Othello
William Shakespeare

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Essay Questions Othello Iago Other characters Themes & issues

For Your Viewing Pleasure Links: Websites Links: Online Readings Books: Other Works Books: Criticism Movies

Introduction

Othello is, in one sense of the word, by far the most romantic figure among Shakespeare's heroes; and he is so partly from the strange life of war and adventure which he has lived from childhood. He does not belong to our world, and he seems to enter it we know not whence -- almost as if from wonderland. There is something mysterious in his descent from men of royal siege; in his wanderings in vast deserts and among marvellous peoples; in his tales of magic handkerchiefs and prophetic Sibyls; in the sudden vague glimpses we get of numberless battles and sieges in which he has played the hero and has borne a charmed life; even in chance references to his baptism, his being sold to slavery, his sojourn in Aleppo. A. C. Bradley in Shakespearean Tragedy (1904)

For Your Viewing Pleasure

Links: Websites

• AM study guide for Othello
• Sparknotes on Othello
• Interview with Actors performing in Othello
• Othello: Race, Place and Identity
• Quarto and Folio editions of Othello

Links: Online Readings

• Four Essays on Othello including a lecture by A.C.Bradley
• Shakespeare Online Essays on Othello
• Joel LittauerExamining Shakespeare Tragedy
• On Race and Religion
• Seven Essays on Othello

Books: Other Works

• Coming soon

Books: Criticism

• Othello : Critical Essays (Shakespeare Criticism) ed. by Philip C. Kolin
  Philip Kolin is Professor of English at the University of Southern Mississippi. He is the series editor of the Shakespeare Criticism series. This book has a whole range of informative essays by authorities in Shakespearean criticism.

Movies

• Coming soon

Essay Questions: Character

Othello

1. 'Othello does not kill Desdemona in jealousy, but from conviction forced upon him by the almost superhuman art of Iago.' Discuss. [CJC]
2. 'Why, anything: an honourable murderer, if you will.' Consider the notion of Othello as 'an honourable murderer'. [CJC]
3. 'Othello's story is the perfect illustration of man's tragic vulnerability.' Is Othello's downfall a consequence of his own weakness or circumstances beyond his control? [TPJC]
4. 'The real criminal in Othello is not Iago but Othello himself.' Do you consider this a valid comment about the play? [May Common Test 2002]
5. 'Shakespeare deliberately stressed Othello's lack of intellectual acumen, psychological insight and even plain common sense.' How helpful do you find this statement in your evaluation of Othello as a tragic hero? [JC1 Promotion Exam 2002]
6. 'Othello's occupation's gone.' Discuss the importance of Othello's profession in the dramatic development of the play. [ACJC]
7. '... this rash and unfortunate man.' How far, in your view, is Othello responsible for the play's tragic outcome? [TJC]
8. 'Othello: noble Moor or hollow egotist?' Discuss. [RJC]
9. 'Othello's credulity borders on stupidity and this is not a quality acceptable in a tragic hero. Consequently the play suffers from this central weakness.' Do you accept this viewpoint? [RJC]
10. 'For he was great of heart' (Cassio). Do you think that Othello was 'great at heart'? Is this the only way in which he can be seen as great?
11. 'The faults in Othello's character reduce him, and hence the play, to less than tragic stature.' Discuss.
12. 'We should despise Othello if he had been deceived by a less consummate villain than Iago.' Discuss.
13. Is excessive pride Othello's major weakness in the play Othello?
14. 'Othello gets what he deserves.' How fair a judgement is this?
15. 'A credulous husband and a foolish wife.' Discuss this estimate of Othello and Desdemona.

