Tragic Hero- Othello and Desdemona

Othello
1. "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."
  1. "I had rather be a toad, And live upon the vapor of a dungeon, Than keep a corner in the thing I love For others' uses. "
    1. "t is not words that shakes me thus. Pish! Noses, ears, and lips. Is't possible? Confess?—Handkerchief?—O devil!"
      1. "O blood blood blood"
2. For someone to be a tragic hero, they must first be a noble character. Othello can be considered a noble character because he is one of highsocial ranking and he has a genuine heart. Othello, despite coming from a rough past, is an honorable war hero and the general of the Venetian army. Along with his social stature, Othello also has a noble heart. Although he is sometimes portrayed as violent, Othello’s loving nature can be seen in instances such as when he speaks about Desdemona.
3. Othello is a tragic hero because of his tragic flaw. There are many undesirable traits in Othello, like his jealousy and gullibility. However, the core of these problems and his main tragic flaw is his insecurities. Othello being the only black character and an outsider in Venice brings upon many insecurities. His vulnerability makes him an easy target for Iago to manipulate his mind;
  1. He begins to believe that he isn’t good enough for Desdemona: “She’s gone, I am abused, and my relief Must be to loathe her. Oh, curse of marriage That we can call these delicate creatures ours And not their appetites!” (3.3.283-286). Iago was easily able to convince Othello that Desdemona has been unfaithful. However, Othello doesn’t realize his insecurities have taken over his life until it is too late and his tragic downfall has already hit rock bottom.
4. What makes Othello a tragic hero is he experiences a tragic downfall. Othello’s downfall is set into motion when the jealous Iago begins planting seeds of doubt into Othello’s already insecure mind. Iago’s manipulative words convince Othello that his wife is unfaithful; from then on he begins to lose his noble traits. He treats his wife with little to no respect and eventually smothers her to death.
Desdemona
1. Desdemona is a tragic heroine because her suffering is not proportional to her mistakes, she is overcome by forces she cannot control, and she is sacrificed for the benefit of others.
  1. Desdemona is a kind and friendly individual. Her problem is that she is too kind. She also lacks the wisdom to see what grave danger she is in. Desdemona wants Cassio and Othello to be friends again. She starts spending more time with Cassio, unaware that Othello will become jealous.
    1. Even though Desdemona is naive, she does not deserve the suffering she experiences. She is abused verbally and physically by Othello and then finally smothered to death. Just because someone is naive and lacks the wisdom to prevent her downfall, she does not deserve to die. Since Desdemona's suffering is greatly out of proportion to her mistakes, she has this characteristic of a tragic heroine.
  2. Another quality of a tragic heroine is that she is overcome by the forces of a world she cannot control. Desdemona tries to control Othello by getting him to be friends with Cassio again. Instead of this happening, she is murdered.
    1. Desdemona was too late to fully recognize what was happening with Othello, and that to have opened a meaningful and effective dialogue with real results and action focused on addressing Othello's jealousy and his overreliance on Iago could have been.
2. Desdemona= sacrificial heroine
  1. Although she does not sacrifice herself, she is sacrificed by some force like fate. This is done to expose Iago and reveal the truth. When Desdemona is alive, Othello will not believe that she is not cheating on him.
  2. It is only when she dies that everyone comes forward with the truth. All the characters then know what a liar Iago is, and what all the cruel things he did were. Now that the truth is revealed, Iago will not be able to have anyone else believe his lies. This may have saved many lives from being ruined. Because Desdemona is sacrificed so that the truth can be known, she is a sacrificial heroine, and therefore has that characteristic of a tragic heroine.

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Tragic Hero- Othello and Desdemona

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