4. HOW TO WRITE A
RESPONSE TO
LITERATURE
Adapted from a handout from The Writing
Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill
5. Interpretations of fiction are generally
opinions, but not all opinions are
equal.
A good, valid, and interesting interpretation will do the
following:
avoid the obvious (in other words, it won’t argue a
conclusion that most readers could reach on their
own from a general knowledge of the story)
support its main points with strong textual evidence
from the story and/or secondary sources.
use careful reasoning to explain how that evidence
relates to the main points of the interpretation.
6. Choose the pieces of evidence you’ll
be able to say the most about.
Readers tend to be more dazzled with
your interpretations of evidence than
with a lot of quotes from the book.
Select the details that will allow you to
show off your own reasoning skills and
allow you to help the reader see the
story in a way he or she may not have
seen it before.
Select your evidence
Skim back over the play and make a more
comprehensive list of the details that relate to your point.
Select the facts which bear the closest relation to your
thesis statement.
7. • Now, go back to your working thesis and refine it
so that it reflects your new understanding of your
topic. This step and the previous step (selecting
evidence) are actually best done at the same time,
since selecting your evidence and defining the
focus of your paper depend upon each other
Refine your thesis
• Remember this exercise?
Revise the phrase for the prompt you have
chosen:
“This play shows ______________________.
This is important
because____________________.”
8. Once you have a clear thesis, go back to your list of
selected evidence and group all the similar details
together. The ideas that tie these clusters of evidence
together can then become the claims that you’ll make in
your paper.
Keep in mind that your claims should not only relate to all
the evidence but also clearly support your thesis.
Once you’re satisfied with the way you’ve grouped your
evidence and with the way that your claims relate to your
thesis, you can begin to consider the most logical way to
organize each of those claims.
Organize your evidence
9. Avoid the temptation to load your paper with evidence from
your story. Each time you use a specific reference to your
story, be sure to explain the significance of that evidence
in your own words.
To get your readers’ interest, draw their attention to elements
of the story that they wouldn’t necessarily notice or
understand on their own.
If you are quoting passages without interpreting them, you’re
not demonstrating your reasoning skills or helping the reader.
In most cases, interpreting your evidence merely involves
putting into your paper what is already in your head.
Interpret your evidence
10. Keep in Mind
Don't forget to consider the
scope of your project: What can
you reasonably cover in a paper
of 3 to 6 pages?
Eliminate wordiness and
repetition to ensure that you
have room to make all of your
points.
See me if you are lost or
confused!
14. The Notion of Tragedy
Tragedy is an imitation of action. It is serious, complete and of a
certain magnitude. It treats of events which are pitiful and terrible and
concerns the reversal from good fortune to bad of a great man who,
by reason of some weakness or defect of character, is thus the
cause of his own downfall. Because this man is great, either by birth
or position, his downfall seems more terrible than if he were an
ordinary man; it has also far-reaching effects in the lives of others.
Because morally he is a man like ourselves- neither eminently
virtuous nor viciously depraved- h is misfortune arouses in us the
emotion of fear. Because his downfall is partly his own fault, and
because it seems to be far out of proportion to the evil of his actions,
we experience a feeling of pity for him. Through our sympathies with
this tragic hero we undergo a catharsis or purgation of the emotions.
Taken from Aristotle’s Poetics:
Tragedy: a drama that depicts serious and important events that
cause suffering and distress, as well as an unhappy ending for
the protagonist
15. The Tragedy
Concerned primarily with one person
Essentially a tale of suffering and calamity leading to death
The suffering and calamity are exceptional. They befall a
significant person.
They are also, as a rule, unexpected, and contrasted with
previous happiness and/or glory.
Attended by tragic pity.
When he falls suddenly from the height of earthly greatness to
the dust, his fall produces a sense of contrast, of the
powerlessness of man, and of the omnipotence - perhaps the
caprice - of Fortune or Fate.
