Themes in Othello :: essays research papers

Themes in Shakespeares OthelloThroughout Shakespeares play, Othello, there are many beginnings distort to describe the authors perspective of the admittedly nature of a mans soul. Three themes critical to the play are interrogative sentence versus trust, monstrous imagery and the fallible love of man. One central theme of the play is the major contrast of doubt versus trust. For whatever reason, Othellos trust of Desdemona is as well weak to resist Iagos accusations. As happens in many of Shakespeares works, miscommunication and disbelieve lead to "prepostrous conclusions" (1. 3. 323). Othellos heart tells him that Desdemona loves him however the critical Iago can dismantle Othellos trust in his wife by planting seeds doubt by what appears to be rational proof. Having built Othellos curiosity about Cassios supposed judgments Iago manipulates Othello into seeing a situation between Desdemona and Cassio that does not exist. Because Othello suspects that Iago is inform ed of more details than he is telling, he begins questioning Iago. "Why of thy thought?"(3. 3. 108), "What dost thou think?" (3. 3. 116). The superficially answered questions cause Othello to make demands for further illuminance "If thou dost love me, show me thy thought" (3. 3. 127-28), "give thy thrash of thoughts the worst of words" (3. 3. 145-46), then "By heaven, Ill know thy thoughts" (3. 3. 175). Due to Othellos liken of Iagos thoughts with factual knowledge, he is eager to mistrust Cassio and does not to the full scrutinize the evidence. It is because he trusts Iago that he trusts the false facts and doubts the virtue of his wife, Desdemona. In addendum to inferring Desdemonas unfaithfulness to Othello, Iago alludes to Desdemonas duplicitous deception of her father, Brabantio -- she was able to "seel her fathers look up close as oak"-when he reminds Othello that "She did deceive her father, marrying you" (3. 3. 22 4, 220). As Othello makes his final desperate attempt at trust by saying, "I do not think but Desdemonas honest," Iago again exploits the line between thinking (or having trust) that Othellos wife is faithful and knowing (through evidence) whether it is actually true (3. 3. 241). Othello fails to see that honor cannot be subject to empirical proof. Shakespeares exploration of the concept of jealousy leads to the theme of the human minds predisposition to party favour the "monstrous." Monsters of the human psyche are self-generating, even without the prodding of an evil manipulator such as Iago.