To what extent can Othello be considered a ‘tragic hero’? The extent of which Othello is a tragic hero has been open to much debate; the basis on which he is judged falls to Aristotle’s established view of the crucial elements that distinguish whether a person is truly tragic. According to Aristotle‚ a tragic protagonist is a nobleman or person from high status‚ who contributes to his own demise and illustrates a flaw or weakness in judgment. The tragic protagonist must make a fall from a high
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Is the story‚ “Othello” Racist? When reading the play Othello‚ a modern day reader cannot help but wonder if the play is racist. After all‚ there are several places found throughout the story that reference derogatory terms towards people of African descent. Comments such as‚ “Blacker devil”(5.2. 131)‚ “an old black ram” (1.1.9)‚ and‚ “Moor are now making the beast with two backs” (1.1.7)‚ may leads the reader to believe that story is racist towards black people. However‚ this may not be true
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tragedy Othello has significantly helped me shape my view of human nature‚ and understanding of what drives people to sometimes immoral action. The main idea I have taken from my reading of Othello is that jealousy is a great motivating influence‚ compelling individuals to carry out corrupt actions‚ and ruin previously treasured relationships‚ in order to get what they desire. As with any valued literary text‚ Shakespeare’s complex and intriguing characters are an integral part of Othello‚ driving
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Shakespeare’s Othello was written in the early 1600’s and the story still holds a place firmly within the literary teachings of English Professors even in 2016. The play has seen its fair share of face lifts throughout the years but with the introduction of a homosexual Othello and his secret love affair with Desmond (the male counterpart of Desdemona) while attending a modern day high school in Alabama‚ it would be more appealing in a 2016 curriculum. The characters have had their sexes‚ religions
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The Power Of Language: Othello Othello is a 17th Century tragedy written by William Shakespeare. This text centres around four characters: Othello‚ his wife Desdemona‚ his lieutenant Cassio‚ and his trusted advisor Iago. This text is one of wiliam shakespeares most famous plays that uses aristotilean tragedy conventions and is still greatly valued. Language plays an important role in expressing ideas in Othello. The characters in this text reveal many values and beliefs of the context through
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time. His plays addressed many important issues in the world. Othello is a play that successfully brings together critical themes of love‚ appearances‚ racism and jealousy and most importantly role of women in the Elizabethan era. Through the exploration of the role of women in Othello and plays written by Shakespeare‚ this essay will argue that literature is most successful when dealing with a global issues like gender role. In "Othello"‚ the expectations for women are one the most important theme
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Othello written by William Shakespeare is a very interesting and double-minded play. I chose the passage of Emilia’s speech to Desdemona not because it was odd but because Emilia stood out to me as a very opinionated woman. I wanted to work with it more closely because Emilia captured my attention with her slightly exaggerated opinions on men. I got a strong sense of inequality with this whole scene (4.3). Emilia thinks that it is the husbands’ fault for their wives to be cheating: “But I do
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Does this play reinforce or challenge racial/sexist stereotypes? Shakespeare’s play‚ Othello‚ is but also is not racist and sexist. It was a different time in history‚ so that meant they were obviously going to have conflicting views to today. There are some quotes like these ones‚ “How didst thou know ‘twas she?- O‚ she deceives me.” (Shakespeare 1.1184-185) and of course “Your son-in-law is far more fair than black.” (Shakespeare 1.3 131). People tended to judge what they did not know or if something
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How do the contextual factors of Othello shape your understanding of the play? Shakespeare’s Othello encompasses a wide variety of contextual factors which shape my understanding of the play. These contextual factors include historical‚ cultural‚ political and social factors. Othello is believed to have been written between late 1603 and early1604 during the period of time known as the “Elizabethan” Period (1580-1625) in which‚ the great works of the age were produced; it was also during this
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which is a natural trait that cannot be altered. Othello‚ in Shakespeare’s play Othello is a Christian‚ African American that has been sold into slavery‚ escaped‚ and ended up as the military commander of the Venetian military. Othello experiences harsh racism and hatred after marrying the Venetian Senator’s daughter‚ simply because of his skin color. Throughout the play Othello‚ Shakespeare did not fairly represent race during that time period and Othello was not doomed to fail due to his race and background
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