16. The Tragic Flaw
The center of the tragedy may be said to lie in action issuing
from a major character flaw or an action issuing from ignorance
or error:
a) abnormal conditions of mind
b) The supernatural
c) A chance or accident
The action can be defined as conflict:
a) Between two persons
b) Between two passions or tendencies, ideas, principles, or
forces.
c) In the hero’s mind or soul
Tragic flaw-a fault or error of the protagonist which usually leads to
his/her downfall or death
17. Aristotle’s Tragic Hero
1. The tragic hero is a character of noble stature and has greatness. This should
be readily evident in the play. The character must occupy a "high" status
position but must ALSO embody nobility and virtue as part of his/her innate
character.
1. Though the tragic hero is pre-eminently great, he/she is not perfect. Otherwise,
the rest of us--mere mortals--would be unable to identify with the tragic
hero. We should see in him or her someone who is essentially like us, although
perhaps elevated to a higher position in society.
1. The hero's downfall, therefore, is partially her/his own fault, the result of free
choice, not of accident or villainy or some overriding, malignant fate. In fact,
the tragedy is usually triggered by some error of judgment or some character
flaw that contributes to the hero's lack of perfection noted above. This error of
judgment or character flaw is known as hamartia and is usually translated as
"tragic flaw" (although some scholars argue that this is a
mistranslation). Often the character's hamartia involves hubris (which is
defined as a sort of arrogant pride or over-confidence).
18. 4. The hero's misfortune is not wholly deserved. The punishment exceeds the
crime.
4. The fall is not pure loss. There is some increase in awareness, some gain in
self-knowledge, some discovery on the part of the tragic hero.
4. Though it arouses solemn emotion, tragedy does not leave its audience in a
state of depression. Aristotle argues that one function of tragedy is to arouse
the "unhealthy" emotions of pity and fear and through a catharsis (which
comes from watching the tragic hero's terrible fate) cleanse us of those
emotions. It might be worth noting here that Greek drama was not
considered "entertainment," pure and simple; it had a communal function--to
contribute to the good health of the community. This is why dramatic
performances were a part of religious festivals and community celebrations.
Aristotle’s Tragic Hero
From Aristotle’s Poetics
19. Shakespeare’s Tragedy
A drama of a significant person
who, because of a flaw in character
or in action, experiences a fall that
leads to suffering and death; the
events of the drama produce pity
and fear in the audience.
Drama: This means there is action
involving a number of people
interacting on a stage.
20. Shakespeare’s Tragic Hero
Significant Person: this is usually a king or prince, or
a person of high standing in the community. More than
this, the person is significant in that he is noted for
being noble in character in some way that raises him
above ordinary people.
A Flaw: often, there is a serious problem or
imperfection or predisposition in character that causes
the hero to err in his or her actions; however, there are
instances when the flaw is a coincidental action. The
tragic hero is generally responsible for his actions and
for his own death. The very character trait that makes
the person exceptional may be also his flaw.
21. Shakespearean Tragedy
A Fall: the tragic hero “falls” physically to his death, but
also falls in the sense of not realizing his true potential.
There is a sense of waste at the end of the drama, of the
person not having achieved what he or she should have
achieved.
Pity and Fear- these are emotions instilled in the
audience. The audience identifies with the hero (we put
ourselves in the hero’s shoes) and we thus feel pity for
the hero during the fall. The audience also fears that
such disasters can happen to us if we are not careful
enough in real life.
22. More Terms Associated with
Tragedy
1. Mimesis- representation or imitation of the real world in art and
literature
2. Anagnorisis- moment of critical discovery
3. Catharsis- relief or purging
4. Opsis- visual elements
5. Hamartia- a mistake, or taking a flawed path
6. Hubris- pride, arrogance, out of touch with reality
7. Mythos- myth- story, the plot
8. Lexis- diction; language concerning vocabulary
9. Peripeteia- a sudden reversal of fortune or change in circumstances
10. Nemesis- arch-enemy
11. Ethos- the moral element in dramatic literature that determines a
character's action rather than his or her thought or emotion.
12. Melos-the succession of musical tones constituting a melody
23.
