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Othello - Work Book

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Angela Carr
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Othello By William Shakespeare Year 11 Unit 2 – Reading and Responding - Work book
2 | P a g e Name: _________________________________ Act 1 Scene 1 A street in Venice, late at night 1. What do you thinkIagoisimplyingwhenhe describesCassioas‘agreatarithmetician’anda‘bookishtheoric’ (lines19and 24)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Complete the followingtable Speaker Quote Meaning ‘thou,Iagowho hasthad my purse / As if the stringswere thine’ ‘… prefermentgoesbyletterand affection,/Andnotby old gradation’ Iago Iago isdeceptive 3. Complete the followingtable toshowyourunderstandingof the variouslanguage devicesthatShakespeare uses to presentBrabantio’sanxietyinlines158-184. Language device Quotes / examples Line number/s Short sentences Exclamationmarks Interruptedtrainof thought Exaggeration 4. The openinglinesof Othello are rhythmicallyveryrough(theydonotstrictlyfollow regulariambicpentameter). What mightShakespeare be suggestingaboutthe charactersbywritingthisway?Whatmood or atmosphere is established?
3 | P a g e _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Whenwritersuse wordsto frompicturesinour minds,perhapscomparingone thingwithanother,thisisknownas usingimagery.These wordpicturestypicallyinvolve ourfive senses:sight(visualimagery),sound(auditoryimager), touch (tactile imagery),taste (gustatoryimagery) andsmell (olfactoryimagery). Shakespeare’splayscontainanabundance of powerfulimagery.In Othello,these imagesgaintheirpowerthrough frequentrepetitionandfromthe waytheyinterweave indistinctpatternsthroughoutthe play. Imagesrelatingtoanimalsare a dominantfeature of Othello,especiallynoticeable inAct1; theyeffectivelyassistin characterisationandcraft powerful connectionswiththe play’scentral themesandideas. 1. Every mentionof animalsinAct1 is made byIago. Listas many referencestoanimalsasyoucan find. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. How do youthinkShakespeare’sassociationof Iagowithanimalsassistsincharacterisinghimasthe villainof the play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Animal imagesare regularlyanddeliberatelyassociatedwithsomeof the majorthemesandideasof the play, especiallyinthe openingscenes.HowdoesShakespeare employimage clusterstopresentIago’sracistattitudes towardOthelloinScene 1,lines86-89 and Scene 3, line 377-81? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
4 | P a g e 4. Read Scene 1, lines42-65 and Scene 3, lines377-81. Publically,Iagoonly pretends tolove andrespectOthello. How doesIago’suse of animal imagerystrengthenthisnotion? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 1 Scene 2 Another street 1. Finda quote fromOthello’slinesthatsuggeststhe following: Quality Line That he is polite That he lovesDesdemona That he is openand honest That he is not unnecessarily violent That he is of noble birth That he is calm and confident 2. How doesthe way Othelloispresentedinthisscene contrasttothe wayhe was describedinthe openingscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. How doesOthello’sviewof womencontrastwiththatof Iago,judgingitfromthe followingcomments?Inyour response,discussthe ideaspresentedandthe language theyuse. Othello:… for knowIago, But that I love the gentle Desdemona. Iago: ‘Faith,he tonighthathboardeda landcarrack; If it prove lawful prize,he’smade forever (lines50-51) _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
5 | P a g e Turks invade Cyprus Othellowins Desdemona Iago manipulates Othello PSYCHOLOGICAL DOMESTIC _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Complete the followingtable todemonstrate yourunderstandingof how Shakespeare useslanguage devicesto conveyBrabantio’sangertowardandlowopinionof Othello(lines62-81). Language device Quote(s) Repetitionof words/phrases Use of secondperson(‘thou’) ‘Thoufoul thief’ 1:1:62 Harsh soundingwords Insultingwords Imageryassociatedwithwitchcraft ‘chainsof magic’ 1:1:65 Contrastto Desdemona’sbeautyand innocence Conflictin Othello can be seenonthree levelsthroughoutthe play:
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7 | P a g e Act 1 Scene 3 A council-chamber 1. Why doesBrabantio assume thatDesdemonawouldnotmarryOthelloof herownfree will?Whatreasondoeshe give? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. How didOthellowinDesdemona’s affection? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. How doesDesdemonapresentherdecisiontomarryOthelloinafavourable light?Inwhatway(s) doesherspeech showconfidence andintelligence? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Before Desdemonaentersthe Senate,Brabantiohasalreadyspokenabouther.How doesthe realityof Desdemona’sbehaviourandspeechcontradicthisportraitof her? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. In lines127-169 Othellospeaksinlyrical poetrythatcreatesasense of nobilityandgrandeurabouthim.Quote examplesof the followingfromhisspeech(include line numbers): Alliteration(repeatedsound of the 1st consonant) Poeticrepetition Exoticnames
8 | P a g e Highlydescriptivewordsand phrases Lyrical rhythmor flowof words Quote the phrase or line you judge to be the most lyrical. 6. What major theme of the playisforeshadowedbythe behaviourof the Turkishfleet? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. How differentmightthe Senate’sdecisiononthe marriage have been: a. ina time of peace? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. if Othellowere notagreat general? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. Why doesShakespeare use soliloquiesduringthe play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. What doesIago’ssoliloquyatthe endof Act 1 Scene 3 reveal abouthim? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. What isan aside? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Findan example of anaside usedinthisscene.Whatimpactdoesithave? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
9 | P a g e 12. Previously,inDesdemona’sabsence,Brabantiospoke of ashy,blushinggirl,butherbehaviourbefore the Senate presentsastark contrast to thisimage.Whatqualitiesdoesshe demonstratebefore the Senate inmakingher requesttogo to CypruswithOthello? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. Why isit ironicthatOthellodescribesIagoas‘honest’(lines281 and291)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. CarefullyreadIago’ssoliloquybeginning:‘ThusdoIevermake my fool mypurse’(lines360-381). a. What isIago’s true opinionof Roderigo? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. What reasondoesIagogive forhatingOthello? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ c. How doeshe intendtocause a fallingoutbetweenOthelloandCassio? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. Readthe followingdialogueinlines289-91 andthenanswerthe followingquestions: BRABANTIO Look to her,Moor, if thouhast eyestosee: She has deceivedherfather,andmaythee. OTHELLO My life uponherfaith! a. How do youthinkthisexchange willbe importanttothe restof the play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
10 | P a g e b. What event(s) mightthisexchangebe foreshadowing? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 16. Iago andRoderigo’sdialogue(lines298onwards) containsfourimagesrelatingtoanimals. a. List these images _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. What isIago tryingto suggestaboutothercharacters byusingthese images? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ c. What do youthinkShakespeare issuggestingaboutthe characterof Iago by havinghimuse somany animal images? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 17. Complete the followingtablegivingexamplesof whenShakespeare hasusedfigurativelanguage sofar. Metaphor - a figure of speech that identifiessomethingas beingthe same as some unrelatedthingforrhetorical effect,thushighlightingthe similaritiesbetweenthe two. Simile - a figure of speech involvingthe comparisonof one thingwithanotherthing of a differentkind,usedto make a descriptionmore emphaticorvivid Conceit- an extended metaphorwitha complex logicthat governsa poetic passage or entire poem.
