Othello Essay Guide

“Like the base Indian, threw a pearl away” To what extent is the outcome of the play down to Othello's actions and to what extent does he fit Aristotle's model of a tragic hero?


Introduction
This should be a mini-discussion of the essay question itself – designed to be a summary. Possible points to BRIEFLY summarise –
- Othello’s actions
- Othello being destined to fail
- Other actions and factors (e.g. Iago and other characters)

Example:
“The quote “Like the base Indian” is Othello referring to himself after he has killed Desdemona, which is one of the outcomes of the play itself, along with Othello’s suicide. However, it is not only Othello’s actions that result in this outcome; there are other factors such as Iago and the nature of the play that lead to this.

Main Body of Paragraphs should answer the question with paragraphs about:
- Othello’s actions in killing Desdemona and ordering the death of Cassio
- Othello’s actions in trusting Iago’s views over his own wife
- Othello’s actions is marrying Desdemona, knowing that it would cause issues and friction
- Iago’s actions in setting up the plot
- Roderigo’s actions in attempting to kill Cassio
- Desdemona’s marrying Othello and refusal to let the Cassio issue drop.
- Emelia’s finding of the handkerchief and not questioning handing it to Othello

- Aristotle’s criteria for a tragic hero – Othello is destined to fail from the start.(How does he meet these criteria – and if he does, does this mean that his actions are meaningless as they are destined to happen anyway)


Highly Technical Example:
Whilst not being an action, it can be argued that Othello’s being black has a large impact on the play’s outcome (this relates the point to the question). Throughout the play he is referred to as the “Moor” and his skin colour is referred to even at the end of the play such as Emelia calling him “you the blacker devil!” after the death of Desdemona (Quotation evidence – yes you can use to, and there is a short snippet afterwards that tell you roughly where it came from). Elizabethan audiences would not expect a black character to succeed, and it could be said that the outcome of the play is inevitable. (An explanation of why this answers the question set and also includes a comment on audience reaction)

Another Example
It is actually Iago who causes the most action in the play, with the most notable action being Iago’s declaration to cause trouble from the start (your point which answers the question). He tells Roderigo that “I follow him [Othello] (square brackets add in references for the audience if it is unclear in your quote) to serve my turn upon him” (Your quotation that reinforces your claim in your point). This shows that even before Othello have come on stage, Iago is planning to take action to ruin him, which happens at the end of the play with Othello losing his wife, job and his life. (An explanation of how this impacts on the outcome of the play)
Basically, every paragraph in this should be a single argument towards the essay question – therefore you should have one point per paragraph. You can link your arguments to other points in your essay in your COMMENTS but your focus and structure in each paragraph should be:

- What actions (Othello’s or others) cause the outcome?
- Where is there evidence of this?
- How does this evidence show the outcome/action/features of Aristotle tragic hero?

Additional Points
- If you find other arguments for the question that aren’t in this list, do not hesitate to include them. This is YOUR argument and personal response counts for quite a lot (i.e. if you want to point out that Iago’s actions go beyond revenge then feel free)
- Plays are written about in the present.

Conclusion

- This is where you ‘look back’ over your essay and decide what you feel the most important action in deciding the outcome of the play, this maybe agreement with the natural nature of tragedy being Mad Death Scene™ or it maybe the agreement that Iago is just a nasty piece of work who is out to get Othello from day one.