Questions: Act 5 scene 2 lines 1-233

What reasons does Othello give for having to kill Desdemona?

Othello kills Desdemona as a favour for himself, herself and other people; Othello feels that if Desdemona were to stay alive she will 'betray more men' (6) so killing her will give him justice for being 'cheated' on. Othello also outright says he has seen Cassio with the hankerchief 'I have seen the hankerchief' (65) thus pinpointing another reason for killing Desdemona - jealousy.

What evidence is there to suggest that Shakespeare adhered to racial stereotypes in this scene? Consider:
irrational behaviour
emotions
danger
the 'mystical negro' stereotype
representations of the 'other'
Even though Othello toys with the idea of killing her 'O balmy breath that dost almost persuade' (17) Othello murders Desdemona, adhering to the 'dangerous' racial stereotype, Othello is also presented as letting his emotions take control eg. when he mentions his jealousy and upset over the idea of Cassio with Desdemona 'Cassio did top her' (136) - this stereotype is even more enforced due to Shakespeare writing Othello to overreact to the false information.Othello too, conforms to the irrational black stereotype in that he goes to stab Iago '(he lunges with a sword at Iago)' (233) with less than 100 lines to think about it and is in an irrational mindset. Linking with the mystical negro stereotype, Desdemona claims that Othello's 'eyes roll so' (39) as though he isn't quite normal. Othello blames the moon for the actions taken place 'it is the very error of the moon'(110) implying that he is lead by nature - pathetic fallacy - especially the planets, thus has more mystique to him.

Othello tells Desdemona that Cassio has confessed to sleeping with her (line 68). What was this 'confession'?
Cassio's confession is that 'he hath used thee' (71), however Othello made this up as Desdemona has said one thing and Iago has said another, so he is tangled up in Iago's plan that he doesn't know what's true and what's false.

Emilia says "Good gentleman, let me have leave to speak./ 'Tis proper I obey him - but not now!" [5.2.192-193] what does this indicate about Emilia and society? Consider the circumstances the characters are in.
Emilia is being presented as a strong, brave and not-so passive woman which isn't a regular occurrence in the 16th century and transcends many female gender binary stereotypes. Emilia is standing up for Desdemona instead of her husband which at the time is not the done thing to do however with all of the out of order behaviours happening in the scene, Emilia's verbal liberation fits in with the other commotion.

How is Emilia presented in lines 125-233. Consider the language she uses, how she behaves and what she says to Othello and Iago.
Emilia is definitely presented as angry in this scene plus has an element of protectiveness over her dead lady. Emilia is constantly told to be quiet 'peace, you were best' (163) and 'hold your peace' (218) 'get you home' (223) and fights back every time 'No, I will speak as liberal as the north' (220) and 'I will not charm my tongue, I am bound to speak' (185) which shows her strength of character in order to get justice for Desdemona. Emilia also unmasks Iago as the villain behind all of the commotion 'he begged of me to steal it' (228) presenting her as a wise and virtuous character because she wants everyone to know the truth.

List all of the names Emilia calls Othello when she realises what he has done. How does this contrast with how Othello was portrayed at the start of the play?
'the blacker devil' (131)
'devil' (133)
'gull' 'dolt' (164)
'dull moor' (225)
'murderous coxcomb' (234)
These names contrast with the valiant Othello at the beginning of the play. The General that had men fighting over him to be his lieutenant. Mostly, at the beginning of the play, Othello was called things with connotations with virtue and valour, and now he is described as the complete opposite - a man turned into the devil after being with Iago for a day.

How does Shakespeare create a sense of fear and confusion in act 5 sc 1?

Act 5 scene 1 is the fight scene within Othello’s men where Cassio and Roderigo get wounded.

The scene is similar to the opening scene in that the setting is a ‘street’ in the night time. Language spoken by the pawns in Iago’s plan creates confusion within the characters as Cassio is unaware that Roderigo and Iago plan to kill him. Fear is built when Iago instructs Roderigo to ‘wear thy good rapier bare’ (2) and as the instruction implies striking Cassio, the audience fears for Cassio’s safety.

Cassio states ‘that thrust had been mine enemy indeed’ (24) which indicates that the attacker has no identity as far as Cassio is aware. After Othello’s entrance, Rodrigo admits to his crime ‘O, villain that I am’ (28) however Othello thinks that the person confessing to being villainous is Cassio which could spark a sense of confusion within the audience if the actors have similar sounding voices and/or are unfamiliar with the play.

Lodovico and Gratiano’s presence in the scene bring about fear because these men trust Iago ‘a very valiant fellow’ (52) and through dramatic irony, the audience know that Iago is not to be trusted. Also, as Iago has instructed to kill Cassio, he is a fearful character because he is putting his so called friend’s life on the line. Iago has gone from doing small and petty actions to get his way such as intentionally allowing Othello and Roderigo to misconstrued what he says, however now is willing to have someone die for what he wants; the audience should be fearful as to what other lengths he will go to for his plan to follow through.

Iago’s lines tend to be a centre of confusion in this scene especially when he strings Bianca into his plan. With Bianca being a woman, Iago’s word will be taken over hers due to her status being much lower than Iago’s and the 17^th century being a suppressive time for women. Iago states ‘I do suspect this trash to be a party in this injury’ (84) and ends up arresting her for ‘provoking’ the fight between Roderigo and Cassio ‘I charge you’ (119). Bianca, showing her confusion of being blamed and fear of her punishment, defends herself ‘I am no strumpet but of a life as honest as you’ (121) however even the truth coming from her doesn’t account for the power Iago has manipulated for himself.