11 | P a g e Act 2 Scene 1 A sea-port in Cyprus: a windstorm batters the quay 1. Cassio’slinesatthe start of this scene (60-86) have beencomparedtoa bestman’sspeechat a wedding.Inyour ownwords,howdoesCassiodescribe Desdemona? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Complete the followingtable toshowyourunderstandingof the wayShakespeare usesOthelloandDesdemona’s language todemonstrate theirlove foreachother. Language device Example fromlines174-92 Exaggeratedorhyperboliclanguage Poeticor lyrical descriptions Completionof eachother’slinesof iambicpentameter Other 3. Based onhiscommentsinthisscene,whatdo youthinkisIago’sattitude towardwomen? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Iago says to Desdemona,‘ForIamnothing,if notcritical’.Inwhat waysdoesthisseemtobe an accurate comment on Iago’scharacter? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
12 | P a g e 5. In thisscene,DesdemonasaystoIago,‘I dobeguile /The thingI am, by seemingotherwise.’Discussatleasttwo waysthat Desdemona’sstatementisironic(considerhercharacteras well asIago’s). _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Describe howShakespeare usesthe windstormtocreate tensionandas a foreshadowingtechnique. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Note:Ironically,although Othello is literally able to navigate‘dangerousseas’,hewill be unableto navigatethe‘foul and violent tempest’within himself,which will destroy him and someof thosearound him. 7. How doesIago viewCassio’scharacter?Whatseemstobe hismotivationforportrayinghimthisway? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. Finda quote asevidence foreachof the followingpropositions,fromIago’ssoliloquyatthe endof thisscene (lines259-85) andfill inthe table. Proposition Quote as evidence That Othellowillprobablybe a good husband That Iago doesnotreally knowwhyhe hatesOthello
13 | P a g e That Iago suspectsOthellohas sleptwithhiswife,Emilia That Iago findsDesdemona sexuallyattractive That Iago suspects Cassiohas sleptwithEmilia 9. What is yourassessmentof Iago’smotivationfordestroyingOthelloandCassio? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. ‘The thoughtwhereof /Does,like apoisonousmineral,gnaw myinwards’(lines269-270). Write a paragraph explaininghowjealousyseems tobe spreadingfromone charactertoanotherat thispointinthe play. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
14 | P a g e Act 2 Scene 2 A street 1. List the positive wordsthatare usedto describe Othellointhisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. What dramatic purpose mightShakespeare have hadinmindforplacingsucha small scene betweentwolengthy scenesinwhichIagoplotsto destroyOthelloandCassio? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 2 Scene 3 A hall in the castle 1. Findan example of dramaticironyinthe openingtenlinesof thisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Explainone of the metaphorsIagousesin lines13-26. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Iago and Cassiohave a conversationaboutDesdemonaearlyinthisscene.Whatare some of the differencesinthe waytheyeach discussher?What doesthistell usaboutthe characters of Iago and Cassio? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
15 | P a g e 4. What doesIago say to Montanoabout Cassio’sdrinking?How isthisanexample of dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. How doesIago give the impressionof beingaloyal friendtoCassiowhenOthelloisquestioninghim? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. OthellosaystoIago, ‘Thylove andhonestydothmince thismatter/ Makingit lighttoCassio’.Here,the word ‘mince’meanstocut intosmall pieces(thusminimise orreduce the importance of something).How are these lines anotherexample of dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Complete the followingtable toshowyourunderstandingof the dramaticandlanguage devicesShakespeare uses to demonstrate Cassiodrunkenness(see especiallylines85-144). Device Example showing Cassio’s drunkenness Repetitionof words and phrases Stage directions Shoutingof insults Irrational or nonsensical sentences Mispronunciationof words
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17 | P a g e 8. What literarydevicesdoesCassioemployto conveyhisdisgustathisownbehaviour?Fill inthe table belowand give one or twoexamplesof each. Literary device One or two examples 9. Summarise whatIagosays aboutreputationinthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Cassio’sfinal wordsinthisscene are ‘Goodnight,honestIago’.ExplainwhatdramaticdeviceShakespeareuses here. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Withwhat supernatural powerdoesIagoalignhimself,inthisscene,toaccomplishhisplan? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
18 | P a g e 12. The final twolinesof Act2 are inthe formof a rhymingcouplet.Doyouthinkthisisan effectiveendtothis scene?Whyor whynot? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 3 Scene 1 Before the castle Note:It wasa courtly customin Shakespeare’sEngland fornewly married couplesto be woken with music,organised by friendsor relatives. In this case, Cassio ordersa group of musiciansto play in order to wakeOthello.Unfortunately forCassio, Othello seemsin no mood formusic. 1. Iago’s planisto make it appearthat DesdemonaandCassioare havinganaffair.Listand explainthe decisionsthat the characters make inthisscene and howthese will suitIago’spurposes. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. What do you thinkis Shakespeare’sdramaticpurpose forincludingsome comedyatthe beginningof the scene?In your answerconsiderwhatcomesbefore andafterthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
19 | P a g e Act 3 Scene 2 A room in the castle 1. How doesShakespeare presentOthelloasan efficientandeffective leaderinthisbrief scene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 3 Scene 3 The garden of the castle 1. How mightDesdemona’sclaiminlines22-26 (‘MyLord shall neverrest’, etc.) make the audience uneasy?Of what dramaticdevice isthisan example? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Cassiois particularlypoliteandcharmingwhentalkingtoDesdemona.Write downsome wordsthatexhibitthese aspectsof his character. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. How doesIago use Cassio’sembarrassmenttohisadvantage? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Do youthinkDesdemonasaystoomuchabout Cassiointhisscene?Whatseemstobe Shakespeare’sdramatic purpose here? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
20 | P a g e 5. Identifythe speakersof the followingstatementsfromthisscene.How dotheyhave a greater resonance (or furthermeaning) whenreadinthe contextof the restof the play? Statement Speaker Importance inthe contextof the rest of the play? Whate’eryoube,I am obedient(line 90) AndwhenI love thee not,/ Chaos iscome again(lines92-93) 6. What reasonsdoesOthellohave tothinkIagoiscaring and concerned?Use evidence fromtheirdialogue. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. What general detailsdoesIagouse tofurnishhisargumentforDesdemona’sinfidelity? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What is Iago’sstrategyin sayingthat Cassio‘fills’hisposition‘upwithgreatability’(line 253)?What dramatic device isShakespeare employinghere? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. DesdemonareassuresCassio:‘Igive thee warrantof theyplace’(line 20). a. To what extentisshe promisingsomethingbeyondherauthority? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. Do youthinkthisstatementsupportsIago’sclaimthat‘ourGeneral’swife isnow the General’? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
21 | P a g e 10. Iago claimsthata ‘goodname inman and woman… is the immediate jewel of theirsouls’.Isthiscontradicting whathe saidto Cassioinhisspeechon‘reputation’(Act2 Scene 3, lines241-51)? Explainthe ironyof whatIagosays here. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Many criticshave suggestedthatOthelloistooeasilypersuadedinthisexchange.Whatisyouropinion?Raise and considerevidence botherforandagainstthisview. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 12. The followingexcerptisfromAct3 Scene 3 lines372-77: OTHELLO If thou dostslanderherand torture me, Neverpraymore;abandonall remorse; On horror’sheadhorrors accumulate; Do deedstomake heavenweep,all earthamazed, For nothingcanstthou to damnationadd Greaterthan that. a. Underline examplesof hyperbole (adeliberatelyexaggeratedstatementtoemphasisapoint) thatOthello usesinthese lines. b. What doesOthellomeanwhenhe says,‘all earthamazed,/Fornothingcanstthou to damnationadd/ Greaterthan that.’ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. Findand explainanexample of dramaticirony inthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
