unseen
In this excerpt from Act 5 Scene 2, Shakespeare presents Othello in the throes of intense
emotional turmoil as he begins to succumb to his flaw of jealousy and his tragic downfall.
Throughout the play, Othello attempts to fit in with the rest of society by mirroring the way
they speak. However, in this last scene, Othello loses all control of his speech as it becomes
disjointed and irregular. He uses repetition often such as “O Desdemon! Dead, Desdemon,
Dead! O, O!”. Here, Othello tautologically repeats the same concept which indicates his
inability to string together a coherent and grammatically correct sentence, mirroring his
delusional state. Shakespeare frequently uses repetition throughout Othello's dramatic
monologue; he repeats the alliterative words 'Desdemon' and 'dead', linking Desdemona and
death together to forebode the end of the play. Furthermore, the use of the repeated
apostrophes prompts the quote, “O my soul’s joy!” (Act 2 Scene 1) which once expressed
Othello’s sincere love and happiness for Desdemona. However, at this moment, the
exclamations reveal a grief that is beyond words, creating a stark contrast. He also uses
third person when referring to himself more than once. He asks himself “Where should
Othello go?” indicating that he has slipped into madness. By referring to himself in this way,
he is disassociating from himself because of the pain of the trauma –a feature of madness.
Although Othello confronts Iago and says he feels he is not entirely to blame for his actions
because he was ‘Perplexed in the extreme’, we know that the hero accepts responsibility for
his crime and will pay for it, foreshadowing his death. Although suicide was traditionally seen
as a sin in Christianity, the Ancient Greeks and Romans often saw suicide as patriotic or
noble because it was a way of avoiding disgrace and preserving one’s honour. Thus,
Othello’s death emphasises his status as a tragic hero and his valorousness.
In this moment, Shakespeare also presents Othello as a pitiful victim ensnared in Iago’s
machiavellian plot. The play initially starts in Venice - this presents order and Romantic
aspects of Othello and Desdemona’s love. This shifts to Cyprus which is synonymous with
disorder and battle which fuels Othello’s demise. The soliloquy’s emphasis on Othello’s
suffering and the horror of his moment of anagnorisis acts as a catalyst for his development
into the quintessential tragic hero. He references his ‘little arm’ and describes the
‘impediments’ he has made his way through on the battlefield not to boast but to show that
he is diminished. The mentioning of Othello’s earlier life may, perhaps, act as a reminder of
how far this mighty, noble man has fallen. However, he calls Desdemona “my girl,” which
exemplifies his controlling nature and could present Othello as inconsiderate. The use of the
possessive pronoun and the diminutive noun expresses his ownership over Desdemona
even after her death and could possibly question his anagnorisis. Although he realises that
he shouldn’t have killed her and admits to his fate in hell because of his wrongdoings,
Othello doesn’t acknowledge the forthright, courageous, brave woman Desdemona was.
Therefore, it could be possibly argued that Othello’s anagnorisis is incomplete as he reveals
a lack of understanding of Desdemona’s character which could be caused by his hubristic
nature. This idea traverses throughout the entire play and its inclusion can be seen as
Othello's hamartia. Furthermore, he states “O cursed cursed slave”. The use of the repetition
creates a tone of desperation and could be a reference to Othello, himself, or Iago. At this
point of the play, the two characters have become uncannily similar due to Iago’s villainous
manipulation, evoking a sense of pathos and catharsis from the audience. Throughout this
scene, Othello plays out the very stereotype that he hoped to avoid: that men of colour are
jealous and violent. This also reflects Elizabethan stereotypes which perpetuated the view
that Africans were only fit to be slaves and were manifestations of the devil. Iago's
perception of Othello as naive and gullible parallels the superiority that Europeans felt over
In this excerpt from Act 5 Scene 2, Shakespeare presents Othello in the throes of intense
emotional turmoil as he begins to succumb to his flaw of jealousy and his tragic downfall.
Throughout the play, Othello attempts to fit in with the rest of society by mirroring the way
they speak. However, in this last scene, Othello loses all control of his speech as it becomes
disjointed and irregular. He uses repetition often such as “O Desdemon! Dead, Desdemon,
Dead! O, O!”. Here, Othello tautologically repeats the same concept which indicates his
inability to string together a coherent and grammatically correct sentence, mirroring his
delusional state. Shakespeare frequently uses repetition throughout Othello's dramatic
monologue; he repeats the alliterative words 'Desdemon' and 'dead', linking Desdemona and
death together to forebode the end of the play. Furthermore, the use of the repeated
apostrophes prompts the quote, “O my soul’s joy!” (Act 2 Scene 1) which once expressed
Othello’s sincere love and happiness for Desdemona. However, at this moment, the
exclamations reveal a grief that is beyond words, creating a stark contrast. He also uses
third person when referring to himself more than once. He asks himself “Where should
Othello go?” indicating that he has slipped into madness. By referring to himself in this way,
he is disassociating from himself because of the pain of the trauma –a feature of madness.
Although Othello confronts Iago and says he feels he is not entirely to blame for his actions
because he was ‘Perplexed in the extreme’, we know that the hero accepts responsibility for
his crime and will pay for it, foreshadowing his death. Although suicide was traditionally seen
as a sin in Christianity, the Ancient Greeks and Romans often saw suicide as patriotic or
noble because it was a way of avoiding disgrace and preserving one’s honour. Thus,
Othello’s death emphasises his status as a tragic hero and his valorousness.
In this moment, Shakespeare also presents Othello as a pitiful victim ensnared in Iago’s
machiavellian plot. The play initially starts in Venice - this presents order and Romantic
aspects of Othello and Desdemona’s love. This shifts to Cyprus which is synonymous with
disorder and battle which fuels Othello’s demise. The soliloquy’s emphasis on Othello’s
suffering and the horror of his moment of anagnorisis acts as a catalyst for his development
into the quintessential tragic hero. He references his ‘little arm’ and describes the
‘impediments’ he has made his way through on the battlefield not to boast but to show that
he is diminished. The mentioning of Othello’s earlier life may, perhaps, act as a reminder of
how far this mighty, noble man has fallen. However, he calls Desdemona “my girl,” which
exemplifies his controlling nature and could present Othello as inconsiderate. The use of the
possessive pronoun and the diminutive noun expresses his ownership over Desdemona
even after her death and could possibly question his anagnorisis. Although he realises that
he shouldn’t have killed her and admits to his fate in hell because of his wrongdoings,
Othello doesn’t acknowledge the forthright, courageous, brave woman Desdemona was.
Therefore, it could be possibly argued that Othello’s anagnorisis is incomplete as he reveals
a lack of understanding of Desdemona’s character which could be caused by his hubristic
nature. This idea traverses throughout the entire play and its inclusion can be seen as
Othello's hamartia. Furthermore, he states “O cursed cursed slave”. The use of the repetition
creates a tone of desperation and could be a reference to Othello, himself, or Iago. At this
point of the play, the two characters have become uncannily similar due to Iago’s villainous
manipulation, evoking a sense of pathos and catharsis from the audience. Throughout this
scene, Othello plays out the very stereotype that he hoped to avoid: that men of colour are
jealous and violent. This also reflects Elizabethan stereotypes which perpetuated the view
that Africans were only fit to be slaves and were manifestations of the devil. Iago's
perception of Othello as naive and gullible parallels the superiority that Europeans felt over
