroneous Conscience in Hamlet . Shakespeare Studies . Vol XVIII . Ed . J . Leeds Barroll . New York : MLA , 1986 . 117-144

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