22 | P a g e 14. ReadOthello’sspeech,beginning‘Thisfellow’sof exceedinghonesty’(seelines262-81).What doesOthello resolve todoregardingDesdemonaif itisprovedshe isunfaithful? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. Complete the followingtabletoshowyourunderstandingof the devicesShakespeare usesinlines400-82 to showOthello’sdisgustandanger. Language device Example fromlines400-82 e.g.shortsentences ‘Monstrous!’(line 431) – findanotherexample. 16. Iago providesOthellowithtwofurther‘proofs’of Desdemona’sunfaithfulnessatthe endof thisscene.Whatare they? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 17. What do Iagoand Othelloresolve todoat the endof thisscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 18. What can we,the audience,tell aboutIagoandEmilia’s relationshipfromtheirdialogue?Listatleastthree pointsandsupportthemwithevidence. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
23 | P a g e _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 19. It has beensaidbycriticsthat Iago andOthello’srevenge-pactisagrotesque parodyof a weddingceremony.List all the similaritiesyoucanfindbetweentheirpactanda weddingceremony.Doyouthinkthisinterpretation enrichesyourreadingof thisscene inanyway? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 20. In Act 1, onlyIagospoke usinganimal imager;now inAct3, so doesOthello.Whatdoyouthinkthismight suggestaboutOthello’scharacteratthispointinthe play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 21. ReadAct 3 Scene 3, lines277-81, 329-37, 454 andScene 4, lines151-55. How doesShakespeareportrayjealousy as a poisonor disease inthese lines? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 22. In Act 3 Othelloisdesperate to‘see’whathe hasalreadyimagined:Desdemona’sinfidelity.Frequentrepetition of wordsassociatedwithsight(e.g.‘see’and‘eye’) isasalientfeature of Othello’slanguageinthese scenes.Despite the ironyof Othello’sobsessionwith‘seeing’whatisnotthere,whatisit aboutIago that he ironicallycannotsee? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
24 | P a g e Act 3 Scene 4 Before the castle 1. Why do youthinkShakespeare placesthe comicaspectsatthe beginningof thisscene directlyafterthe revenge - pact of the previousscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Why is the handkerchiefDesdemonahaslostsoimportanttoOthello? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Quote a phrase fromDesdemona’sdialogueandexplainhow itwouldfurtherenrage Othelloorcause himto become more suspicious.Of whatdramaticdevice isthisanexample? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. How doesBianca interpretCassio’spossessionof the handkerchief?Whatcommontheme of the playdoesher conversationwithCassioreinforce? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. The start of thisscene involvespunning (ajoke exploitingthe differentpossiblemeaningsof awordor the fact that there are wordswhichsoundalike buthave differentmeanings) onthe word‘lie’.Whyisthe subjectof this punningparticularlyappropriate? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Read lines95-98 and answerthe followingquestions: a. What isEmilia’sviewof meningeneral? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
25 | P a g e b. What literarydevice doesshe employtoexplainherviews? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ c. Why do youthinkEmiliausesinclusive language (‘we’and‘us’) inthisspeech? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ d. What mightitsuggestaboutEmiliaandDesdemona’srelationship? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ e.Might it alsosuggestEmilia’sthoughtsonOthello’streatmentof Desdemona? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Explain(orparaphrase) whatyouunderstandtobe Emilia’sview of jealousy,usingevidencefromthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. Desdemonaisobviously unaware of whatIagohas beensaying.Doyouthink,however,herpleadingforCassio’s reinstatementinthisscene isfoolishornaïve inany way?Considerargumentsforandagainstthisview. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
26 | P a g e Act 4 Scene 1 Cyprus, before the castle 1. Summarise whatCassiosaysaboutBianca inthisscene.WhomdoesOthellothinkhe isdiscussing?Howisthisan example of dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Why doesCassiofindthe ideathathe will marryBiancaamusing? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Quote and explaintwophrasesfromCassio’sspeechthatOthellowouldfindparticularlyoffensive.Howis Othello’sinterpretationof these linesanexampleof dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Read line 119 in context.Whatdo youthinkthisquote suggestsaboutOthelloatthispointinthe play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Why mightOthellofinditparticularlyinfuriatingthatCassiohasgivenhishandkerchief to Bianca? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. How do youthinkOthellointhisscene presentsacontrastto the Othelloof Act1? Write a short paragraph and provide examplesfrombothscenes. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
27 | P a g e 7. Quote an example (orphrase ora lien) of aracist assumptionthatIagomakesinthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. How is Cassio’slanguage whenhe istalkingabout(andto) Biancadifferentfromthe language he usestoaddress Desdemona?Why? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. In thisscene,Shakespearemakesconstantreference tothe antithesis (opposite)betweenmanandbeast,usinga great deal of animal imagerytodo so.How doesthislanguage device highlightthe deteriorationof Othello’s character? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Explainhowjealousyisspreadingbymeansof deceptionandisleadingtomisunderstandinginthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Thisscene isrich indramatic ironyandour interpretation of the dialogue increasesdramatictension.Findsome examplesof ironyinthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
28 | P a g e 12. Quote a line orsentence that conveys Othello’s continuingadmirationforDesdemona. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. What do youthinkOthellomeansbythe sentence:‘No,myheartisturnedto stone:I strike it,and ithurts my hand’(line 168)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. What aspectsof Othello’swordsandactionsinthisscene doyouthinkcouldmake the audience particularly sympathetictowardhim? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. In response toLodovico’squestion,Iagosaysof Cassiothat he ‘lives’(line 204).Explainthe ironyof Iago’s response. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 16. Desdemonastates:‘Iwoulddomuch/ To atone them, forthe love Ibearto Cassio’(lines212-13).Why does Othelloreactrashlyatthis comment?Whatdramaticdevice isShakespeare employinghere? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 17. Why doyou thinkDesdemonadoesnotstandupforherself more forcefullyinthisscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
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30 | P a g e 18. What doesIagosuggestto LodovicoaboutOthello’sstrikingDesdemona?How isthisparticularlyunfairandeven ironic? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 19. Othello’slanguage atthispointinthe playresemblesIago’s.Quote some examplesfromthisscene andexplain whatit mightindicate aboutOthello’scharacter. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 20. How doesIagoturn Othello’s praiseof Desdemonatohisown advantage?Explainone example. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 21. Readlines164-82. Fill inthe table todemonstrate yourunderstandingof Shakespeare’suse of antithesis(clashof opposites) intheselines. Evidence thatOthellostill lovesDesdemona Evidence thatOthellohatesDesdemona
31 | P a g e 22. What doesthisclashof oppositessuggestaboutOthelloatthispoint inthe play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 4 Scene 2 A room in the castle 1. What doesEmiliareportaboutCassioand Desdemonaatthe beginningof thisscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Many criticshave suggestedthatOthello’sdownfalliscausedbyhisimmense concernwithhisownhonour.Finda quote that suggestsOthello’smainconcernisforhisreputation. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Finda simile OthellousestoillustrateDesdemona’slackof ‘honesty’orherinfidelity. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Quote and explainametaphorOthelloemploystodescribe Desdemona. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Read Desdemona’sspeech(fromline148onwards).Summarise heropinionof Othelloatthisstage of the play. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
