William Shakespeare's "Othello"

Paper Summary:

This paper considers the possible reasons for the demise of Othello in Shakespeare's play of the same name and questions whether it was the predictable unwinding of a man under the duress of war, removal from his home, and the conniving of an infamous enemy, or whether his end was just an extension of his own jealousy, and could have been easily circumnavigated were it not for a series of poorly timed events which served to feed that jealousy. The paper explores both possible explanations and concludes that Othello has no one to blame but himself.

From the Paper:

'Instead, he falls silent, as if to stop the spiral of jealousy-inspired madness that has dominated the entirety of the play. Iago, the villain mastermind, would be instead the victim who was taking out revenge on a friend who had betrayed him, and not intrinsically responsible for Othello's actions. By falling silent, and keeping his suspicions to himself, he accepts his fate. This is a typical set up by Shakespeare, because only we know of Iago's intent, from the monologue in Act II, to bring about Othello's demise because of his suspected infidelity."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Macaulay, Marcia. "When Chaos Is Come Again: Narrative and Narrative Analysis in Othello." Style 39.3 (Fall2005 2005): 259-276.
• Shakespeare, William. "Othello." Backpack Literature. Ed. X. J Kennedy and Dana Gioia. New York: Pearson Longman, 2008. Pgs. 669-788.

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