Othello is a play written by William Shakespeare that tells the story of a Moorish general who falls in love with a Venetian woman. The play explores the theme of love and its various forms, including forbidden love, unrequited love, and self-love.
Othello is one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays, and its themes of love and jealousy have been widely interpreted by writers and critics over the centuries. The play has been adapted for film, television, and opera, and its characters have become iconic figures in literature and popular culture.
The motif of love is prevalent in William Shakespeare’s Othello. The following are the major themes: Love can be used against you, love can be molded, and love is blinding (unconditional love). The theme of love being used against you is best illustrated in Othello and Desdemona, Cassio and Bianca, Roderigo and Desdemona, and Iago, Roderigo, and Brabantio. It’s easiest to see how the concept of unquenchable love affected these three couples in Emilia and Iago; as well as Brabantio and Desdemona.
Love can be used against you/love can be manipulated is best shown in Othello and Desdemona. Othello falls in love with Desdemona and because he is so in love with her he does not see that she is using him. She uses him to get what she wants which is to be married to him and move away from her father.
Othello is so blinded by his love for her that he cannot see what she is doing. Another example of this theme is Cassio and Bianca. Bianca uses Cassio to get money from him. She knows that he is in love with her and she takes advantage of that. She manipulates him into giving her money.
Roderigo also falls victim to this theme. He is in love with Desdemona and because of that he does whatever she asks him to do. She asks him to kill Cassio and he does it without thinking twice about it. Iago also uses this theme to his advantage. He manipulates Othello into believing that Desdemona is cheating on him. He does this by planting evidence and making Othello think that he saw her with another man.
Love is blinding is best shown in Desdemona and Othello, Emilia and Iago, and Brabantio and Desdemona. Desdemona is so in love with Othello that she cannot see what he is really like. She is blinded by her love for him and she does not see that he is a jealous and violent man.
Emilia is also blinded by her love for Iago. She does not see that he is using her. She is so loyal to him that she does not see what he is really like. Brabantio is blinded by his love for Desdemona. He cannot see that she is in love with Othello. He is so wrapped up in his own world that he cannot see what is right in front of him.
Othello is now so engulfed in thoughts of betrayal that he is willing to kill her. Othello’s love has turned into hate and all because Iago fed him lies. Othello finally see’s the truth but it’s too late, \”I will weep no more.\” (V,ii, 353) Othello sees that his actions were all for nothing, “And yet, how nature erring from itself-
–Of one thing so express and admirable-,
Could err assuring me that Desdemona
Was disloyal! O thou weed, who are so lovely fair and smell’s so sweet
That the sense aches at thee, would thou had’st ne’er been born!” (V,ii, 346-352) Othello has finally realized his actions were all for naught. Othello’s love turned to hate, and then back to love, but it was too late. Othello killed the one he loved because of Iago’s lies and schemes. Love is a very powerful emotion that can make people do things they never thought possible. Othello is a perfect example of how love can make someone do something they never thought possible.
William Shakespeare’s Othello is a story about the power of love. Othello, a Moorish general in the service of Venice, falls in love with Desdemona, the daughter of a Venetian senator. Othello and Desdemona are married, but Othello’s lieutenant, Iago, is jealous of Othello and plots against him. Iago uses Othello’s love for Desdemona against him, hinting to Othello that she has been unfaithful. Othello believes Iago and, in a fit of rage, kills Desdemona.
Othello realizes that he loved her too much and was too easily jealous. \”I have no great devotion to the deed And yet he hath given me satisfying reasons: ‘Tis but a man gone. Forth, my sword: he dies.\” (V, ii, 354 – 356) Othello kills her out of love because he can’t stand the thought of her with someone else.
Othello is a play about love Gone wrong. Othello falls in love with Desdemona and they get married. Othello is then tricked by Iago into thinking that Desdemona is cheating on him with Cassio. Othello then kills her in a fit of rage. Othello realizes too late that he was tricked and that Desdemona was innocent. Othello’s love for her led him to his downfall.
\”Your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two backs.\” (I, i, 118-119) love is Othello’s downfall. Othello’s love for Desdemona makes him susceptible to Iago’s lies and manipulation. Othello is so consumed by his love for her that he is willing to kill her when he believes she has been unfaithful.
\”It is the cause, it is the cause, my soul…Let me a kiss before you kill me.\” (V, ii, 1-2)
While love can be a beautiful thing, as seen in Othello, it can also be dangerous. Love can make people do irrational things and can be used as a weapon against someone. Othello is a prime example of how love can lead to destruction.
Othello’s love for Desdemona is Othello’s undoing. Othello is so in love with Desdemona that he cannot see that she could never cheat on him. Othello’s love is so strong that it clouds his judgement and leads to his demise.
“I will wear my heart upon my sleeve/ For daws to peck at: I am not what I am./What a full fortune does the thick-lips owe/ If he can carry’t thus!” (I, I 65,-68)
Othello here is saying that he will wear his heart on his sleeve, meaning he will show his love for Desdemona openly, and that he is not what he seems. Othello is saying that he seems like a tough guy on the outside, but on the inside he is a softie because of his love for Desdemona. Othello’s love makes him vulnerable to Iago’s manipulation.
Desdemona’s love for Othello is pure and true. Desdemona elopes with Othello despite her father’s protests because she truly loves him. Desdemona does not care about Othello’s race or social status, she just loves him for who he is.
“My noble father,/I do perceive here a divided duty:/To you I am bound for life and education;/My life and education both do learn me/How to respect you; you are the lord of duty;/I am hitherto your daughter: but here’s my husband,/And so much duty as my mother showed/To you, preferring you before her father,/So much I challenge that I may profess/Due to the Moor my lord.” (I, iii, 264-273)
Desdemona is telling her father that she still respects him, but she is now married to Othello and she owes him the same respect. Desdemona’s love for Othello is so strong that she is willing to go against her father’s wishes and elope with Othello.
In Othello, Shakespeare presents the theme of love in several ways. The most obvious form of love is the relationship between Othello and Desdemona. Theirs is a true and passionate love, one that Othello is willing to sacrifice everything for. However, Shakespeare also examines other kinds of love, such as the self-love that causes Othello to doubt Desdemona’s fidelity, and Iago’s cynical view of love as something that can be used to control others.
Throughout the play, Othello’s love for Desdemona is tested by his own insecurities and by Iago’s schemes. Othello begins to doubt Desdemona’s faithfulness not because she gives him any reason to, but because he is susceptible to Iago’s manipulation. Othello loves Desdemona so much that he is willing to believe Iago’s lies, despite all evidence to the contrary. In the end, Othello’s love for Desdemona is his undoing; consumed by jealousy, he kills her, only to realize too late that she was faithful all along.
Iago also uses love as a weapon against Othello and Desdemona. He tells Roderigo that if he does not win Desdemona’s love within one night, then Iago will kill him. This shows how little Iago actually believes in love; for him, it is simply a tool to be used to control others. In the end, Iago’s scheme destroys not only Othello and Desdemona’s love, but also Othello’s faith in love itself.