24. The Tragedy of Othello
Othello is one of Shakespeare's four great tragedies (the others are Hamlet,
King Lear, and Macbeth). Othello is unique among Shakespeare's great
tragedies. Unlike Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth, which are set against a
backdrop of affairs of state and which reverberate with suggestions of
universal human concerns, Othello is set in a private world and focuses on
the passions and personal lives of its major figures.
Othello's swift descent into jealousy and rage and Iago's dazzling display of
villainy have long fascinated students and critics of the play. The relationship
between these characters is another unusual feature of Othello. With two
such prominent characters so closely associated, determining which is the
central figure in the play and which bears the greater responsibility for the
tragedy is difficult.
25. The Tragedy of Othello, the
Moor of Venice is believed
to have been written in
approximately 1603, and
based on the Italian short
story Un Capitano Moro ("A
Moorish Captain") by Cinthio,
a disciple of Boccaccio, first
published in 1565.
26. The title-page of the first quarto,
published in 1622, states that the play
“hath beene diuerse times acted at the
Globe, and at the Black-Friers, by his
Maiesties seruants.”
Othello was played at court by the
King’s Men on 1 November 1604. The
play was given in Oxford in 1610. The
title role was originally played by
Richard Burbage, with Joseph Taylor
as Iago.
Othello was included among the plays
in the First Folio of Shakespeare's
collected plays. However, the version in
the Folio is rather different in length,
and in wording: The Folio play has
about 160 lines that do not appear in
the Quarto.
27. The main reason behind Othello’s
ability to withstand the changes in
popular taste is that Shakespeare
used universal human themes in
the play.
Racism, jealousy and love are
feelings that persist in human
society. Since these topics are the
crux of the storyline in Othello, the
play’s appeal remains strong.
Today’s audiences still find Othello
relevant. It is the ability of a great
piece of literature to move
audiences that makes it popular.
30. On a street in Venice, there is an
argument between Roderigo, a
nobleman, and Iago, a Captain in the
defense forces.
Roderigo, in love with the noble lady
Desdemona, has paid large sums of
money to Iago, on the understanding
that Iago would give her gifts from
him and praise him to her. Roderigo
hopes to win Desdemona's love and
marry her.
However, they now have news that
Desdemona has left the house of her
father, Brabantio, a Senator, and
eloped with Othello, a Moor (an
African) who is a General in the
defense forces.
31. 1. How does Shakespeare present the world of Venice
in the first act, and how does he construct the
interactions of his central characters (Iago, Othello,
and Desdemona) with that Venetian world and with
each other. How are these interactions complicated
by the fact that Othello is a Moor (and what
exactly does that mean?) and that Desdemona is a
young woman?
32. BRABANTIO
What is the reason of this terrible summons?
What is the matter there?
RODERIGO
Signior, is all your family within?
IAGO
Are your doors locked?
BRABANTIO
Why, wherefore ask you this?
IAGO
Zounds, sir, you’re robbed. For shame, put on your gown!
Your heart is burst. You have lost half your soul.
Even now, now, very now, an old black ram
Is tupping your white ewe. Arise, arise!
Awake the snorting citizens with the bell,
Or else the devil will make a grandsire of you.
Arise, I say!
Brabantio, Roderigo, and
Iago
34. Othello’s Speech to the Duke
Her father loved me, oft invited me,
Still questioned me the story of my life
From year to year—the battles, sieges,
fortunes
That I have passed.
I ran it through, even from my boyish days
To th’ very moment that he bade me tell it,
Wherein I spoke of most disastrous
chances:
Of moving accidents by flood and field,
Of hairbreadth ’scapes i’ th’ imminent
deadly breach,
Of being taken by the insolent foe
And sold to slavery, of my redemption
thence,
And portance in my traveler’s history,
Wherein of antres vast and deserts idle,
Rough quarries, rocks and hills whose
heads touch heaven,
It was my hint to speak—such was my
process—
And of the cannibals that each other
eat,
The Anthropophagi, and men whose
heads
Do grow beneath their shoulders.
These things to hear
Would Desdemona seriously incline.
But still the house affairs would draw
her thence,
Which ever as she could with haste
dispatch
She’d come again, and with a greedy
ear
Devour up my discourse.