32 | P a g e 6. How doesOthellointerpretDesdemona’skneelingandpraying(line 22)?How isparticularlyunfair? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Emiliaposesthe question,‘Hathshe forsooksomanynoble matches,/Herfatherand hercountryand her friends, / To be call whore?’(lines125-27).Explainhowthisstatementisironicinthe contextof the entire paly.Hint:Think of howa differentcharacterusedthissame information. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. How doesEmiliadescribe the personwhohasdeceivedOthello,andinwhatway(s) isthisironic?Include quotes inyour response. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. Why do youthinkDesdemonadoesnotreactmore forcefullytoOthello’saccusations?Doyouagree withsome criticswhoinsistshe istoo passive? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
33 | P a g e 10. What do we discoveraboutRoderigo’ssituationfromhisspeechesinthisscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Who speaksthe majorityof the dialogue atthe beginningof thisinteraction?Whodominatesthe dialogue atthe end?What doesthistell the audience abouttheirrelationship? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 12. If Roderigocouldthinkclearlyatthisstage of the play,whatevidence doeshe have thatIagoisnot to be trusted? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 4 Scene 3 Another room in the castle 1. Emiliaisoutspokenaboutsexual desiresforwomenandtheirneedforjustice inthisscene.Herdialogue isradical for a character createdinthe seventeenthcentury,especiallyafemale character,andmanycriticshave described heras a feministbefore hertime.Listsome examplesthatdemonstrate heroutspokenness. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Describe Othello’sspeechinthisscene.Doeshe seemcalmer?Whydoyouthinkthismightbe? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
34 | P a g e 3. How differentlydoDesdemonaandEmiliadiscussOthelloandLodovicointhisscene?Whatdoesthistell usabout the women’scharacters? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. How is Barbara’ssituationsimilartoDesdemona’s? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. How do Desdemona’sviewsoninfidelityprovide acontrastto Emilia’sviews?WhydoyouthinkShakespeare placesthisdialogue here,shortlybefore Desdemonaismurdered? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Read the WillowSongagain(lines39-55): a. What poeticdevicesdoesShakespeare employinthissong?Quote examplesin youranswer. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. Howwouldyoudescribe the tone of thissong? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ c. What wordsdo you find particularly emotive? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ d. Quote andexplainaline inthe songthat reflectsDesdemona’sattitude toOthello. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
35 | P a g e 7. Emiliausesa great deal of antithesis(directopposite of someone orsomethingelse) inlines65-93. a. List several examplesof pairedoppositesfromtheselines. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. What mightShakespeare’spurposebe insaturatingEmilia’sdialogue withantitheses? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What is yourassessmentof Emilia’scharacteratthispointinthe play?How do youthinkyour attitude wouldbe differentif youwere viewingthe playinShakespeare’stime? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. Do youthinkDesdemonaseesherdeathassomethinginevitable?Presentone argumentfor,andone againstthis view. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 5 Scene 1 Cyprus, a street 1. Repetitionisasalientfeature inShakespeare’s Othello,usedeffectivelytoemphasise the central themes of the play.Fill inthe table below. Repeatedwords,phrasesorideas Textual Reference Intendedimpact ‘thieves’5times 1.1. 79-81 To emphasise the perceivedplace of womenasproperty
36 | P a g e 2. What are Iago’sreasonsfor wantRoderigoandCassiodead? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Choose twoexamplesinwhichcharacterswronglydescribe Iagointhisscene (e.g.Othellocallshim‘brave’) and explainhowthese descriptionsare ironic. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. What doesIago suggestaboutBianca inthisscene?How isthis a furtherexample of dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. How is the language IagoemployswhentalkingtoCassioironic? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. The original performancesof Othello at the Globe Theatre woldhave takenplace duringthe day.How does Shakespeare create the effectof darknessandconfusionthroughthe characters’dialogue andactions? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
37 | P a g e 7. Why do youthinkIago decidestoaccuse Biancaof conspiringagainstCassio’slife?How doesBianca’ssituation parallel Desdemona’s? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. Does the literal darknessof thisscene have anymetaphorical significance?Explainyouranswer. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 5 Scene 2 A bedchamber in the castle 1. What devicesorparticularwordsdo youthinkgive an emotional intensity toOthello’sopeningsoliloquy? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Quote a line orphrase that suggestsDesdemonastrugglesortriestofightagainstOthello. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. How doesDesdemonashowherloyaltytoOthellountil the end? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. How is Othello’sstatementinline 128about Desdemona(‘she’slike aliar,gone toburninghell!’) ironic? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
38 | P a g e 5. What effectdoesEmilia’srepetitionof the phrase ‘myhusband’(lines139-49) produce inthisscene?Howdoes thisdialogue reinforce herdisbelief? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Othellosaysinhisopeningspeech,‘Putoutthe light,andthenputoutthe light’(line 7).Whatdo yourthinkhe meansbythis?Explainthe twolightsandthe poeticdevice he isusing. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. How doesDesdemona’spresence (althoughasleep) addatensionanda resonance toOthello’ssoliloquy(lines1- 22)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What can we tell aboutDesdemonafromherfinal words?How are theyironic? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. How doesShakespeare use languagetoconveyEmilia’sshockandterrorwhenshe discoversthatDesdemona’s handkerchief hasbeenusedinIago’sscheme? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Is Emiliawhollyhonestwhenshe claimstohave ‘foundbyfortune’Desdemona’shandkerchief (line255)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________
39 | P a g e 11. What doesOthellofeel isthe conditionof hissoul? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 12. Finda line thatsuggestsOthellois particularly concernedabouthishonour. Doyoufeel thisisOthello’sgreatest concern? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. Emiliasingsasnatch of the WillowSongasshe isdying.What purpose doyouthinkthisserves?Thatis,whydoes Shakespeare include the songhere? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. Othelloaskstobe rememberedas‘anhonourable murderer’andassomeone ‘wholovedtoowell’.Ishe deceivinghimself inyouropinion? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. What doesEmiliameanwhenshe says,‘’TisproperIobeyhim, butnot now’(line 194)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 16. Do youthinkthe playendswitha sense thatthingshave beenputright,that orderhas beenrestored? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
40 | P a g e 17. Annotate Othello’sfinal soliloquy. Soft you, a word or two before you go. 340 I have done the state some service, and they know ’t. No more of that. I pray you, in your letters, When you shall these unlucky deeds relate, Speak of me as I am. Nothing extenuate, Nor set down aught in malice. Then must you speak Of one that loved not wisely, but too well. Of one not easily jealous, but being wrought, Perplexed in the extreme. Of one whose hand, Like the base Indian, threw a pearl away Richer than all his tribe. Of one whose subdued eyes, 350 Albeit unused to the melting mood, Drop tears as fast as the Arabian trees Their medicinal gum. Set you down this, And say besides that in Aleppo once, Where a malignant and a turbaned Turk 355 Beat a Venetian and traduced the state, I took by the throat the circumcised dog, And smote him, thus.
41 | P a g e Essay Topics 1. How dosymbolismandimageryreinforce the mainthemesin Othello? 2. How doesShakespeareuse language todefine characterandheightenthe dramaof certainsituationsin Othello? 3. To what extentisOthellopresentedasnoble andheroicinShakespeare’splay? 4. Discussthe waysin whichShakespeareexploresthe themesof pride andjealousyin Othello. 5. Who or whatis to blame forthe tragedyin Othello? 6. To what extentare the female charactersin Othello victimsof a sexistandpatriarchal society?

