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.