1. th
18
Monday
November
Othello’s language vs Iago’s
• STARTER QUESTION: Who is the main
character of the play: Othello or Iago? Give as
detailed an explanation as possible

2. Othello’s language vs Iago’s
• Othello is noted for the beauty of his
speaking, about which he makes claims to be
a modest speaker - “rude” in his speech.
• The characters know his skilled speechcraft –
The Duke suggests that Othello’s “tale would
win” his daughter too!

3. Othello’s heroic language
• Facing Brabantio and his men, Othello says
“Keep up your bright swords, for the dew will
rust them” (1.2.59) – With a few well-chosen
words, the hero calms an angry crowd!
• This means “put your swords back in their
sheaths, and saying that the “dew will rust
them” is a bit of gentle sarcasm to defuse the
situation!
• Othello is reminding the men he’s facing that
their swords will be quite useless – him and
his men are trained soldiers so it would be a
bit of a mismatch!

4. Othello’s heroic language
• Othello admits his ‘crimes’ saying he has indeed
married Desdemona, when addressing the Senate in
1.3, but denies the charges of witchcraft – “The very
head and front of my offending Hath this extent, no
more” (1.3.81)
• Ironic as Brabantio has made all kinds of
accusations, but the only thing that Othello has really
done is marry Desdemona!
• He says he will “a round unvarnish’d tale deliver”
(1.3.90) of his love. Unvarnished: Plain, straightforward, to the point.
• More irony as he says he will give an account of “what
drugs, what charms, what conjuration and what
mighty magic” he used to win Desdemona’s heart –
this irony conveys the idea that his love is greater than
any drug, charm, conjuration or magic.

5. Othello’s heroic language
• As a way of making Othello jealous, Iago
warns him against jealousy. Othello says he’s
not the jealous type and declares “No Iago;
I’ll see before I doubt” “Away at once with
love or jealousy!” (3.3.192)
• For Othello, there are no grey areas, but
despite what he says, Othello already has
strong suspicions, not from seeing
anything, but just from listening to Iago.

6. Othello’s heroic language
• A little later in the scene Othello says that before
this he was happy – he didn’t suspect
anything, he couldn’t taste Cassio’s kisses on
Desdemona’s lips and everything was right in his
world. In his desperation to turn back the
clock, he would rather Desdemona had slept with
the dirtiest, sweatiest soldiers in camp (the
“pioners”), if only he didn’t know about it!
• “I had been happy, if the general camp, pioners
and all, had tasted her sweet body, so I had
nothing known!” (3.3.345)
• This is the moment when he is realising his cool
and calm nature has been destroyed: “Farewell
the tranquil mind! Farewell content!” (3.3.348)

7. Othello’s heroic language
• When Othello demands some proof of Desdemona’s
adultery, Iago tells him he will never be able to catch
Des and Cassio in bed together, while at the same time
describing their coupling in a most lurid and bestial
way:
“It is impossible you should see this were, were they
as prime as goats, as hot as monkeys, as salt as
wolves in pride (heat)” (3.3.402)
• He is wanting to get this primal, animal-like explicit
image implanted firmly into Othello’s head.
• This comes back in Act 4 when Desdemona thinks he
has overheard Desdemona confess her love for
Cassio, Othello exits with the exclamation “Goats and
monkeys!” (4.1.263) – We see how Iago’s beastly
imagery has taken root in Othello’s mind.

8. Othello’s heroic language
• Othello then gives up his love for Desdemona
and compares the force of his hatred to the
force of a huge body of water as it descends
through a constantly narrowing passage
• “Never Iago: Like to the Pontic sea…”
• “Even so my bloody thoughts, with violent
pace, shall ne’er look back, ne’er ebb to
humble love” (Speech starts 3.3.453)

9. Othello’s heroic language
• After seeing the handkerchief in Cassio’s
hand, Othello says to Iago, “I would have him
nine years a-killing. A fine woman! A fair
woman! A sweet woman!” (4.1.178)
• Othello believes that no punishment would be
too cruel for Cassio, but struggles when he thinks
of killing his wife – he thinks of how beautiful she
is.
• Trying to convince himself that his extreme
hatred will overcome his extreme love, Othello
says “My heart is turned to stone, I strike it and
it hurts my hand” (4.1.182)
• But then he backtracks, adding “O, the world
hath not a sweeter creature!”

10. Othello’s heroic language
• In the scene in which Othello calls Desdemona a
whore, he says that he could bear the pain of being
scorned as a cuckold.
• “The fountain from which my currents runs / or else
dries up; to be discarded thence!” (4.2.58)
• Desdemona is that life-giving fountain; feeling that he
has been discarded from her love makes Othello feel
dead, but he can’t keep her with him. If he keeps
her, she would no longer be a fountain, but a tank
where ugly toads have sex: “a cistern for foul toads /
To knot and gender in!” (4.2.61)
• “Patience, thou young and rose-lipp’d cherubin, ay
there, look grim as hell!” – Even the angel of patience
would get angry at what he has seen. Animal imagery
and hell imagery – Who is he sounding like??

11. Othello’s heroic language
• After discovering the truth about Iago’s
treachery, Othello feels that he has done a
thing for which there can be no forgiveness.
Looking at the body of Desdemona, Othello is
so possessed by the image of his dead love he
feels it would be better to be in hell:
• “Whip me, ye devils, from the possession of
this heavenly sight”
• “O Desdemon! Desdemon! Dead!”
• (5.2.277)