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Othello - Work Book

  • 1. Othello By William Shakespeare Year 11 Unit 2 – Reading and Responding - Work book
  • 2. 2 | P a g e Name: _________________________________ Act 1 Scene 1 A street in Venice, late at night 1. What do you thinkIagoisimplyingwhenhe describesCassioas‘agreatarithmetician’anda‘bookishtheoric’ (lines19and 24)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Complete the followingtable Speaker Quote Meaning ‘thou,Iagowho hasthad my purse / As if the stringswere thine’ ‘… prefermentgoesbyletterand affection,/Andnotby old gradation’ Iago Iago isdeceptive 3. Complete the followingtable toshowyourunderstandingof the variouslanguage devicesthatShakespeare uses to presentBrabantio’sanxietyinlines158-184. Language device Quotes / examples Line number/s Short sentences Exclamationmarks Interruptedtrainof thought Exaggeration 4. The openinglinesof Othello are rhythmicallyveryrough(theydonotstrictlyfollow regulariambicpentameter). What mightShakespeare be suggestingaboutthe charactersbywritingthisway?Whatmood or atmosphere is established?
  • 3. 3 | P a g e _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Whenwritersuse wordsto frompicturesinour minds,perhapscomparingone thingwithanother,thisisknownas usingimagery.These wordpicturestypicallyinvolve ourfive senses:sight(visualimagery),sound(auditoryimager), touch (tactile imagery),taste (gustatoryimagery) andsmell (olfactoryimagery). Shakespeare’splayscontainanabundance of powerfulimagery.In Othello,these imagesgaintheirpowerthrough frequentrepetitionandfromthe waytheyinterweave indistinctpatternsthroughoutthe play. Imagesrelatingtoanimalsare a dominantfeature of Othello,especiallynoticeable inAct1; theyeffectivelyassistin characterisationandcraft powerful connectionswiththe play’scentral themesandideas. 1. Every mentionof animalsinAct1 is made byIago. Listas many referencestoanimalsasyoucan find. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. How do youthinkShakespeare’sassociationof Iagowithanimalsassistsincharacterisinghimasthe villainof the play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Animal imagesare regularlyanddeliberatelyassociatedwithsomeof the majorthemesandideasof the play, especiallyinthe openingscenes.HowdoesShakespeare employimage clusterstopresentIago’sracistattitudes towardOthelloinScene 1,lines86-89 and Scene 3, line 377-81? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 4. 4 | P a g e 4. Read Scene 1, lines42-65 and Scene 3, lines377-81. Publically,Iagoonly pretends tolove andrespectOthello. How doesIago’suse of animal imagerystrengthenthisnotion? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 1 Scene 2 Another street 1. Finda quote fromOthello’slinesthatsuggeststhe following: Quality Line That he is polite That he lovesDesdemona That he is openand honest That he is not unnecessarily violent That he is of noble birth That he is calm and confident 2. How doesthe way Othelloispresentedinthisscene contrasttothe wayhe was describedinthe openingscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. How doesOthello’sviewof womencontrastwiththatof Iago,judgingitfromthe followingcomments?Inyour response,discussthe ideaspresentedandthe language theyuse. Othello:… for knowIago, But that I love the gentle Desdemona. Iago: ‘Faith,he tonighthathboardeda landcarrack; If it prove lawful prize,he’smade forever (lines50-51) _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 5. 5 | P a g e Turks invade Cyprus Othellowins Desdemona Iago manipulates Othello PSYCHOLOGICAL DOMESTIC _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Complete the followingtable todemonstrate yourunderstandingof how Shakespeare useslanguage devicesto conveyBrabantio’sangertowardandlowopinionof Othello(lines62-81). Language device Quote(s) Repetitionof words/phrases Use of secondperson(‘thou’) ‘Thoufoul thief’ 1:1:62 Harsh soundingwords Insultingwords Imageryassociatedwithwitchcraft ‘chainsof magic’ 1:1:65 Contrastto Desdemona’sbeautyand innocence Conflictin Othello can be seenonthree levelsthroughoutthe play:
  • 6. 6 | P a g e
  • 7. 7 | P a g e Act 1 Scene 3 A council-chamber 1. Why doesBrabantio assume thatDesdemonawouldnotmarryOthelloof herownfree will?Whatreasondoeshe give? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. How didOthellowinDesdemona’s affection? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. How doesDesdemonapresentherdecisiontomarryOthelloinafavourable light?Inwhatway(s) doesherspeech showconfidence andintelligence? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Before Desdemonaentersthe Senate,Brabantiohasalreadyspokenabouther.How doesthe realityof Desdemona’sbehaviourandspeechcontradicthisportraitof her? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. In lines127-169 Othellospeaksinlyrical poetrythatcreatesasense of nobilityandgrandeurabouthim.Quote examplesof the followingfromhisspeech(include line numbers): Alliteration(repeatedsound of the 1st consonant) Poeticrepetition Exoticnames
  • 8. 8 | P a g e Highlydescriptivewordsand phrases Lyrical rhythmor flowof words Quote the phrase or line you judge to be the most lyrical. 6. What major theme of the playisforeshadowedbythe behaviourof the Turkishfleet? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. How differentmightthe Senate’sdecisiononthe marriage have been: a. ina time of peace? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. if Othellowere notagreat general? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. Why doesShakespeare use soliloquiesduringthe play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. What doesIago’ssoliloquyatthe endof Act 1 Scene 3 reveal abouthim? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. What isan aside? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Findan example of anaside usedinthisscene.Whatimpactdoesithave? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 9. 9 | P a g e 12. Previously,inDesdemona’sabsence,Brabantiospoke of ashy,blushinggirl,butherbehaviourbefore the Senate presentsastark contrast to thisimage.Whatqualitiesdoesshe demonstratebefore the Senate inmakingher requesttogo to CypruswithOthello? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. Why isit ironicthatOthellodescribesIagoas‘honest’(lines281 and291)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. CarefullyreadIago’ssoliloquybeginning:‘ThusdoIevermake my fool mypurse’(lines360-381). a. What isIago’s true opinionof Roderigo? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. What reasondoesIagogive forhatingOthello? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ c. How doeshe intendtocause a fallingoutbetweenOthelloandCassio? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. Readthe followingdialogueinlines289-91 andthenanswerthe followingquestions: BRABANTIO Look to her,Moor, if thouhast eyestosee: She has deceivedherfather,andmaythee. OTHELLO My life uponherfaith! a. How do youthinkthisexchange willbe importanttothe restof the play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 10. 10 | P a g e b. What event(s) mightthisexchangebe foreshadowing? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 16. Iago andRoderigo’sdialogue(lines298onwards) containsfourimagesrelatingtoanimals. a. List these images _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. What isIago tryingto suggestaboutothercharacters byusingthese images? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ c. What do youthinkShakespeare issuggestingaboutthe characterof Iago by havinghimuse somany animal images? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 17. Complete the followingtablegivingexamplesof whenShakespeare hasusedfigurativelanguage sofar. Metaphor - a figure of speech that identifiessomethingas beingthe same as some unrelatedthingforrhetorical effect,thushighlightingthe similaritiesbetweenthe two. Simile - a figure of speech involvingthe comparisonof one thingwithanotherthing of a differentkind,usedto make a descriptionmore emphaticorvivid Conceit- an extended metaphorwitha complex logicthat governsa poetic passage or entire poem.
