An essay on Othello's physiological journey from total self control to near madness and back.

OTHELLO ESSAY

PHYSIOLOGICAL JOURNEY OF OTHELLO

In the Shakespearean tragedy Othello, the character of Othello has certain traits, which make him seem naïve and unsophisticated, compared to other people.

The Moor, as many Venetians call him, is of a strong character. He is very proud and in control of every move throughout the play. The control is not only of power, but also of the sense of his being a great warrior. In Act I, Othello has a scuffle with Brabantio, who has come to kill him, but before anything could happen Othello says,

"Hold your hands,

Both of you of my inclining and the rest.

Were it my cue to fight, I should have known it without a prompter"(1, ii, 80-83). The power shown here is quite astounding.

The nature of Othello's character is of a dark man. A dark man, not only because he is black, but also because his whole person is very mysterious.

From the Library of Congress: TITLE: Thos. W. Keen...

English: Photographic full-length portrait of Edwi...

Illustration of Othello and Iago

He is mysterious in the sense that he believes there is magic brewing everywhere. With this dark side, he is also very outgoing, and not very bright. He is not observant and the schemes of Iago work well on him. This is because of his big inner flaw of being open to jealousy

"It is the green-eyed monster, which doth mock

The meat it feeds on." that reduces the jealous man to nothing. (Iago, 3, iii, 166).

Firstly, it is his proleptic imagination that not only feeds on hints and suggestions given by Iago, but also leaps ahead of the information supplied.

"In Venice they do let heaven see the pranks

They dare not show their husbands". (Iago, 3, iii, 202-203).

Secondly, it is his quixotic dimension where he idealizes chivalric behaviour and is offended disproportionately when he...