Othello Essay “Othello is responsible for his own downfall.” To what extent do you agree with this statement? Othello’s downfall is a result of his many flaws being played upon by Shakespeare’s most unforgiving, infamous villain; Iago. Accordingly, it is a combination of Iago’s efforts and cunning traps as well as Othello’s jealous, irrational nature that ultimately lead to Othello’s downfall. Othello’s blind trust and faith in Iago allows Iago to easily set moral traps designed to weaken Othello
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English 102 5 October 2014 The Blame Game The Downfall of Oedipus and Othello Both Othello and Oedipus are dramatic plays of tragic circumstances. Although written at different times and by different types of writers, each play has some of the same elements. Deceit, violence and self-destruction reign throughout. Each features men of great power reduced to nothing. However, the downfall of Oedipus is the work of the gods; the downfall of Othello is self-inflicted. Little is known of Shakespeare’s
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Othello - An Aristotelian Tragedy When distinguishing the characteristics of an Aristotelian tragedy, Aristotle writes that there are certain qualities that define Othello as a tragic hero. These qualities include; 1. Must come from nobility, the protagonist must fall from power and from happiness. 2. Hamartia which is the tragic hero is fallible, and his downfall is the result. Whatever the characters' fatal weakness is that brings him to a bad end. 3.Peropeteia which is a reversal of fortune
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Clearly, Othello is guilty of misplaced trust--he believes a man whom he didn't feel was fit for the lieutenancy over his wife, and as you note, many factors contribute to the tragedy of the play. Ultimately, though, Othello is responsible for his own actions and is therefore at fault. While Othello does exercise poor judgment in whom to believe (especially for an experienced military leader), he deserves less blame for his downfall. He is a product of a prejudiced society, a society which uses
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Thesis The famous author, Orson Card, once wrote: "Welcome to the human race. Nobody controls his own life, Ender. The best you can do is choose to fill the roles given [to] you by good people, by people who love you." So basically, this quote is about following the guidance and advice of your friends, and to do so you basically have to have faith in them. But what happens when the "good people ... who love you" are actually guiding you in the wrong direction, trying to ruin your life.
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the trait of imperfection thus making us all the common men among one another in society. The concept of the imperfection of the common man is addressed in many different pieces of literature. In William Shakespeare’s play, Othello, Shakespeare created his characters to depict the
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the plot of ‘Othello’. Iago is canny enough to be able to persuade people to do his will without necessarily vocalising what he wills them to do? He certainly pre-empts their actions, such as when he tells Cassio to ask Desdemona for help he knows she will grant it and “perform it / To the last article”. This is important as the more Desdemona pursues Cassio’s suit, the more evidence he can present to Othello and the larger the rift he can drive between them. It is not just Othello who plays into
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Othello Is Responsible for His Own demise. Othello is a play written by William Shakespeare. Othello is the character the play is named after and is therefore the main character. The play describes how Othello is lead to believe that his wife has been unfaithful to him. This treacherous act is the work of the villain, Iago. However, as we are about to study, his demise is might be his own doing. Othello by William Shakespeare. In the play, the main character is portrayed as too trusting and
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How is the concept of the outsider represented in Othello? An outsider is someone that is not fully accepted by society. They tend to be shunned and excluded, deemed different and a threat. Outsiders don’t conform to society’s values and beliefs and the concept of this is represented in Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’. In this tragedy, the Outsider alienates themselves by going against sixteenth century attitudes about sex, gender, and race. Shakespeare comments on how a society excludes and mistreats someone
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their husbands. Women who attempted to assert their views were seen as a threat to social order. This is significant in that the maintenance of social order was an extremely important aspect of Elizabethan society. Shakespeare is highly sensitive to his target audience in every step of the writing process. He actively plays upon the beliefs and fears of the Elizabethans. With characters such as Goneril and Cleopatra, Shakespeare demonstrates the devastating effects of female rebellion against social
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