The Dramatic Flaw Of Jealousy In Shakespeare's Othello
The play Othello, written by William Shakespeare was written the 16th century during the Elizabethan era. Othello is an amazing character. He enjoyed success in the warfare, which gave him the reputation as one of Venice’s best generals. Although he has great success in the battlefield, he has a dramatic flaw that causes a downfall in his life. The dramatic flaw is jealousy. This was brought on by a simple persuasion of Iago, the antagonist of the play. Even though Iago used manipulation to get Othello jealous, it was Othello views his own racial identity and his lack of confidence in himself that allows Iago to persuade him that Desdemona is cheating on him. Othello was misguided by his jealousy which led him through a path of constant questioning
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When Othello realizes that he had been manipulated and killed his wife (desdemona) for no reason he says “..perplexed in extreme; of one whose hands, like the base judean, threw a pearl away richer than all his tribe; of one whose subdued eyes, Albeit unused to the melting mood, drop tears as fast as the arabian trees their medicinal gum(V ii, 402 ) Othello imagines h is just like an indian who “threw a pearl away” without knowing its true value. What's intriguing about the passage is that Othello supports the notion among Elizabethans that black africans and indians are “base” ( uncivilized) and summarizes accounts of europeans encounters with native americans and how europeans traded worthless beads for precious gems and gold thus agreeing with the idea that natives we to ignorant ro know the true value of anything. Othello talks of this matter in this passage to compare with the experiences he has undergone. Basically saying that Othello is the native and desdemona is the pearl. Its also important to notice how Othello compares desdemona to a pearl because it's a white gem commonly associated with purity. Thus again bringing up racism. As stated By Nicole smith “ The treatment of race in Shakespeare’s Othello is masterful. Building upon the motifs and images established in the earliest lines of the play, Shakespeare deftly portrays how a man can be defined and judged based solely on his race and not on any of his personal abilities or merits.”
When Othello realizes that he had been manipulated and killed his wife (desdemona) for no reason he says “..perplexed in extreme; of one whose hands, like the base judean, threw a pearl away richer than all his tribe; of one whose subdued eyes, Albeit unused to the melting mood, drop tears as fast as the arabian trees their medicinal gum(V ii, 402 ) Othello imagines h is just like an indian who “threw a pearl away” without knowing its true value. What's intriguing about the passage is that Othello supports the notion among Elizabethans that black africans and indians are “base” ( uncivilized) and summarizes accounts of europeans encounters with native americans and how europeans traded worthless beads for precious gems and gold thus agreeing with the idea that natives we to ignorant ro know the true value of anything. Othello talks of this matter in this passage to compare with the experiences he has undergone. Basically saying that Othello is the native and desdemona is the pearl. Its also important to notice how Othello compares desdemona to a pearl because it's a white gem commonly associated with purity. Thus again bringing up racism. As stated By Nicole smith “ The treatment of race in Shakespeare’s Othello is masterful. Building upon the motifs and images established in the earliest lines of the play, Shakespeare deftly portrays how a man can be defined and judged based solely on his race and not on any of his personal abilities or merits.”