[…]
She loved me for the dangers I had
passed,
35. Orson Welles as Othello
(1952)
Act 1, Scene 3, Lines 91-111 and Act 1, Scene 3, Lines 149-
196
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHJjZ9vENzo
36. Questions
2. What sort of person is Iago, as he appears in act
1? Are you satisfied by the reasons he gives for
hating Othello? What is Iago's relationship with
Roderigo? Is he a trickster character? Why or
why not?
37. RODERIGO
Thou toldst me thou didst hold him in thy hate.
IAGO Despise me
If I do not. Three great ones of the city,
In personal suit to make me his lieutenant,
Off-capped to him; and, by the faith of man,
I know my price, I am worth no worse a place.
But he, as loving his own pride and purposes,
Evades them with a bombast circumstance,
Horribly stuffed with epithets of war,
And in conclusion,
Nonsuits my mediators. For “Certes,” says he,
“I have already chose my officer.”
And what was he?
Forsooth, a great arithmetician,
One Michael Cassio, a Florentine,
Act 1, Scene 1,
Lines 7-21
38. I hate the Moor,
And it is thought abroad that ’twixt my
sheets
’Has done my office. I know not if ’t be
true,
But I, for mere suspicion in that kind,
39. Questions
3. What more do we learn about the nature of Iago in
act 2? What is the effect of having him share his
thoughts and plans with us through his soliloquies?
Pay attention to the language used in Iago's
soliloquies. What sorts of descriptive language does
he use? How does it contribute to the picture of Iago
that Shakespeare is drawing?
41. Iago’s Soliloquy: Act 2, Scene1, Lines 308-334
That Cassio loves her, I do well believe
’t.
That she loves him, ’tis apt and of great
credit.
The Moor, howbeit that I endure him
not,
Is of a constant, loving, noble nature,
And I dare think he’ll prove to
Desdemona
A most dear husband. Now, I do love
her too,
Not out of absolute lust (though
peradventure
I stand accountant for as great a sin)
But partly led to diet my revenge
For that I do suspect the lusty Moor
Hath leaped into my seat—the thought
whereof
Doth, like a poisonous mineral, gnaw
my inwards,
And nothing can or shall content my
soul
Till I am evened with him, wife for
wife,
Or, failing so, yet that I put the Moor
At least into a jealousy so strong
That judgment cannot cure. Which
thing to do,
If this poor trash of Venice, whom I
trace
For his quick hunting, stand the
putting on,
I’ll have our Michael Cassio on the
hip,
Abuse him to the Moor in the garb
(For I fear Cassio with my nightcap
too),
Make the Moor thank me, love me,
and reward me
For making him egregiously an ass
And practicing upon his peace and
quiet
Even to madness. ’Tis here, but yet
confused.
Knavery’s plain face is never seen till
42. Questions
4. At the beginning of 3.3 Othello is completely in
love with Desdemona. By the end of that
scene, 480 lines later, Othello is ready to
murder her for having an affair with Cassio.
How have we gone from the first position to the
second position so quickly? How does Iago
plant the idea of Desdemona's infidelity in
Othello's mind, and how does he make it grow?
43. Questions
5. What sort of person is Emilia, and
what seems to be the nature of her
relationship with her husband
Iago? How does Desdemona's
handkerchief come into play within
that relationship between Emilia
and Iago?
44. Read Othello Acts 4-5
Post #12
1. How does the handkerchief function in act 4? Why is the handkerchief so important
to Othello?
2. How is Othello changing in act 4? What is the effect of his public humiliation of
Desdemona by slapping her?
3. What is the nature of the relationship between Emilia and Desdemona? What
especially is the effect of 4.3, in which we get an extended scene between these two
women alone? How effective is Shakespeare in portraying this private world of
women?
4. How does Othello approach the killing of Desdemona? What does he think he is
doing, and why?
5. What is the effect of having Emilia play such an important role after the murder?
Why is she now standing up to Othello and her husband? What is her reward?
6. Does Othello justify his killing of Desdemona? What is he doing in his last long
speech?
