Is “Othello” Best Regarded as a Domestic Tragedy free essay sample

Written in 1604, during Shakespeare’s great tragic period, â€Å"Othello† is one of his most highly concentrated, tightly constructed tragedies, with no subplots and little humour to relieve the tension. Although he adapted the plot of his play from the sixteenth-century Italian dramatist and novelist Giraldi Cinthios Gli Hecatommithi, Shakespeare related almost every incident directly to the development of Iagos schemes and Othellos escalating fears. This structure heightens the tragedys ominous mood and makes the threat to both Desdemonas innocence and the love she and Othello share more terrifying.Because of its varied themes of racism, love, jealousy and betrayal the play remains relevant today and is still quite popular. A domestic tragedy takes place in a personal setting. In â€Å"Othello†, the men are in Cyprus to fight a war. However, the tragedy is the events within the relationships of the central characters. There is little discussion of the war and, although Desdemona blames state matters for Othellos change in behavior, the real problems Othello faces are matters of the heart. A tragedy of state is when the tragic events effect more than just the protagonist, but also the government or kingdom that they belong to. In â€Å"Othello†, when Othello dies much of Venice is shocked and mourns him, as they have lost a great soldier and a great friend to the noblemen. It can be argued that â€Å"Othello† is a domestic tragedy as opposed to a state tragedy because in essence, the only people affected are a man and his wife, and their closest confidents and there is no impact on society. Othello† also fits domestic tragedy conventions regarding the tragic protagonists being ‘ordinary’, middle-class or lower-class individuals. This subgenre contrasts with classical and neoclassical tragedy, in which the protagonists are of kingly or aristocratic rank and their downfall is an affair of state as well as a personal matter. Therefore â€Å"Othello† is suitable to this genre because the characters are not noble or royal. On the other hand â€Å"Othello† could be disputed to be a tragedy of state because Othello himself, as a character, is a Venetian general.In other Shakespeare plays such as â€Å"Macbeth†, â€Å"King Lear† and â€Å"Hamlet† society is also impacted on because the majority of them have, as their central characters, kings and queens. The tragic outcomes of the plays effect whole countries and their future politics. The character of Othello is that of a calm and polite man. He expresses a powerful and dignified persona. Apart from the negative racial pressure his skill as a soldier and leader is nevertheless valuable and necessary to the state, and he is an integral part of Venetian civic society. The Venetian government trusts Othello enough to put him in full martial and political command of Cyprus. This fact is evidence that the play could indeed be categorised as a tragedy of state, as he is so valued to the state, his death would leave an impact on their matter. The play is centred on the relationship between Othello and Desdemona. Othello clearly loves Desdemona and this is expressed by the way he addresses her and speaks of her â€Å"Fair lady† (act I sc. III) â€Å"Honey O my sweet, I prattle out of fashion, and I dote† (act II sc. I) â€Å"sweeting; come away to bed† (act II sc. III) â€Å"sweet Desdemon† (act III sc.III) ect. Later he goes on to describe her with such beauty and poise. The relationship between Othello and Desdemona is presented in different ways throughout the play. At the start it seems passionate and strong as it is not a physical love, but much deeper than that, Othello states; â€Å"She loved me for the dangers I had passed, And I loved her that she did pity them† (act I sc. III). As they battle the approval of Brabantio they are strong as a unit and that is presented by Desdemona defending her husband. However as the play progresses the strength of their relationship dwindles due to Iago’s interference.This is exposed by Othello’s growing concern about Desdemona’s affair, revealing that he obviously doesn’t trust her. As the play progresses even further it is blatant that their relationship is no more when Othello kills Desdemona in a jealous rage and a dismal attempt to save his pride. In Desdemona’s last words it is apparent that she and Othello’s relationship meant something to her and she is deeply hurt and saddened as she is â€Å".. . falsely murdered! † (act V sc. II). Yet staying true to her husband in a final act of love she tries to redeem him of wronging her by saying that she killed herself.Desdemona is a more plausible and well-rounded figure, a good, faithful and obedient wife. She tends to be seen and presented as a stereotypically weak and submissive character however we see in Act I Scene III that this is not the case when she declares her love for Othello and defends him against the claims of witchcraft that he faces. When asked where most she owes obedience, she retorts; â€Å"My noble father, I do perceive here a divided duty. To you I am bound for life, and education: My life and education both do learn me, how to respect you. You are the Lord of duty, I am hitherto your daughter.But here’s my husband; and so much duty, as my mother show’d to you, preferring you before her father: So much I challenge, that I may profess Due to the Moor my Lord. † (act I sc. III) However, as the marriage progresses she becomes very submissive, shown on the occasions when Othello is in a jealous rage and acts dismissive, rude and violent toward her. She does not retaliate, only obeys. â€Å"Be as your fancies teach you; whate’er you be, I am obedient† (act III sc. III) â€Å"Heaven keep the monster from Othello’s mind! † (act III sc. IV) and after Othello strikes her; â€Å"I have not deserved thisI will not stay to offend you. † Act V Scene II sees Othello smother Desdemona to her death and yet, in her final breath, she tries to defend him again by saying it was suicide. This must only prove her undying love and care for Othello. First to risk her relationship with her father to marry Othello, then to accept his unacceptable behaviour and to be so sympathetic and understanding in his jealous rage, to as go so far to forgive him for murdering her and trying to make it better for him shows that she fulfilled her role as a ‘wife’ and that she loved him very much.Desdemona herself is a member of a politically powerful family; she therefore elevates Othello’s status to the elite of Venice. Iago is the villainous character of the play. He is described by almost everyone in the play as ‘honest Iago’ (act II sc. III, act V sc. II) as he misrepresents himself as appearing to be honest, in order to deceive and misdirect people. He constantly tells Othello that he loves him and complies with him. Iago’s motive is simple and petty, he is furious with Othello for assigning Cassio as his lieutenant as oppose to himself.Therefore he convinces Othello into thinking that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio. Although Othello is the protagonist, Iago has more lines and plays a bigger part in the play. Without Iago’s involvement, the play would not be so tragic. Some could say that Iago was the cause of Othello’s downfall. However this is not so true. Because, Othello was rashly influenced and chose to believe Iago’s lies, he was not forced to believe such insinuations. Still, he chose to believe these things, if only out of pride and fear of being made a fool of â€Å"Who would not make her husband a cuckold to make him a monarch? (act IV sc. III). Though Othello’s lack of self knowledge makes him an easy prey for Iago, once Iago triggers Othello’s jealousy and gets the darker aspects of Othello’s nature into action, there is nothing Othello can do to stop it, since he cannot even admit that he obtains these darker traits. Othello’s true personality is also responsible for his fate, with an inside battle between â€Å"the noble Moor† and the â€Å"Malignant and turbaned Turk† (act V sc. II), he is the victim of two sides fighting inside his body and soul, which results in the dramatic and tragic ending that takes place.The whole scenario happens so quickly but yet there are a few pivotal scenes that are relevant to domestic tragedy; Act III Scene III, Act IV Scene I, Act V Scene II. In conclusion, althoug h not fully following the classical tragedy conventions, I personally think that â€Å"Othello† is best regarded as a tragedy of state for the reasons that Othello is highly respected and ultimately needed by Venetians whilst being a ruler when in Cyprus. I feel that his death does impact on society as he befriended many and he was the finest general in the Venetian army.