How Does Iago's Use Of Dramatic Irony In Othello

In Othello, the play takes place in two different location. The beginning of the play is set around Shakespeare time in Venice. Venice was a prosperous Italian city that was centered in the middle of many trading networks. The second half of the play is set in Cyprus, which is an island controlled by Venice. On this island is where things start to fall apart to all the characters. Everyone goes from a very structured society to a very violent and chaotic situation. Othello is the only African or Moor in a predominantly white society and was in a romantic relationship with Desdemona, a white woman. Her father does not believe that they are in love and that Othello had bewitched his daughter. Although Othello is respected by many,
behind his back, people tend to point out his blackness and how he is different from everyone.
On Cyprus, Iago, who is angered that Othello promoted Cassio plans to destroy Othello by convincing him that Desdemona is cheating on him with Cassio.

If I could study a single aspect of the play is Shakespeare's use of dramatic irony. An early example of that in the play is when Iago reveals his detailed plans to destroy Othello and the people Othello cares about. The audience witnesses and hears the entire plan and they are helpless to stop him. As Iago's plan unfolds on stage, it becomes difficult to watch Othello accuse Desdemona of infidelity and watch him kill her at the end of the play. This aspect only makes the entire play seem more tragic because the audience knew that Othello is going to die, but they still end up watching him spiral out of control. If I were to study
this play in depth, I think I would focus on what the actors' body language say about what they understand about their characters. From the movie version of the play, I noticed that Iago is often really close (almost intimately) close with a lot of the characters. I remember reading that human beings different zones of comfort and if someone is less than 4 feet away from you, it usually signifies a very intimate relationship. In the movie, there were even times Iago was whispering into Othello's ear. It makes me feel almost uncomfortable when I watch them so close to each other because it really shows how much trust Othello has for Iago since he does not attempt to move away. I think by noticing what actors or directors do on screen regarding body movement is really important in defining the relationships of the characters and show how one character reacts with another. I think a good way to focus on body language is comparing different movie adaptations or comparing a movie adaptation to that of a stage.

I believe this play is still applicable to our society because interracial marriages continue to be controversial especially between a black woman and a white man. Although the movie, Loving, came out and people are free to marry people of different races, these marriages often judged by other people. For example, Serena Williams is engaged to a white man and a lot of people were angry because they did not like the idea of her being dominated by a white man. Although Serena's love life is her own business, a lot of people viciously disapprove of the union. Although Shakespeare might not have racism in mind when he was writing this play, the play is still relevant in our time period. It is because we are still putting people into boxes and expecting people to only interact with people like them. People who are different from each other should not be together. This idea of an ingroup and an outgroup is applicable to not only race, status, ability, and economic status. We continue to alienate individuals we deem different from our own groups. There is a lack of unity which is causing a lot of the social problems we are currently experiencing and if we do not seek to create unity and a sense of community within our country, I fear there is only going to be chaos.