Othello is one of Shakespeare’s most famous tragedies. This play was set up for a tragic ending from the beginning. The events leading up to the tragic end are filled with foreshadowing that some characters don’t pay attention to or care about. The tragic outcome of this play could all be blamed on Iago and his scheming foolery; but I would pinpoint Desdemona as being the main perpetrator to cause this tragedy.
Desdemona is in the middle of a scandal that she has no idea is going on. Iago has made a claim to Othello that Desdemona is sleeping with Cassio. She may have no idea that this was what has transpired behind her back, but she also doesn’t question any of her friend’s motives. She lets each character pawn her around until she can’t even speak without getting slapped. She is careless with who she talks to, and careless with who she trusts resulting in her being mixed in with bold-faced lies that have long term affects.
Desdemona is given many hints leading up to her untimely death. What she fails to do above all else is ask herself; where is my handkerchief? Why has Othello changed his demeanor?
Where is Desdemona’s handkerchief? Well you may say that blatantly obvious. Everyone in the audience understands what has happened to this sacred object and can comprehend its significance, but Desdemona doesn’t seem to notice or emphasize a sense of loss towards this.
The scene unfolds:
Othello complains of a headache.
Desdemona wraps her handkerchief around his head
The handkerchief doesn’t seem to fit
They walk away and it drops out of Desdemona’s hand.
After this event occurs Emilia is able to pick up the handkerchief and gives it to Iago. Desdemona’s fatal mistake is not turning around to snatch it up off the floor before Iago is able to get his greasy hands on it. Such a delicate thing as a handkerchief leads up to a master mess that ties each character together in a web of lies.
Desdemona is the advocate for Cassio when he is fired from his job. She pleads with Othello “Good love, call him back” (3.3.59). Desdemona has a large character flaw at this point in the play. When women become married they are to stick up for their husbands decisions. Desdemona is pretentious in this setting, she attempts to pull the wool over Othello’s eyes as to her intentions and showers her love over him. Sneaking gin how great a man Cassio is and how good he is at his job. Directly in the line of fire, Desdemona doesn’t know that her outwardly kindness of Cassio is leading her loving husband to believe she has had an affair with the dear Cassio.
Desdemona would have left herself out of this deathly mess if she had just stood by her husband’s side. She takes her love for her friends out of context and ends up digging herself a hole she is never able to climb out of. There are many acts of foreshadowing that pronounce how Othello feels toward his wife and how he changes after she lost her handkerchief. All Desdemona would have had to do was look for her most prized possession, and tell Othello the truth and she would not have led the play to its catastrophic end.
Desdemona is in the middle of a scandal that she has no idea is going on. Iago has made a claim to Othello that Desdemona is sleeping with Cassio. She may have no idea that this was what has transpired behind her back, but she also doesn’t question any of her friend’s motives. She lets each character pawn her around until she can’t even speak without getting slapped. She is careless with who she talks to, and careless with who she trusts resulting in her being mixed in with bold-faced lies that have long term affects.
Desdemona is given many hints leading up to her untimely death. What she fails to do above all else is ask herself; where is my handkerchief? Why has Othello changed his demeanor?
Where is Desdemona’s handkerchief? Well you may say that blatantly obvious. Everyone in the audience understands what has happened to this sacred object and can comprehend its significance, but Desdemona doesn’t seem to notice or emphasize a sense of loss towards this.
The scene unfolds:
Othello complains of a headache.
Desdemona wraps her handkerchief around his head
The handkerchief doesn’t seem to fit
They walk away and it drops out of Desdemona’s hand.
After this event occurs Emilia is able to pick up the handkerchief and gives it to Iago. Desdemona’s fatal mistake is not turning around to snatch it up off the floor before Iago is able to get his greasy hands on it. Such a delicate thing as a handkerchief leads up to a master mess that ties each character together in a web of lies.
Desdemona is the advocate for Cassio when he is fired from his job. She pleads with Othello “Good love, call him back” (3.3.59). Desdemona has a large character flaw at this point in the play. When women become married they are to stick up for their husbands decisions. Desdemona is pretentious in this setting, she attempts to pull the wool over Othello’s eyes as to her intentions and showers her love over him. Sneaking gin how great a man Cassio is and how good he is at his job. Directly in the line of fire, Desdemona doesn’t know that her outwardly kindness of Cassio is leading her loving husband to believe she has had an affair with the dear Cassio.
Desdemona would have left herself out of this deathly mess if she had just stood by her husband’s side. She takes her love for her friends out of context and ends up digging herself a hole she is never able to climb out of. There are many acts of foreshadowing that pronounce how Othello feels toward his wife and how he changes after she lost her handkerchief. All Desdemona would have had to do was look for her most prized possession, and tell Othello the truth and she would not have led the play to its catastrophic end.