Shakespeares Othello and Uncontrolled Jealousy Essay

Othello and Uncontrolled Jealousy Dominating the protagonist in William Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello is the passion of sexual jealousy. Dominating the antagonist is another type of jealousy toward Cassio, and hatred toward the general. Let us look closely at the concept of jealousy as it is revealed in this drama. Lily B. Campbell in Shakespeare’s Tragic Heroes definitively categorizes Othello as a â€Å"study in jealousy†: Othello has suffered less in its modern interpretation than any other of Shakespeare’s tragedies, it would seem. So insistently did Shakespeare keep this tragedy unified about the theme of jealousy and the central victims of the passion, so obviously did he mould his plot about the black Moor and the†¦show more content†¦Francis Ferguson in â€Å"Two Worldviews Echo Each Other† describes how there is no cure for the jealous passion that rules Iago’s life: On the contrary, in the â€Å"world† of his philosophy and his imagination, where his spirit lives, there is no cure for passion. He is, behind his mask, as restless as a cage of those cruel and lustful monkeys that he mentions so often. It has been pointed out that he has no intelligible plan for destroying Othello, and he never asks himself what good it will do him to ruin so many people. It is enough for him that he â€Å"hates† the Moor. . . .(133) Act 1 Scene 1 opens with an expression of jealousy: Roderigo is upbraiding Iago because of the elopement of the object of his affections –Desdemona -- with the Moor: â€Å"Thou told’st me thou didst hold him in thy hate.† Iago responds with an expression of jealousy, saying that he does indeed hate the general because he â€Å"Nonsuits my mediators; for, ‘Certes,’ says he, / ‘I have already chose my officer.’† With both Roderigo and the ancient spurred on by jealousy, they storm the home of the senator, Brabantio, and father of Desdemona in a vain effort to have him recover the missing girl. Brabantio is very jealous of the man who has stolen his daughter because she has been his only companion and help in the home: â€Å"And what’s to come of my despised time / Is naught but bitterness.† At the head of his mob, theShow MoreRelatedPower, Race and Women in Othello by Shakespear and Sax1443 Words   |  6 Pagesstereo typical view of Othello, as a â€Å"Barbary horse,† depicting him as an animalistic outsider. Through the image of conflict in black and white, Iago emphasises on the racial demarcation between Othello and Desdemona, that â€Å"an old black ram is tupping your white ewe,† associating Othello with uncontrolled animalistic sexuality. Iago’s overt and vicious racism becomes representative of the reigning stereotype of the African on the Elizabethan stage †¢ Insecure because of his race, Othello echoes Iago’sRead MoreEssay on Conflict in Othello877 Words   |  4 PagesOthello is a play which contains many conflicts between the characters. 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