Human Emotions In The Othello Play

“Shakespeare’s ability to summarize the range of human emotions in simple yet profoundly eloquent verse is perhaps the greatest reason for his enduring popularity. If you cannot find words to express how you feel about love or music or growing older, Shakespeare can speak for you. No author in the Western world has penned more beloved passages” (John Bartlett, 1919).

Introduction

The purpose of the essay is to prove the thesis basic statement. The paper contains such requirements as thesis, argument and content that demonstrate an awareness of complexity and contradiction in approach to the text; writing shows evidence of abstract, critical and careful original thought; thesis provides a strong, coherent critical argument that is developed through the course of the essay. It consists from summarizing and analyzing the information and thoughts, given in different works about this theme. Detailed overview can allow getting the main ideas, advantages and disadvantages of a big amount of thoughts and arguments. In conclusion, the inference let us summarize and sum up all the information we are going to discuss. The main statement or thesis of the writing is to prove that “Othello” by William Shakespeare is not just mundane waste of ink, but one of the greatest plays that contribute a lot to our culture. In addition, paragraphs and sections of the argument in the essay are structured and linked logically and fully integrated into overall argument; the essay is structured by its argument, rather than by a descriptive analysis or chronological explanation. Thus, let me begin to explain. William Shakespeare was one of the most mysterious and talented English poet and playwright and created great tragedies, comedies and historical plays.

Main body of the essay

You will never say that Shakespeare’s plays are only mundane waste of ink. Shakespeare’s plays are always influence on people, they are fascinating and truthfully, sincere and touching. Each of his tragedies shows us pure evil or eternal love: different human’s relationships that are why Shakespeare’s works are famous throughout the centuries. Time changes and people change with it, but main problems and questions are still the same. It can generally be said that this great author shows many-sided people’s relations and feelings, contradictory or high-minded actions. Shakespeare’s plays touch human feelings and relationships, first, friendship and love, this can be said without any doubt. That is why people are looking for the answers for their questions in Shakespeare’s creations. That is why this man is known by each of us. That is why his works leave some trace in our minds and hearts. Plundering on the breathtaking and shocking feelings in literature, I stumbled upon the Shakespeare’s play “Othello”. I realized that his plays are definitely talented. I am going to talk about the characters, plot and history of this play through this paper. The introduction will refer to different themes. All standpoints about this book are contradictory and varied. Nevertheless, you should read this play to understand and determine what place does it occur in your life. I did. Moreover, I must admit that, it is not just another mundane waste of ink, whatever it can be said to be. It is worth of attention, as I will prove it through this paper.

As far as I am concerned, William Shakespeare never published any of his plays and thus none of the original manuscripts has survived. However, eighteen unauthorized versions of his plays were published during his lifetime in quarto editions by unscrupulous publishers (there were no copyright laws protecting Shakespeare and his works during the Elizabethan era). A collection of his works did not appear until 1623 (a full seven years after Shakespeare’s death on April 23, 1616) when two of his fellow actors, Hemminges and Cordell, posthumously recorded his work and published 36 of William’s plays in the First Folio. The plot of this fascinating and thrilling play (“Othello”) is as unpredictable and gripping as possible. I was reading being at home all alone. I was sitting in my chair; I was absorbed in the story when it suddenly occurred to me that I heard someone’s voice. Trying to ignore my intense fears, I was going on reading. My wish to catch the main idea of this novel began to seem frantic. The characters appeared to be convincing and incredibly original, so I was going through with the heroes of the Shakespeare’s book. When I finished, words and snatches of conversations echoed around my head, so I could not sleep. Thus, I had much time to summarize and analyze the play.

According to Bradley, Othello is, in one sense of the word, by far the most romantic figure among Shakespeare’s heroes; and he is so partly from the strange life of war and adventure, which he has lived from childhood. He does not belong to our world, and he seems to enter it we know not whence – almost as if from wonderland. There is something mysterious in his descent from men of royal siege, in his wanderings in vast deserts and among marvelous peoples (1904, pg 1, <http://web.singnet.com.sg/~yisheng/notes/shakespeare/othello_b.htm>). In addition, Othello’s mysterious world is attractive to readers because of its magic tales about handkerchiefs and even about prophetic Sibyls; its contrast when a man who was born and lived in charmed life shows himself as a hero in vague glimpses of many battles and fights; and others facts.

