Nov. 20th Blog 13: Othello

During this semester we have only read two tragedy plays and while one, Hamlet, can be seen as completely false, the other, Othello, has some believable qualities. Iago is a very good liar and he is seen causing trouble. I would say everyone has encountered someone like Iago. We normally talk to someone who is a very good listener like Iago but they take that information and turn it around so they can use it against us. Iago sees Desdemona and Cassio hold hands when Othello arrives at Cyprus. He uses this show of affection, even though it means nothing, for his revenge. He is very observant.

In Act 3 scene 3, Othello wants Iago to give him a reason to why Desdemona is disloyal and Iago goes on to tell Othello what he has heard or seen even though we know those things are false. I like how Shakespeare has Iago though. He shows us that even if we trust someone and tell them everything and act a certain way around them; they can use those things against us so we should be careful what we say and how we act.

I do feel bad for Emilia. She’s married to Iago who is clearly, what I would call, crazy. He’s not just mean but when he kills his own wife, that shows just how crazy he is. He is so bent on his revenge that even killing his wife does not affect him.

I also feel bad for Othello. He is manipulated into thinking these things about his wife, that she’s had an affair and does not love him. So by this manipulation, he kills his wife. This does seem realistic though because some people today in this world will kill their spouse if they suspect or even catch them having an affair. But just like I hear these kinds of stories in the news, I also don’t feel bad for Othello when he finds at that his wife did not have an affair but he can’t do anything but kill himself. Like I always say when I hear these kinds of stories, just talk with your spouse or get a divorce because killing someone for an affair will just come back to harm you more. Othello knows that he will have to face the consequences for killing Desdemona so he chooses the safer option for him which is death.

Overall this story is very believable and will make people question their loyalties and whether those friends or even family members will use anything against them in the future for revenge.