Othello: Tragic Hero Othello: The Essay

PAGES
5
WORDS
1800
Cite
Related Topics:

Othello has used military service to prove he is not a savage to white leaders, but his reliance upon the counsel of military officers and his over-valuing of military decision-making and life makes him descend into savagery. This is true even before Iago has begun to try to manipulate his mind. After marrying Desdemona, Othello's first thoughts are of war: "The tyrant custom, most grave senators,/Hath made the flinty and steel couch of war/My thrice-driven bed of down" (I.3). Even before Othello can enjoy his wedding night with Desdemona, he must leave her for the military field, and the two are separated. Othello cannot bear to look weak, and as for even a few nights with his bride before he begins to fight again. This is perhaps the true irony of Othello as a tragic character -- not that he trusts...

...

These defense mechanisms at first elevate him and win him love, and then finally debase him and cause him to kill what he loves.
Works Cited

Aristotle. "Poetics." Full e-text. January 18, 2009. http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/poetics.mb.txt

Bradley, a.C. Shakespearean Tragedy: Lectures on Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth.

London: Penguin, 1904. Full e-text. January 18, 2009. http://www.clicknotes.com/bradley/welcome.html

Shakespeare, William. "Othello." The Shakespeare Homepage. January 28, 2009. http://shakespeare.mit.edu/othello/index.html

Sources Used in Documents:

Works Cited

Aristotle. "Poetics." Full e-text. January 18, 2009. http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/poetics.mb.txt

Bradley, a.C. Shakespearean Tragedy: Lectures on Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth.

London: Penguin, 1904. Full e-text. January 18, 2009. http://www.clicknotes.com/bradley/welcome.html

Shakespeare, William. "Othello." The Shakespeare Homepage. January 28, 2009. http://shakespeare.mit.edu/othello/index.html


Cite this Document:

"Othello Tragic Hero Othello The" (2009, January 17) Retrieved April 20, 2024, from
https://www.paperdue.com/essay/othello-tragic-hero-othello-the-25416

"Othello Tragic Hero Othello The" 17 January 2009. Web.20 April. 2024. <
https://www.paperdue.com/essay/othello-tragic-hero-othello-the-25416>

"Othello Tragic Hero Othello The", 17 January 2009, Accessed.20 April. 2024,
https://www.paperdue.com/essay/othello-tragic-hero-othello-the-25416

Related Documents

Othello as Tragic Hero While Othello is not Greek and Shakespeare is not a Greek playwright, Othello embodies many characteristics of a tragic hero as outlined by Aristotle. What is a tragic hero? Person who is neither perfect in virtue and justice, nor someone who falls into misfortune through vice and depravity, but rather, one who succumbs through some miscalculation. Othello is manipulated by Iago to murder Desdemona Iago uses Othello's trusting nature against him Hero

Tragic Hero begins with an examination of Oedipus Rex. But, while he is the archetype of this particular literary character, Hamlet is, perhaps, the most well developed and psychologically complex of tragic heroes. For the Greeks, all things in life are preordained, which is what makes for the tragedy of Oedipus - his attempt to make his own destiny. Over the course of time, however, while the form of

Othello As a Tragic Hero
PAGES 7 WORDS 1956

Thesis Statement Shakespeare’s Othello is a tragic hero according to the definition of Aristotle. First, he is a man of noble stature. Second, he is good—but not perfect—and his fall is directly attributable to his own guilty actions. Third, his fall is tragic—the combination of his greatness and his own responsibility in causing his own fall. Fourth, the misfortune Othello suffers is enormous and due to the fact that he himself

Othello the Moor of Venice
PAGES 5 WORDS 1713

Othello as Tragic Hero Othello, the Moor of Venice is a Shakespearean tragedy that focuses on the great war hero Othello and the lengths to which Iago goes to in order to strip Othello of his power. Iago's thirst for power commences when he is passed up for promotion and Michael Cassio is instead award the position of lieutenant. Although it would appear to be more logical that Iago target Cassio,

Othello the Moor of Venice
PAGES 5 WORDS 1772

Othello, The Moor of Venice There are a number of very specific literary conventions that a dramatic work must have to adhere to Aristotle's multi-faceted definition of a tragedy. One of the principle components of this definition is that a tragedy chronicles the downfall of a tragic hero. Tragic heroes are well-renowned individual with a wonderful set of virtues descended from decidedly noble lineages who are plagued by one (and only

Othello Aristotle's Poetics is the most informative piece of work on the nature of art. It is in the Poetics that Aristotle defines the fundamental nature of tragedy. For Aristotle, what defines tragedy (and all art, in general) is in the way that it is imitation (Golden 142). Every form of art (qua imitation) can be compared in terms of the artistic means, object, and manner used in their creation. In