  • 11. 11 | P a g e Act 2 Scene 1 A sea-port in Cyprus: a windstorm batters the quay 1. Cassio’slinesatthe start of this scene (60-86) have beencomparedtoa bestman’sspeechat a wedding.Inyour ownwords,howdoesCassiodescribe Desdemona? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Complete the followingtable toshowyourunderstandingof the wayShakespeare usesOthelloandDesdemona’s language todemonstrate theirlove foreachother. Language device Example fromlines174-92 Exaggeratedorhyperboliclanguage Poeticor lyrical descriptions Completionof eachother’slinesof iambicpentameter Other 3. Based onhiscommentsinthisscene,whatdo youthinkisIago’sattitude towardwomen? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Iago says to Desdemona,‘ForIamnothing,if notcritical’.Inwhat waysdoesthisseemtobe an accurate comment on Iago’scharacter? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 12. 12 | P a g e 5. In thisscene,DesdemonasaystoIago,‘I dobeguile /The thingI am, by seemingotherwise.’Discussatleasttwo waysthat Desdemona’sstatementisironic(considerhercharacteras well asIago’s). _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Describe howShakespeare usesthe windstormtocreate tensionandas a foreshadowingtechnique. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Note:Ironically,although Othello is literally able to navigate‘dangerousseas’,hewill be unableto navigatethe‘foul and violent tempest’within himself,which will destroy him and someof thosearound him. 7. How doesIago viewCassio’scharacter?Whatseemstobe hismotivationforportrayinghimthisway? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. Finda quote asevidence foreachof the followingpropositions,fromIago’ssoliloquyatthe endof thisscene (lines259-85) andfill inthe table. Proposition Quote as evidence That Othellowillprobablybe a good husband That Iago doesnotreally knowwhyhe hatesOthello
  • 13. 13 | P a g e That Iago suspectsOthellohas sleptwithhiswife,Emilia That Iago findsDesdemona sexuallyattractive That Iago suspects Cassiohas sleptwithEmilia 9. What is yourassessmentof Iago’smotivationfordestroyingOthelloandCassio? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. ‘The thoughtwhereof /Does,like apoisonousmineral,gnaw myinwards’(lines269-270). Write a paragraph explaininghowjealousyseems tobe spreadingfromone charactertoanotherat thispointinthe play. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 14. 14 | P a g e Act 2 Scene 2 A street 1. List the positive wordsthatare usedto describe Othellointhisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. What dramatic purpose mightShakespeare have hadinmindforplacingsucha small scene betweentwolengthy scenesinwhichIagoplotsto destroyOthelloandCassio? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 2 Scene 3 A hall in the castle 1. Findan example of dramaticironyinthe openingtenlinesof thisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Explainone of the metaphorsIagousesin lines13-26. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Iago and Cassiohave a conversationaboutDesdemonaearlyinthisscene.Whatare some of the differencesinthe waytheyeach discussher?What doesthistell usaboutthe characters of Iago and Cassio? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 15. 15 | P a g e 4. What doesIago say to Montanoabout Cassio’sdrinking?How isthisanexample of dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. How doesIago give the impressionof beingaloyal friendtoCassiowhenOthelloisquestioninghim? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. OthellosaystoIago, ‘Thylove andhonestydothmince thismatter/ Makingit lighttoCassio’.Here,the word ‘mince’meanstocut intosmall pieces(thusminimise orreduce the importance of something).How are these lines anotherexample of dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Complete the followingtable toshowyourunderstandingof the dramaticandlanguage devicesShakespeare uses to demonstrate Cassiodrunkenness(see especiallylines85-144). Device Example showing Cassio’s drunkenness Repetitionof words and phrases Stage directions Shoutingof insults Irrational or nonsensical sentences Mispronunciationof words
  • 16. 16 | P a g e
  • 17. 17 | P a g e 8. What literarydevicesdoesCassioemployto conveyhisdisgustathisownbehaviour?Fill inthe table belowand give one or twoexamplesof each. Literary device One or two examples 9. Summarise whatIagosays aboutreputationinthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Cassio’sfinal wordsinthisscene are ‘Goodnight,honestIago’.ExplainwhatdramaticdeviceShakespeareuses here. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Withwhat supernatural powerdoesIagoalignhimself,inthisscene,toaccomplishhisplan? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 18. 18 | P a g e 12. The final twolinesof Act2 are inthe formof a rhymingcouplet.Doyouthinkthisisan effectiveendtothis scene?Whyor whynot? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 3 Scene 1 Before the castle Note:It wasa courtly customin Shakespeare’sEngland fornewly married couplesto be woken with music,organised by friendsor relatives. In this case, Cassio ordersa group of musiciansto play in order to wakeOthello.Unfortunately forCassio, Othello seemsin no mood formusic. 1. Iago’s planisto make it appearthat DesdemonaandCassioare havinganaffair.Listand explainthe decisionsthat the characters make inthisscene and howthese will suitIago’spurposes. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. What do you thinkis Shakespeare’sdramaticpurpose forincludingsome comedyatthe beginningof the scene?In your answerconsiderwhatcomesbefore andafterthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 19. 19 | P a g e Act 3 Scene 2 A room in the castle 1. How doesShakespeare presentOthelloasan efficientandeffective leaderinthisbrief scene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 3 Scene 3 The garden of the castle 1. How mightDesdemona’sclaiminlines22-26 (‘MyLord shall neverrest’, etc.) make the audience uneasy?Of what dramaticdevice isthisan example? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Cassiois particularlypoliteandcharmingwhentalkingtoDesdemona.Write downsome wordsthatexhibitthese aspectsof his character. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. How doesIago use Cassio’sembarrassmenttohisadvantage? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Do youthinkDesdemonasaystoomuchabout Cassiointhisscene?Whatseemstobe Shakespeare’sdramatic purpose here? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 20. 20 | P a g e 5. Identifythe speakersof the followingstatementsfromthisscene.How dotheyhave a greater resonance (or furthermeaning) whenreadinthe contextof the restof the play? Statement Speaker Importance inthe contextof the rest of the play? Whate’eryoube,I am obedient(line 90) AndwhenI love thee not,/ Chaos iscome again(lines92-93) 6. What reasonsdoesOthellohave tothinkIagoiscaring and concerned?Use evidence fromtheirdialogue. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. What general detailsdoesIagouse tofurnishhisargumentforDesdemona’sinfidelity? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What is Iago’sstrategyin sayingthat Cassio‘fills’hisposition‘upwithgreatability’(line 253)?What dramatic device isShakespeare employinghere? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. DesdemonareassuresCassio:‘Igive thee warrantof theyplace’(line 20). a. To what extentisshe promisingsomethingbeyondherauthority? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. Do youthinkthisstatementsupportsIago’sclaimthat‘ourGeneral’swife isnow the General’? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 21. 21 | P a g e 10. Iago claimsthata ‘goodname inman and woman… is the immediate jewel of theirsouls’.Isthiscontradicting whathe saidto Cassioinhisspeechon‘reputation’(Act2 Scene 3, lines241-51)? Explainthe ironyof whatIagosays here. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Many criticshave suggestedthatOthelloistooeasilypersuadedinthisexchange.Whatisyouropinion?Raise and considerevidence botherforandagainstthisview. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 12. The followingexcerptisfromAct3 Scene 3 lines372-77: OTHELLO If thou dostslanderherand torture me, Neverpraymore;abandonall remorse; On horror’sheadhorrors accumulate; Do deedstomake heavenweep,all earthamazed, For nothingcanstthou to damnationadd Greaterthan that. a. Underline examplesof hyperbole (adeliberatelyexaggeratedstatementtoemphasisapoint) thatOthello usesinthese lines. b. What doesOthellomeanwhenhe says,‘all earthamazed,/Fornothingcanstthou to damnationadd/ Greaterthan that.’ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. Findand explainanexample of dramaticirony inthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 22. 