Othello Speech on Jealousy
Do you think that justice and revenge are the most important themes in Othello? Is there another underlying theme that you consider even more important?
I argue that justice and revenge are not the dominate over arching themes in Othello. I believe jealousy is the most important theme. Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello focuses on the downfall of military General Othello whose happiness at his marriage to Desdemona is quickly consumed by jealousy. The love of Othello and Desdemona are tragically torn apart by the intrigue of Iago who is also acting out of jealousy. The jealousy consumes Othello and Iago’s own lives and destroys the lives of those around them. Jealousy is the emotive force that generates a cause and effect chain that reveals the protagonist Iago’s true base nature and triggers the main character Othello’s transformation from a nobleman to a savage. Othello is driven to murder his beloved wife Desdemona because of the seeds of jealousy planted by Iago.
Othello represents how jealousy, the prospect of loss, is a corrupting and destructive emotion. It is not difficult for Iago to trigger Othello’s jealousy and ultimately his demise. His love for Desdemona and his insecurities about attracting and keeping a desirable woman, especially because he is older and black, Othello fears losing her to a younger white man, which leaves him open to the insinuations of Iago and the arousal of Jealousy
In Othello Shakespeare presents us with the tragic spectacle of a man who, in jealous rage, murders the one he loves most in all the world, Desdemona. We will be able to best realize the tragic effect of jealousy if we consider first the nature of the relation between Othello and Desdemona. The marriage between Othello and Desdemona is a ’marriage of true minds’, a true love based on a mutual awareness and a true appreciation of each other’s worth, a love that has in it none of the element of sensual lust. The love of Othello and Desdemona transcends the
I argue that justice and revenge are not the dominate over arching themes in Othello. I believe jealousy is the most important theme. Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello focuses on the downfall of military General Othello whose happiness at his marriage to Desdemona is quickly consumed by jealousy. The love of Othello and Desdemona are tragically torn apart by the intrigue of Iago who is also acting out of jealousy. The jealousy consumes Othello and Iago’s own lives and destroys the lives of those around them. Jealousy is the emotive force that generates a cause and effect chain that reveals the protagonist Iago’s true base nature and triggers the main character Othello’s transformation from a nobleman to a savage. Othello is driven to murder his beloved wife Desdemona because of the seeds of jealousy planted by Iago.
Othello represents how jealousy, the prospect of loss, is a corrupting and destructive emotion. It is not difficult for Iago to trigger Othello’s jealousy and ultimately his demise. His love for Desdemona and his insecurities about attracting and keeping a desirable woman, especially because he is older and black, Othello fears losing her to a younger white man, which leaves him open to the insinuations of Iago and the arousal of Jealousy
In Othello Shakespeare presents us with the tragic spectacle of a man who, in jealous rage, murders the one he loves most in all the world, Desdemona. We will be able to best realize the tragic effect of jealousy if we consider first the nature of the relation between Othello and Desdemona. The marriage between Othello and Desdemona is a ’marriage of true minds’, a true love based on a mutual awareness and a true appreciation of each other’s worth, a love that has in it none of the element of sensual lust. The love of Othello and Desdemona transcends the