Essay about Othellos Tragic Flaws - 983 Words

Shakespeare has been known to create terrific tales of love and tragedy. Even James Van Der Beek, a well known actor from Dawsons Creek, once commented that, â€Å"like all great romantics, Shakespeare realized love was a lot more likely to end with a bunch of dead Danish people than with a kiss†(Americans on the Bard). This emphasizes how easily people can relate Shakespeare to tragic love. Although he did write many poems and plays with happy endings, his tragedies stand out the most. In these tragedies, people are often led through use of misconception, trickery, or both. An example of misconception can be shown by another of Shakespeares plays, â€Å"Antony and Cleopatra,† as he wrote for Antonys part, â€Å"this foul Egyptian hath betrayed†¦show more content†¦This quote by Iago puts into Othellos mind that Desdemona may be cheating on him with Cassio. Othello then begins to question whether he was right to marry or not and although without proof, he bel ieves in Iagos words. This is shown in his statement, â€Å"why did I marry? This honest creature doubtless sees and knows more, much more, than he unfolds†(Shakespeare 1324), indicates that he quickly turns to doubting his love Desdemona and takes Iago as being credible and true. It also causes him to become jealous and angered with only a simple touch of trickery by Iago. This marks his first sign to a down hill plunge in moral. The second event to this process of tragedy is when Iago uses the handkerchief that he had his wife take to create â€Å"proof† that Desdemona was cheating on Othello with Cassio. Already ridden with jealousy, Othello demands Iago that he must have â€Å"ocular proof† to Desdemonas â€Å"deception.† In line with his devilish plan, Iago tells Othello that, â€Å"but such a handkerchief—I am sure it was your wifes—did I today see Cassio wipe his beard with† (Shakespeare 1330), knowing full well that the handke rchief was a precious symbol of love between the moor and Desdemona, although he pretended to be oblivious. His plan once again works its â€Å"poison† upon Othello as the moor says, â€Å"now do I seeShow MoreRelatedOthellos Tragic Flaws746 Words   |  3 PagesOthello’s tragic flaws Rodrigo Diaz 5/13/14 William Shakespeare wrote many plays in the 1600’s, lots of them were tragedies. William Shakespeare’s plays often had the downfall of a hero in it. In the play Othello: the tragic hero, Othello who is a larger than life character has earned a high rank in life as well as the military. He is a much respected man even though he is black. And has married a white woman named Desdemona. But when he makes the decision to make Casio Lieutenant instead ofRead MoreOthellos Tragic Flaw Essays1208 Words   |  5 Pagesby becoming a military general. In the military Othello meets Cassio and Iago, he chooses Cassio as his lieutenant which upsets Iago. The promotion of Cassio begins to show jealousy in the play. Even though Othello is not a ruler in Venice, his tragic flaws are jealousy and gullibility, therefore Othello is easily manipulated by Iago because Othello feels the need to be accepted. Iago plans to revenge Othello for not choosing him to become lieutenant, and knowing that Othello is easily deceived makesRead MoreEssay on Othellos Tragic Flaw852 Words   |  4 PagesShakespearean tragic heroes by the absolute feeling of affection the audience feels for him even unto the very end of the play. Any discerning reader painfully recognizes the virtue and goodness of Othello throughout the entire play, in contrast to the general degeneration of character so typical of a tragic hero. It is this complete pity that makes the death of Othello so tragic as the audience lends their full hopeful support until the inevitable and unavoidable fall. The evil side of Othello’s tragicRead MoreOthellos Tragic Flaw Essay example1082 Words   |  5 PagesOthellos Tragic Flaw The extravagant language and literary techniques used in Shakespeares Othello enhance the settings, characters, and themes. Othello, an intricate tragedy about good versus evil, loyalty, love, sexual jealousy, and appearance versus reality, is told in a first person point of view. The play is entitled Othello and the plot and action encompasses him, thus supporting his position of protagonist. 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Shakespeare uses this idea by adapting Aristotles view on hamartia and applying it to his play Othello. Aristotle’s Hamartia is an incident in the plot this is often translated as the tragic flaw. The tragic flaw is what captivates the audience to further reflect on Othello’s characterRead MoreThe Mirror Of Weaknesses Of Shakespeare s Othello Essay1483 Words   |  6 PagesThe grand tragic play Othello written by Shakespeare illustrates the contradictions in human natures through the display of tragic falls of various characters such as Othello, Iago, and Roderigo. Othello, the protagonist of the play, fell in love with the daughter of a nobleman, Desdemona. However, this relationship is soon broken up because Othello believed the accusation from Iago, Othello’s subordinate, towards Desdemona for having a disloyal relationship with h er husband Othello’s lieutenant