Definitely, it can be said that “Othello” is complicated and mysterious world, which contains of pure love and jealousy that makes people mad and obsessed. “Othello” has its nervous system, which helps author to feel his play and heroes in his mind. Was Othello in sane? Yes, he was. At last, he thought he was. His love was too strong to let him control his emotions. His pure and tragic love changed into jealousy and even abhorrence. It was spiteful joke of his destiny: the one he loved he killed with his hands; the one he loved as a friend seemed to be a traitor. His friend Iago and woman he loved Desdemona – both seemed to be betrayers to Othello. They were innocent, but Othello could not find it out because of love that blinded, that make Othello just a toy in the destiny’s hands. Was Othello right or wrong? Who knows? The answer can lie in Shakespeare’s play. It can generally be said that Othello became mentally disturb, but in his own world, the world of love and jealousy, which cannot be understood by others, he is sane. It is hard to people to understand him, to people who have never faced these situations. Does this play teach us something? Without any doubts, it does. It can definitely be said. This play is a mysterious world, it can be judged or understood, but never wiped off. Creations of their authors, plays include feelings, words, and dearest moments. To sum up, reading this play is not mortifying thing, it is not just wasting the time. Maybe, it shows us that there is always a second way, another possible chance and direct that can lead to the different results. Unfortunately, love has not always good happy ending. Any way, each of us has to choose its own way, its own ending of the story and love.

According to Hazitts who told about Othello’s and Iago’s characters, it has been said that tragedy purifies the affections by terror and pity. That is, it substitutes imaginary sympathy for mere selfishness. It gives us a high and permanent interest, beyond ourselves, in humanity as such. It raises the great, the remote, and the possible to an equality with the real, the little and the near. The Iago’s character is one of the supererogations of Shakespear’s genius (William Hazlitt, 2000-2005, pg 1, <http://absoluteshakespeare.com/guides/othello/characters/othello_characters_essay.htm>). Some people, who are not wise but nice, can think about Iago’s character that it is unnatural, which can be explained with Iago’s villainy that does not have any sufficient motive. Talking about characters of the play in full length, I must mention that Desdemona, Othello and Iago are basic main heroes that tell reader their tragic story. Whole story is full of feelings and emotions that make people’s destiny and behaviour, unfortunately. The theme that is followed in the “Othello” is rather famous and wide spread through out all over the world and humanity. To be honest, Shakespeare’s plays always tell us about different types of love (love of parents, love that jealous and others) that lead to various results and ends in many different ways. Thus, it makes Shakespeare’s plays well known and popular among those who find some answers on their specific questions, those who are lost in their own thoughts, those who know how love can hurt, those who know how careful and wise people should be in order to safe and keep a difficult feeling in safe.

“If it were now to die,

Twere now to be most happy; for, I fear,

My soul hath her content so absolute

That not another comfort like to this

Succeeds in unknown fate”

or

“No, my heart is turned to stone; I strike it, and it hurts my hand”

or

“But yet the pity of it, Iago! O Iago, the pity of it, Iago!”, – these phrases and quotations are from the Shakespeare’s “Othello”, they depicts the whole structure of the play and Shakespeare’s manner of illustrating people’s feelings, which is very persuasive and involving.

