Themes
1 Love
- Othello is a domestic tragedy in which love is destroyed by hate.
- Iago’s false love subverts and replaces Desdemona’s true love.
- Iago is incapable of love and driven by hate.
- Emilia’s loving tribute to Desdemona when she dies reaffirms the value of true love.
2 Obsession
- Iago’s obsession with revenge drives the main plot forward.
- Othello’s obsession with his masculine honour leads him to destruction.
- Cassio’s obsession with his reputation leads him to act dishonourably when he asks Desdemona to plead his cause.
- The female characters are all powerless in the face of male obsession.
3 Jealousy
- Iago’s professional jealousy of Cassio is the catalyst that triggers the events of the main plot.
- Sexual jealousy is explored in all the couples’ relationships and is always destructive.
- The sexual jealousy we see is unfounded but plausible; both Othello and Bianca are deceived by the false proof of the handkerchief.
- Othello does not give in to jealousy too easily, as some critics have suggested. He takes a lot of convincing that Desdemona is false.
4 Male–female relationships
- The male characters – fathers, husbands, lovers – all expect their women to submit to their authority.
- Initially Desdemona and Othello share a more equal relationship than the other couples; each was ‘half the wooer’.
- The female characters are objectified by the men, prized for their beauty or derided as whores.
- Female fidelity is a key part of masculine honour in the play.
5 Revenge
- Revenge is presented as dishonourable throughout the play.
- Othello is degraded when he seeks revenge and he begins to act like a violent stereotype from Revenge Tragedy.
- Iago’s desire for revenge is presented as destructive, unnatural and egotistical.
- It is disturbing that the revenger, Iago, survives at the end of the play.
Copyright © York Press, 2017