Definition of Othello

: a Moor in the military service of Venice, husband of Desdemona, and protagonist of Shakespeare's tragedy Othello.

What is the main message of Othello?

Lesson Summary

Shakespeare's classic play Othello is about a man who falsely accuses his wife of cheating on him, and believes this lie so strongly that he eventually takes her life. Some of the major themes in this play include racial prejudice, manipulation, and jealousy.

Is Othello a word?

Othello definition

(person, proper) Its title character, a noble Moor, who, made madly jealous by the villainous Iago, kills his faithful and loving wife, Desdemona. (proper) A tragedy (1604?) by Shakespeare.

Is Othello a true story?

That Othello and Desdemona, whose real name was Palma, really existed, is clearly proved. Even the mad jealousy of Othello is historical. It is true that he did not murder his wife, but he often beat her cruelly.

What is the Othello about?

The play is set in motion when Othello, a heroic black general in the service of Venice, appoints Cassio and not Iago as his chief lieutenant. Jealous of Othello's success and envious of Cassio, Iago plots Othello's downfall by falsely implicating Othello's wife, Desdemona, and Cassio in a love affair.

Video SparkNotes: Shakespeare's Othello summary

Why is Othello called Othello?

The name was selected by Hasegawa as a reference to the Shakespearean play Othello, the Moor of Venice, referring to the conflict between the Moor Othello and Iago, and more controversially, to the unfolding drama between Othello, who is black, and Desdemona, who is white.

Was Othello a black man?

There is no final consensus over Othello's ethnicity; whether of Maghrebi origin as in the generally accepted definition of "Moor", or of Sub-Saharan African. E. A. J. Honigmann, the editor of the Arden Shakespeare edition concluded that Othello's ethnic background is ambiguous.

What race was Othello?

"Shakespeare meant Othello to be a Black Moor from Africa, an African of the highest nobility of heritage. From Kean on, Othello was made a light-skinned Moor because the West had since made Africa a slave center and the African was pictured only as a slave.”

Is Othello a love story?

The story begins in Venece, where love story turns into tragedy when beautiful, young lady Desdemona fell in love with a general in the Venetian army named Othello.

What are some symbols in Othello?

Symbols are central to understanding Othello as a play and identifying Shakespeare's social and political commentary. The significance of red is love, red strawberries like red hearts on the love token handkerchief, and like the red stains from Othello and Desdemona's first night of love on the marriage sheets.

What does ancient mean in Othello?

Of course, Iago's motive is to make Othello jealous of Cassio. Iago is the ancient, a military rank also referred to as the flag-bearer or ensign. He isn't happy with his position and is resentful of his superiors.

How is jealousy shown in Othello?

The play is a study of how jealousy can be fueled by mere circumstantial evidence and can destroy lives. (In Othello, the hero succumbs to jealousy when Iago convinces him that Desdemona has been an unfaithful wife – in the end, Othello murders his wife and then kills himself.)

Why is Othello so important?

Othello is possibly the most famous literary exploration of the warping powers of jealousy and suspicion. At the same time, it's among the earliest literary works dealing with race and racism. Othello—undeniably heroic even if ultimately flawed—is the most prominent black protagonist in early Western literature.

What is Othello based on?

Intro. Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story 'Un Capitano Moro' ('A Moorish Captain') by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565.

How is Othello relevant today?

The universal themes of betrayal, racism and jealousy show that the tragedy Othello explored the issues that are still seen in modern society. Betrayal, which is a leading theme in the play, is relevant to today's audiences.

What does Othello teach us about love?

Othello finds that love in marriage needs time to build trust, and his enemy works too quickly for him to take that time. The immediate attraction between the couple works on passion, and Desdemona builds on that passion a steadfast devotion whose speed and strength Othello cannot equal.

What are the 5 themes of Othello?

Othello Themes

• Prejudice. The most prominent form of prejudice on display in Othello is racial prejudice. ...
• Appearance vs. Reality. ...
• Jealousy. ...
• Manhood and Honor. ...
• Womanhood and Sexuality.

Why did Desdemona marry Othello?

As a women, Desdemona is considered her father's property and society dictated that the father alone must chose his daughter 's husband. Instead of marrying one of the rich Venetian men that her father expects her to marry for his own gain, she marries Othello for love.

What role does racism play in Othello?

Most characters in the play exhibit some type of racism toward Othello. His blackness "is not only a mark of his physical alienation but a symbol, to which every character in the play, himself included, must respond" ( Berry 318). Iago and Roderigo speak the most obvious racial slurs against Othello.

What colour is Othello?

American actor Orson Welles paints his face black for the role of Othello in 1951. Othello only uses the word “black” to describe himself twice.

What does black Ram mean in Othello?

Within the Jacobean period, racism was abundant within society and this is heavily reflected by Shakespeare's representation of this form of discrimination in his play. Not only is Othello regarded as the “Moor throughout the entirety of the play, but he is also described as a “black ram” and as the “devil”.

Is Othello evil?

Iago is evil in his actions towards Othello, but between the two, Othello is the most evil for reacting to lies in the most violent of ways. The evil in Iago becomes visible from the very beginning of the play.

Why is Othello a tragedy?

Othello is a tragedy because it tells the story of a noble, principled hero who makes a tragic error of judgment, leading to a devastating climax in which most of the characters end up either dead or seriously wounded.

What is Othello's tragic flaw?

Some say that Othello's tragic flaw was jealousy which flared at suspicion and rushed into action unchecked by calm common sense. A more modern interpretation would say that Othello's tragic flaw was that he had internalized, that is taken into himself, the prejudices of those who surrounded him.