Although the purpose of the essay is to research rather than contrast or compare play, but I believe that in order to get fuller information and analyze it we should know a little about other plays. Often “Othello” is compared with “The Merchant of Venice”. Talking about the reception of the play, we should mention that the character named Shylock is seemed to be totally and fundamentally an unsympathetic character if not a villain. Moreover, he is often seen even as some kind of a caricature of a vicious, greedy, resentful and susceptible Jew. The point and problem lays in such question: whether Shylock is bad because he is a bad Jew or bad because he is simply a Jew, the debate is not about how bad the Shylock is. The Shakespeare’s play “The Merchant of Venice” is dedicated to the summarizing and analyzing the Jewish-Christian relationship of the times and its reflections. The destiny of Jewish people is hard and painful; this nation has been discriminate and jammed, impaired for a long time. Its pride was wounded. In Shakespeare’s time, even law forbade them from living in some countries (including England), nevertheless, in spite of this fact, about a few hundred survived in London and other cities in the guise of Christians. The anti-Semitism in England increased and persisted around 1190, when non-Jews borrowed heavily from Jewish moneylenders. In Shakespeare’s times 300 years later, anti-Semitism remained in force in England. The main points of character of Elizabethan Christians and Jews are embodied in Shakespeare’s Shylock. The majority of London’s population at the time was anti-Semitic because there were very few Jews living there. Therefore, Shakespeare’s play called “The Merchant of Venice” supports anti-Semitism actions and thoughts and thus it can be named an anti-Semitic play. Many writers and people of art focused on such difficult topic as Jewish destiny, it will worry the brightest minds of the world for many years.

According to Bradley, “Othello” is the most painfully exciting and the most terrible. From the moment when the temptation of the hero begins, the reader’s heart and mind are held in a vice, experiencing the extremes of pity and fear, sympathy and repulsion, sickening hope and dreadful expectation. Evil is displayed before him, not indeed with the profusion, but forming, as it were, the soul of a single character, and united with an intellectual superiority so great that he watches its advance fascinated and appalled. He sees it, in itself almost irresistible, aided at every step by fortunate accidents and the innocent mistakes of its victims (1904, pg 1, <http://web.singnet.com.sg/~yisheng/notes/shakespeare/othello_b.htm>). In addition, Othello is seemed to be fateful when breathing the air, but he is more oppressive and confined that character of King Lear, for example (that is one of the greatest masterpieces of Shakespeare). In the “Othello” not the night but close – shut room (murderous) is dark and scaring, that darkness leaks or oozes out to the heroes’ souls and minds. Maybe this factor is important when talking about reasons of the death of Desdemona. His imagination is amazingly active; however, this activity is full of concentration (not full of the dilation, for example).

It can generally be said that this play impressed me. I could hardly breathe after reading it. It triggered many thoughts in my mind. To decide what place this play occurs in your life and your heart you should only read it. In addition, I want to say that this play has totally changed my understanding of such terms as ‘whiteness’, ‘race’, and ‘people’ relationships’. Such great researching work is worth of being read by everyone. People look for answers in his plays and sonnets, because he illustrates different relationships between us, and each of it shows how people face problems and difficult questions. Therefore, Shakespeare is a great writer who created many masterpieces. He showed how cruel and liberal, evil and worrying can be our world. Moreover, I can claim that you will not be disappointed after reading his works. The entity struggle between love and betray, good and bad, life and death worries the brightest minds of humanity, including Shakespeare and Marlowe. Each of us eventually spends a good deal of time thinking about such problems, sooner or later our thoughts become older and more serious. Thus, we turn to great people’ words and works to be helped. Of course, thoughts can be different, but one fact is beyond doubts.

Conclusion

This play is a mysterious world, it can be judged or understood, but never wiped off. Creations of its author, play include feelings, words, and dearest moments. To sum up, reading this play is not mortifying thing, it is not just wasting the time. Anyway, it exists and it is nothing to do. To sum up, Shakespeare’s plays are one of the most significant events in classic literature and in history of humanity. It can generally be said that this great author shows many-sided people’s relations and feelings, contradictory or high-minded actions. He showed how cruel and liberal, evil and worrying can be our world. The entity struggle between love and betray, good and bad, life and death worries the brightest minds of humanity, including Shakespeare and Marlowe. It can generally be said that the play “Othello” impressed me. I must admit that it is one of the greatest masterpieces in the world. Its plot is complicated and complex. Its characters are persuasive and involving. The world of Othello is as bleak as that of King Lear. Shakespeare’s plays touch human feelings and relationships, first, friendship and love. That is why people are looking for the answers for their questions in Shakespeare’s creations. That is why this man is known by each of us. That is why his works leave some trace in our minds and hearts.