unit 5: othello

MEETING 1: the beginning of othello

Page 3. 2 outstanding readers. Let’s jump right in.

A good scene revolves around conflict and tension: What’s the immediate conflict, and what other conflicts evolve throughout the scene? Who has the power? How do you know?

In 1.1, Iago reveals to Roderigo his feelings about his general, Othello. Why does he feel this way? What are your first impressions of Iago?

What’s Iago’s plan to get back at Othello?

How does Brabantio assume Othello won his daughter?

We’ll watch and converse about two versions of 1.1.

Homework: Dive into a very short scene 2 on your own. What are your first impressions of Othello? How does he respond to the accusations of Brabantio? Is the Othello we see the same one as was described in 1.1? What is his attitude toward Desdemona?

I suggest the following the method for working through a scene of Shakespeare: Read-Watch-Read. Give the scene your best effort first by reading it through. How much could you glean? Then log in to the 2013 production above and watch what you just read. It begins at 7:10 and ends at 11:21. Finally, go back to the text and read it again. Now, the scene should be much clearer compared to the first time you watched.

MEETING 2: 1.2-1.3

Let’s go through 1.2, which I ask you to read and watch before class and during which we meet the title character. If all you need to know about Othello and all you need to know about Iago and all you need to know about Cassio can be found in this scene, then what’s all you need to know about Othello, Iago, Cassio? Explain.

In 1.3, we will skip over (though I will explain) the first 47 lines of the scene, so we have time to get to the bulk of the scene.

What do we learn about Othello and Desdemona in Othello's long defense of himself? What do we learn about Desdemona from her father during that defense? Why did Othello marry Desdemona? Why did Desdemona marry Othello?

Homework: R-W-R to the end of Act 1 before our next class. Know it well, especially the dialogue between Roderigo and Iago.

MEETINGs 3 and 4: 1.3-2.1

Today we’ll begin by reviewing what it was I had you read for today: What did Iago reveal in his soliloquy at the end of 1.3? What is the convention of the soliloquy used for?

Soliloquy literally means talking alone, and it has been used as a form since the Greeks, though popularized by Shakespeare and his contemporary playwrights. In the theater, no thinking can be made directly available to the audience unless it is brought to speech, so it was necessary to propose a convention: the character would speak aloud, and the audience would understand that what they were to imagine they were hearing was what the character was saying to himself, or what he would say if he were to give voice to his thought.

I’ve already mentioned in class that real drama occurs when characters keep things from each other. The ONLY time, in fact, that an audience should accept that what characters are saying is absolutely true is when a character is in soliloquy. In all other instances there’s the possibility of deceit. So, it’s the responsibility of the playwright in a soliloquy to communicate what is absolutely true. Iago, for instance, is completely forthcoming about not knowing exactly what his plan is and what he really thinks about Othello and Roderigo. [NOTICE: Iago switches from prose to verse when Roderigo exits. Shakespeare uses this linguistic change to signal to his actors Iago was being deceptive and is now wholly forthcoming.]

2.1: Why the setting change? What is the function of the scene prior to Othello’s arrival? What do we learn about Desdemona?

What is Iago’s next plan at the end of 2.1?

Homework:

Finish reading Act 2.

MEETING 5: 3.3

“Everyone sees what you appear to be, few experience what you really are.”

“If an injury has to be done to a man it should be so severe that his vengeance need not be feared.”

“The lion cannot protect himself from traps, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must therefore be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves.”

“The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him.”

“There is no other way to guard yourself against flattery than by making men understand that telling you the truth will not offend you.”

“Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception.”

“It is much safer to be feared than loved because ... love is preserved by the link of obligation which, owing to the baseness of men, is broken at every opportunity for their advantage; but fear preserves you by a dread of punishment which never fails.”

Pick a quote from “The Prince”, above, and a character from Othello who might respond to that quote. How might that character respond?

What are the various movements in Iago’s manipulation of Othello?

Homework: Return to 3.3 and re-read the entire scene on your own, studying in greater detail the movements in the scene and Iago’s manipulative tactics. If we did not finish the scene in your class, please make sure you do so on your own.

MEETING 6: 3.3, continued

Today we’ll continue 3.3. This is the beginning of the most carefully crafted scene I know. My favorite, in fact. What’s so important about it? Just look at the emotional distance traveled by Othello:

FROM “Excellent wretch! Perdition catch my soul / But I do love thee! And when I love thee not, Chaos is come again.” (3.3.90-2) TO “Damn her, lewd minx! O, damn her! Damn her! / Come, go with me apart; I will withdraw / To furnish me with some swift means of death / For the fair devil” (3.3.476-9).

He moves from claiming that the only way he couldn’t love Desdemona is if the world reverted back to the time before God created order. A virtual impossibility! And yet look what happens: By the end of the scene he’s sentencing her to hell after a speedy death by his own hand. It had to happen somehow. But how?

Homework: (1) Read Maria Konnikova’s “Born to be Conned”.

MEETING 7: 3.3, 3.4

Before moving into 3.4, let’s spend a bit more time with some of the key speeches from 3.3. Which did you choose? What did you discover?

Homework: Read 4.1. This is a scene filled with action. Notice how it begins. What does it have in common with earlier scenes? What is Iago doing to Othello in the first 45 lines? What does he hope to gain from Othello he does not already have? This is a key question in understanding Iago’s motivations moving forward.