Iago

1. 'Iago is an inhuman dramatic device who acts without motive, and hence without credibility.' What is your view of the way Iago is presented in Othello?
2. 'Iago makes people destroy themselves by making them instruments of his will'. How far do you agree with this statement? [ACJC]
3. Iago's skill in using appearances, of people and events, for his own ends is the main factor in his success.' Discuss. [ACJC]
4. Iago reigns supreme among all the characters in Othello. Discuss. [JI]
5. Making detailed reference to the play, say what challenges and rewards the role of Iago offers the actor. [JJC]
6. 'Far from being a satanic genius, Iago is merely a man who loses control of his petty vindictiveness.' How far do you agree with this point of view? [YJC]
7. 'We should despise Othello if he had been deceived by a less consummate villain than Iago.' Discuss.
8. 'Iago was a brilliant opportunist who had plenty of motive to prompt his schemes and heaven-sent human material with which to develop them.' Discuss.
9. How far do you agree with the view that the most enthralling scenes in the play are those between Othello and Iago? [Cambridge 2002]
10. 'Iago is a villain who seems to tap the very root of evil.' Discuss Shakespeare's presentation of Iago in Othello.
11. 'Iago's effectiveness is plausible. Watching the brilliant, oblique way Iago rouses and focuses Othello's doubts makes it hard for us to feel complacent, to pass the kind of judgement that Thomas Rymer did in the seventeenth century against Othello for mere brute stupidity.' How convincing do you find this opinion?
12. 'Iago's longing to satisfy the sense of power is, I think, the strongest of the forces that drive him on.' (A. C. Bradley) Discuss Iago's motivations in the light of Bradley's judgement.
13. 'A close, dissembling, false, insinuating rascal.' (Thomas Rymer) Use this view of Iago as a starting point in an essay on why Iago is such a compelling character.
14. 'Iago has many convincing reasons for wanting to destroy Othello.' Discuss Shakespeare's handling of the characterization of Iago in the light of this comment. [Cambridge, June 2003]

Other Characters

1. 'The women in Othello lack power and importance; they are used purely as dramatic devices to offset the tragedy of the main character.' How far would you agree with this statement?
2. Discuss Shakespeare's portrayal of the women in Othello.
3. 'In Othello, Shakespeare presents women as victims of men.' How far does your reading of the play support this view?
4. 'Everybody must pity Desdemona, but I cannot bring myself to like her.' (W. H. Auden) Discuss the presentation of Desdemona in the light of Auden's comment.
5. Consider the role and significance of both Roderigo and Cassio in the play Othello.
6. Outline the part played in Othello by Cassio, and show in detail what he contributes to the dramatic interest of the work.

Essay Questions: Themes

1. 'The essence of Othello is in the contrast between black and white, good and evil, love and hate.' Discuss. [ACJC]
2. 'It is merely a lust of the blood, and a permission of the will.' Consider this view of love in the light of your own reading of Othello.
3. In what ways, and with what dramatic effects, is intrigue explored in the play?
4. 'The play is about jealousy, but the true jealousy is Iago's.' Discuss. [TPJC]
5. 'The essence of drama is conflict'. In what ways, and with what dramatic effect, is conflict explored in Othello?
6. In what ways and with what dramatic effect are envy and jealousy explored in the play? [CJC]
7. What do we learn in Othello about suspicion and envy?
8. How important is honesty to the meaning and effect of the play? [CJC]
9. Discuss how jealousy is explored in Othello.
10. In what ways and with what dramatic effect is the notion of honour and integrity explored in Othello?
11. How important in Othello is the idea of reputation? [YJC]
12. 'A tragedy of racial bigotry, pride and jealousy.' Is this a fair judgement of Othello?
13. 'A tragedy of racial bigotry, not of jealousy.' How far do you agree with this view of the play Othello? (race)
14. Discuss some of the ways in which race contributes to the tragedy of Othello.
15. In what ways and with what dramatic effect are duty and passion presented in the play? [YJC]
16. What do you think Shakespeare is saying about love and duty in Othello?
17. How far do we see different attitudes to love presented in Othello?
18. What particular aspects of Othello, in your view, contribute to its effectiveness as a play for the stage?
19. Discuss the treatment of love in Shakespeare's Othello. (love)
20. 'Othello's love for Desdemona is clearly subordinated to his soldierly pride.' Discuss how this statement enhances your appreciation of the tragedy of Othello. (love and the military)
21. 'What the play Othello shows us is that deceit and pride can easily overcome love.' How far do you agree with this statement? (love and jealousy)
22. How central is the idea of jealousy to the play Othello? (jealousy)
23. "…not I for love and duty, But seeming so, for my peculiar end." How important is 'seeming' - deceptive appearance - to the meaning and effect of the play Othello? (deception)
24. "When you shall these unlucky deeds relate, Speak of me as I am. Nothing extenuate, Nor set down aught in malice." How significant is reputation to the meaning and effect of the play Othello? (reputation)
25. 'Othello is a play of violent contrasts of language, character and mood.' Discuss these and any other contrasts you have found in the play.
26. Discuss the dramatic appeal of Othello on stage.
27. 'Civilized' man is essentially living a life of self-deception; there is little we can do to eradicate the primitive and barbaric within us. How helpful is this approach to your appreciation of the use of animal and demonic imagery in the play Othello? (lang & imagery)