CAST CASSIO

Sam Claflin *heart eyes*

My choice for Cassio is Sam Claflin. First of all hes gorgeous and his smile seems so inviting and warm which is perfect for a friendly Cassio. Claflin grew up in Norwich, Norfolk and is best known as his portrayal of Finnick from The Hunger Games film series. Claflin usually plays the attractive heart-breaker which is similar to the role of Cassio; roles such as Alex in Love, Rosie, Finnick in the Hunger Games and Alistair in The Riot Club support this. Sam Claflin is 29 however is younger than Iwan (my Iago) plus with some makeup Iago can be made to look older and Sam looks younger than his age in my opinion anyway. From my research, Claflin hasn't been in any professional stage productions however has done plenty of film and TV so he is experienced enough to pull of the character. Claflin is also British, fitting with the rest of my cast and definitely has qualities that would make Othello jealous of him and enforce his belief that Desdemona would cheat with him. Also, I think that Calflin could pull of the Florentine look as well as looking chivalrous.

OTHELLO AND IAGO

According to Adrian Lester, how long has Othello been fighting for?
Othello has been fighting since the age of 7

According to Adrian Lester, Othello is not born into a 'sense of nobility', like those around him. How does Adrian Lester say this impacts the character?
Othello is very aware of how he appears in front of the Venetians,  

What increases Othello's status in Venice?
Marrying Desdemona, the only child of a well to do senator, thus Othello stands to inherit a good position

Why does Rory Kinnear say Iago is disgruntled with Othello?
Iago is 'disgruntled' with Othello because Cassio has been effectively favored over him due to him being younger and posher. Iago has seen and experienced the same war horrors as Othello so finds it unfair that someone with less experience gets the job over him.

What do Othello and Iago have in common, according to Rory Kinnear?
Othello and Iago are both soldiers that started from the bottom. However Othello, through charisma, skills and strength as a soldier, has overtaken Iago, hence Othello being the General. 

Around 4.20, Rory Kinnear lists some of the ways Iago aims to bring down Othello and Cassio. What are they?
Iago's ways to bring people down are through: 

subterfuge (deceit)
insinuation (unpleasant hint/ suggestion of something bad)
getting people on his side

CAST DESDEMONA

Carrie Hope Fletcher



My choice for Desdemona is Carrie Fletcher, best known for playing Eponine in the West End's Les Miserables. Carrie is 23, therefore is around Desdemona's age (young) and has a lot of performing experience. I feel that Carrie has a Desdemona look about her - she has a sweet smile and looks empowered. Due to her experience playing Eponine (Les Mis), Beth (War of the Worlds) and Truly Scrumptious (Chitty, to name a few), she is used to playing the lead females in theatre. Carrie playing Eponine had to *spoiler alert* die every show, so Carrie is used to death scenes; she also able to sing well, evident by her major roles in musical theatre, so Desdemona's singing scene with Emilia will be a piece of cake. Carrie is British - in keeping with Shakespeare's original times - and has presented as well as won theatre awards so I think she would make an excellent Desdemona.

Act 3 Scene 3 - Is Iago an opportunist or a strategist?

Iago is the puppet master of the play Othello and definitely is a large contributor towards Othello’s tragic downfall due to Iago’s envy of Othello’s rank and reputation.

Iago, pervious to Act 3 Sc 3, had planned to pull Cassio away from his lieutenancy because he felt as though he would be more suited for the position of Othello’s lieutenant- despite the fact that he dislikes Othello- and in aim to gain Othello’s trust Iago ends up sabotaging Othello’s marriage.

The fact that Iago had a plan in the first place makes him a strategist, however Iago in act 3 sc 3 (so far) performs no asides which are to inform the audience to of his plan. Iago instead includes glimpses of what his plan entails in conversations with Othello which carry the element of spontaneity. Iago didn’t exactly plan in depth what he was going to say to Othello about Cassio, because Iago wasn’t to know that Cassio would walk away when Othello approached Desdemona, so his choice of words ‘that he would steal away so guilty-like’ (40) displays that Iago only had a minute or so to come up with a remark thus presenting Iago as an opportunist. Othello around 70 lines later asks ‘When Cassio left my wife. What didst not like?’ (114) proving that Iago’s unplanned comment did not go to waste, so him being opportunist paid off in this situation because Othello’s interest is peaked.

Iago seems to be more of a strategist than an opportunist because in Act 3 Sc 3 he links a lot of his speeches to his plan to bring Casso down ‘note if your lady strain his entertainment’ (253) however does take the opportunity to enrich his plan when the time arises eg. incorporating the napkin into the situation, but I think he is too cunning for his doings to all be spontaneous.       

CAST IAGO

Shia LaBeouf

Nah, just kidding. Shia could attempt Iago but I don't think he has enough evil in him to capture to portray the character. Shia's works are more of the hero type character; but I do envision Iago with an intimidating beard and stern yet entrancing glare. Shia is 29 which is close enough to Iago's age (34ish). Also, I would prefer Iago to not be American due to Shakespeare's origins being British, so I think there's a better fit. It'd be cool if LaBeef was Iago though. I am a fan. I ship it.

Iwan Rheon

 

I think Iwan would make a great Iago. Iwan is most well known for his character Simon in Misfits and Ramsay in Game of Thrones. Ramsay Snow in Game of Thrones is one of the most evil characters in the show and Simon apparently murders someone, so Iwan does a great 'baddie'. I feel like the manipulation element of Iago comes from charm and that can be found in Iwan's striking blue eyes which can subsequently make him seem more of a Machiavelli. Iwan is almost 31 so he is closer to Iago's age and he seems to have a natural sense of darkness about him, plus he has an Iago-esque beard which can be used as a sort of mask to imply that Iago isn't being his true self. Iwan was also born in Wales (which is in Britain, like Shakespeare) which is close enough to British - he can do a convincing British accent nonetheless.   

via GIPHY