22 | P a g e 14. ReadOthello’sspeech,beginning‘Thisfellow’sof exceedinghonesty’(seelines262-81).What doesOthello resolve todoregardingDesdemonaif itisprovedshe isunfaithful? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. Complete the followingtabletoshowyourunderstandingof the devicesShakespeare usesinlines400-82 to showOthello’sdisgustandanger. Language device Example fromlines400-82 e.g.shortsentences ‘Monstrous!’(line 431) – findanotherexample. 16. Iago providesOthellowithtwofurther‘proofs’of Desdemona’sunfaithfulnessatthe endof thisscene.Whatare they? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 17. What do Iagoand Othelloresolve todoat the endof thisscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 18. What can we,the audience,tell aboutIagoandEmilia’s relationshipfromtheirdialogue?Listatleastthree pointsandsupportthemwithevidence. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 23. 23 | P a g e _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 19. It has beensaidbycriticsthat Iago andOthello’srevenge-pactisagrotesque parodyof a weddingceremony.List all the similaritiesyoucanfindbetweentheirpactanda weddingceremony.Doyouthinkthisinterpretation enrichesyourreadingof thisscene inanyway? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 20. In Act 1, onlyIagospoke usinganimal imager;now inAct3, so doesOthello.Whatdoyouthinkthismight suggestaboutOthello’scharacteratthispointinthe play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 21. ReadAct 3 Scene 3, lines277-81, 329-37, 454 andScene 4, lines151-55. How doesShakespeareportrayjealousy as a poisonor disease inthese lines? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 22. In Act 3 Othelloisdesperate to‘see’whathe hasalreadyimagined:Desdemona’sinfidelity.Frequentrepetition of wordsassociatedwithsight(e.g.‘see’and‘eye’) isasalientfeature of Othello’slanguageinthese scenes.Despite the ironyof Othello’sobsessionwith‘seeing’whatisnotthere,whatisit aboutIago that he ironicallycannotsee? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 24. 24 | P a g e Act 3 Scene 4 Before the castle 1. Why do youthinkShakespeare placesthe comicaspectsatthe beginningof thisscene directlyafterthe revenge - pact of the previousscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Why is the handkerchiefDesdemonahaslostsoimportanttoOthello? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Quote a phrase fromDesdemona’sdialogueandexplainhow itwouldfurtherenrage Othelloorcause himto become more suspicious.Of whatdramaticdevice isthisanexample? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. How doesBianca interpretCassio’spossessionof the handkerchief?Whatcommontheme of the playdoesher conversationwithCassioreinforce? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. The start of thisscene involvespunning (ajoke exploitingthe differentpossiblemeaningsof awordor the fact that there are wordswhichsoundalike buthave differentmeanings) onthe word‘lie’.Whyisthe subjectof this punningparticularlyappropriate? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Read lines95-98 and answerthe followingquestions: a. What isEmilia’sviewof meningeneral? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 25. 25 | P a g e b. What literarydevice doesshe employtoexplainherviews? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ c. Why do youthinkEmiliausesinclusive language (‘we’and‘us’) inthisspeech? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ d. What mightitsuggestaboutEmiliaandDesdemona’srelationship? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ e.Might it alsosuggestEmilia’sthoughtsonOthello’streatmentof Desdemona? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Explain(orparaphrase) whatyouunderstandtobe Emilia’sview of jealousy,usingevidencefromthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. Desdemonaisobviously unaware of whatIagohas beensaying.Doyouthink,however,herpleadingforCassio’s reinstatementinthisscene isfoolishornaïve inany way?Considerargumentsforandagainstthisview. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 26. 26 | P a g e Act 4 Scene 1 Cyprus, before the castle 1. Summarise whatCassiosaysaboutBianca inthisscene.WhomdoesOthellothinkhe isdiscussing?Howisthisan example of dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Why doesCassiofindthe ideathathe will marryBiancaamusing? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Quote and explaintwophrasesfromCassio’sspeechthatOthellowouldfindparticularlyoffensive.Howis Othello’sinterpretationof these linesanexampleof dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Read line 119 in context.Whatdo youthinkthisquote suggestsaboutOthelloatthispointinthe play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Why mightOthellofinditparticularlyinfuriatingthatCassiohasgivenhishandkerchief to Bianca? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. How do youthinkOthellointhisscene presentsacontrastto the Othelloof Act1? Write a short paragraph and provide examplesfrombothscenes. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 27. 27 | P a g e 7. Quote an example (orphrase ora lien) of aracist assumptionthatIagomakesinthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. How is Cassio’slanguage whenhe istalkingabout(andto) Biancadifferentfromthe language he usestoaddress Desdemona?Why? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. In thisscene,Shakespearemakesconstantreference tothe antithesis (opposite)betweenmanandbeast,usinga great deal of animal imagerytodo so.How doesthislanguage device highlightthe deteriorationof Othello’s character? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Explainhowjealousyisspreadingbymeansof deceptionandisleadingtomisunderstandinginthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Thisscene isrich indramatic ironyandour interpretation of the dialogue increasesdramatictension.Findsome examplesof ironyinthisscene. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 28. 28 | P a g e 12. Quote a line orsentence that conveys Othello’s continuingadmirationforDesdemona. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. What do youthinkOthellomeansbythe sentence:‘No,myheartisturnedto stone:I strike it,and ithurts my hand’(line 168)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. What aspectsof Othello’swordsandactionsinthisscene doyouthinkcouldmake the audience particularly sympathetictowardhim? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. In response toLodovico’squestion,Iagosaysof Cassiothat he ‘lives’(line 204).Explainthe ironyof Iago’s response. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 16. Desdemonastates:‘Iwoulddomuch/ To atone them, forthe love Ibearto Cassio’(lines212-13).Why does Othelloreactrashlyatthis comment?Whatdramaticdevice isShakespeare employinghere? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 17. Why doyou thinkDesdemonadoesnotstandupforherself more forcefullyinthisscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 29. 29 | P a g e
  • 30. 30 | P a g e 18. What doesIagosuggestto LodovicoaboutOthello’sstrikingDesdemona?How isthisparticularlyunfairandeven ironic? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 19. Othello’slanguage atthispointinthe playresemblesIago’s.Quote some examplesfromthisscene andexplain whatit mightindicate aboutOthello’scharacter. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 20. How doesIagoturn Othello’s praiseof Desdemonatohisown advantage?Explainone example. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 21. Readlines164-82. Fill inthe table todemonstrate yourunderstandingof Shakespeare’suse of antithesis(clashof opposites) intheselines. Evidence thatOthellostill lovesDesdemona Evidence thatOthellohatesDesdemona
  • 31. 31 | P a g e 22. What doesthisclashof oppositessuggestaboutOthelloatthispoint inthe play? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 4 Scene 2 A room in the castle 1. What doesEmiliareportaboutCassioand Desdemonaatthe beginningof thisscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Many criticshave suggestedthatOthello’sdownfalliscausedbyhisimmense concernwithhisownhonour.Finda quote that suggestsOthello’smainconcernisforhisreputation. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Finda simile OthellousestoillustrateDesdemona’slackof ‘honesty’orherinfidelity. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Quote and explainametaphorOthelloemploystodescribe Desdemona. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Read Desdemona’sspeech(fromline148onwards).Summarise heropinionof Othelloatthisstage of the play. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 32. 32 | P a g e 6. How doesOthellointerpretDesdemona’skneelingandpraying(line 22)?How isparticularlyunfair? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Emiliaposesthe question,‘Hathshe forsooksomanynoble matches,/Herfatherand hercountryand her friends, / To be call whore?’(lines125-27).Explainhowthisstatementisironicinthe contextof the entire paly.Hint:Think of howa differentcharacterusedthissame information. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. How doesEmiliadescribe the personwhohasdeceivedOthello,andinwhatway(s) isthisironic?Include quotes inyour response. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. Why do youthinkDesdemonadoesnotreactmore forcefullytoOthello’saccusations?Doyouagree withsome criticswhoinsistshe istoo passive? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 33. 33 | P a g e 10. What do we discoveraboutRoderigo’ssituationfromhisspeechesinthisscene? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Who speaksthe majorityof the dialogue atthe beginningof thisinteraction?Whodominatesthe dialogue atthe end?What doesthistell the audience abouttheirrelationship? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 12. If Roderigocouldthinkclearlyatthisstage of the play,whatevidence doeshe have thatIagoisnot to be trusted? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 4 Scene 3 Another room in the castle 1. Emiliaisoutspokenaboutsexual desiresforwomenandtheirneedforjustice inthisscene.Herdialogue isradical for a character createdinthe seventeenthcentury,especiallyafemale character,andmanycriticshave described heras a feministbefore hertime.Listsome examplesthatdemonstrate heroutspokenness. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Describe Othello’sspeechinthisscene.Doeshe seemcalmer?Whydoyouthinkthismightbe? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 34. 34 | P a g e 3. How differentlydoDesdemonaandEmiliadiscussOthelloandLodovicointhisscene?Whatdoesthistell usabout the women’scharacters? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. How is Barbara’ssituationsimilartoDesdemona’s? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. How do Desdemona’sviewsoninfidelityprovide acontrastto Emilia’sviews?WhydoyouthinkShakespeare placesthisdialogue here,shortlybefore Desdemonaismurdered? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Read the WillowSongagain(lines39-55): a. What poeticdevicesdoesShakespeare employinthissong?Quote examplesin youranswer. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. Howwouldyoudescribe the tone of thissong? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ c. What wordsdo you find particularly emotive? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ d. Quote andexplainaline inthe songthat reflectsDesdemona’sattitude toOthello. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 35. 35 | P a g e 7. Emiliausesa great deal of antithesis(directopposite of someone orsomethingelse) inlines65-93. a. List several examplesof pairedoppositesfromtheselines. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ b. What mightShakespeare’spurposebe insaturatingEmilia’sdialogue withantitheses? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What is yourassessmentof Emilia’scharacteratthispointinthe play?How do youthinkyour attitude wouldbe differentif youwere viewingthe playinShakespeare’stime? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. Do youthinkDesdemonaseesherdeathassomethinginevitable?Presentone argumentfor,andone againstthis view. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 5 Scene 1 Cyprus, a street 1. Repetitionisasalientfeature inShakespeare’s Othello,usedeffectivelytoemphasise the central themes of the play.Fill inthe table below. Repeatedwords,phrasesorideas Textual Reference Intendedimpact ‘thieves’5times 1.1. 79-81 To emphasise the perceivedplace of womenasproperty
  • 36. 36 | P a g e 2. What are Iago’sreasonsfor wantRoderigoandCassiodead? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Choose twoexamplesinwhichcharacterswronglydescribe Iagointhisscene (e.g.Othellocallshim‘brave’) and explainhowthese descriptionsare ironic. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. What doesIago suggestaboutBianca inthisscene?How isthis a furtherexample of dramaticirony? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. How is the language IagoemployswhentalkingtoCassioironic? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. The original performancesof Othello at the Globe Theatre woldhave takenplace duringthe day.How does Shakespeare create the effectof darknessandconfusionthroughthe characters’dialogue andactions? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 37. 37 | P a g e 7. Why do youthinkIago decidestoaccuse Biancaof conspiringagainstCassio’slife?How doesBianca’ssituation parallel Desdemona’s? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. Does the literal darknessof thisscene have anymetaphorical significance?Explainyouranswer. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Act 5 Scene 2 A bedchamber in the castle 1. What devicesorparticularwordsdo youthinkgive an emotional intensity toOthello’sopeningsoliloquy? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Quote a line orphrase that suggestsDesdemonastrugglesortriestofightagainstOthello. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. How doesDesdemonashowherloyaltytoOthellountil the end? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. How is Othello’sstatementinline 128about Desdemona(‘she’slike aliar,gone toburninghell!’) ironic? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 38. 38 | P a g e 5. What effectdoesEmilia’srepetitionof the phrase ‘myhusband’(lines139-49) produce inthisscene?Howdoes thisdialogue reinforce herdisbelief? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Othellosaysinhisopeningspeech,‘Putoutthe light,andthenputoutthe light’(line 7).Whatdo yourthinkhe meansbythis?Explainthe twolightsandthe poeticdevice he isusing. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. How doesDesdemona’spresence (althoughasleep) addatensionanda resonance toOthello’ssoliloquy(lines1- 22)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What can we tell aboutDesdemonafromherfinal words?How are theyironic? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. How doesShakespeare use languagetoconveyEmilia’sshockandterrorwhenshe discoversthatDesdemona’s handkerchief hasbeenusedinIago’sscheme? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Is Emiliawhollyhonestwhenshe claimstohave ‘foundbyfortune’Desdemona’shandkerchief (line255)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 39. 39 | P a g e 11. What doesOthellofeel isthe conditionof hissoul? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 12. Finda line thatsuggestsOthellois particularly concernedabouthishonour. Doyoufeel thisisOthello’sgreatest concern? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. Emiliasingsasnatch of the WillowSongasshe isdying.What purpose doyouthinkthisserves?Thatis,whydoes Shakespeare include the songhere? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. Othelloaskstobe rememberedas‘anhonourable murderer’andassomeone ‘wholovedtoowell’.Ishe deceivinghimself inyouropinion? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. What doesEmiliameanwhenshe says,‘’TisproperIobeyhim, butnot now’(line 194)? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 16. Do youthinkthe playendswitha sense thatthingshave beenputright,that orderhas beenrestored? _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
  • 40. 40 | P a g e 17. Annotate Othello’sfinal soliloquy. Soft you, a word or two before you go. 340 I have done the state some service, and they know ’t. No more of that. I pray you, in your letters, When you shall these unlucky deeds relate, Speak of me as I am. Nothing extenuate, Nor set down aught in malice. Then must you speak Of one that loved not wisely, but too well. Of one not easily jealous, but being wrought, Perplexed in the extreme. Of one whose hand, Like the base Indian, threw a pearl away Richer than all his tribe. Of one whose subdued eyes, 350 Albeit unused to the melting mood, Drop tears as fast as the Arabian trees Their medicinal gum. Set you down this, And say besides that in Aleppo once, Where a malignant and a turbaned Turk 355 Beat a Venetian and traduced the state, I took by the throat the circumcised dog, And smote him, thus.
  • 41. 41 | P a g e Essay Topics 1. How dosymbolismandimageryreinforce the mainthemesin Othello? 2. How doesShakespeareuse language todefine characterandheightenthe dramaof certainsituationsin Othello? 3. To what extentisOthellopresentedasnoble andheroicinShakespeare’splay? 4. Discussthe waysin whichShakespeareexploresthe themesof pride andjealousyin Othello. 5. Who or whatis to blame forthe tragedyin Othello? 6. To what extentare the female charactersin Othello victimsof a sexistandpatriarchal society?