Unconditional Love and Jealousy in Shakespeare's Othello

Introduction: Unconditional Love as a Human Ideal

Unconditional love is said by some to be the unobtainable yet righteous goal of all living humans. When and if we are capable of generating unconditional love toward our fellow man — and in particular toward those who are closest to us — many believe we are capable of ascending to a better place. In the Christian tradition, unconditional love for one's fellow man, and especially for one's enemies, as well as unconditional love for God and belief in the prophet Jesus Christ, is central to spiritual fulfillment (Walker 6). In the Buddhist inclination, it is believed that one can ascend to Nirvana after many trials and tribulations that free the individual from material concerns — jealousy and the desire for what others possess being prime examples of the opposite of unconditional love.

There are many examples of unconditional love as the goal of humanity within literature, and one of the greatest can be found in Shakespeare's Othello. Two individuals from different worlds, with seemingly nothing in common that would allow love — let alone unconditional love — to grow, meet and are drawn to one another by precisely such love. The interesting aspect of the work that demonstrates its most foundational message is that the less likely candidate, Desdemona — culturally elite and driven by familial and social obligations, and thus the one with the most to lose — becomes the example of success in attaining unconditional love. Her husband Othello, by contrast, despite having received Desdemona's unconditional love and arguably having the most to gain from their union as a mercenary soldier outside his own culture, ultimately fails at unconditional love to the detriment of them both.

The message associated with the theme of unconditional love, and the twist of fate tied to its end, demonstrates an interesting conundrum worthy of serious analysis. The work suggests that masculine fear associated with jealousy in matters of love, and the desire of an outsider to be accepted and valued within society, are inextricably at odds with the capacity for unconditional love — and that, at least in this case, the baser instincts dominate (Bell). This paper will analyze the text to discover proofs of the thesis that unconditional love is attained by Desdemona but not achieved by Othello.

Desdemona as the Embodiment of Unconditional Love

Millicent Bell, a consummate Shakespearean scholar, speaks of the jealousy experienced by Othello in her work Shakespeare's Tragic Skepticism:

"Most dramatic representations seize upon and emphasize the way this condition, like a fatal disease, grows on the hero and destroys him until the recovery of sanity and dignity at the tragic end. The more directly we see and hear him the more we almost share the madness that mounts in his mind until it reaches a point at which he appears to hallucinate, seeing what is not there, writhing before the inner vision of his wife's betrayal." (Bell 80)

The manner in which Bell describes this jealousy clearly illustrates the central message of Othello: that in most cases the baser emotions rule over unconditional love, even in those who are most honorable. Yet that same skepticism does not seem to transfer to women, at least in the case of Desdemona. In contrast to Othello, she is not only capable of unconditional love but demonstrably capable of forgiveness as well.

The character of Desdemona represents the greatest example of unconditional love within the play. Though her fate is sealed through the avenue of propriety, she is willing to follow Othello into battle on more than one occasion and is even roused by his tales of military might. Desdemona would be unlikely to have been asked by another man — perhaps of her own race and culture — to step outside the safety of her home to follow him into war, yet she is happy to do so when Othello requires it. She has, after all, married a mercenary soldier, and her role in life has changed accordingly (Smith PLL11).

Desdemona has married an entirely unsuitable man by the standards of her society: he is a Christian Moor, he is older than her, and the two eventually encounter the painful consequences of their many differences despite their love for one another. Most importantly, marrying Othello in secret demonstrates a vivid break from the convention of a marriage choice made by her parents — an act of independence that in part proves to be their undoing, but that is clearly the greatest evidence of her unconditional love for him (Stavropoulos 126). The theme of unconditional love follows her even to her death, as she entreats both the audience and Othello of her fidelity and expresses her love as well as her understanding of his madness. It seems she would rather die than live knowing that Othello believes her unfaithful, or live with the man she loves as such a changed being. Even as she is dying at the hand of the insanely jealous Othello, she forgives him — reaching for a song that represents the nature of her own love and the forgivable madness of her husband.

Brabantio's Accusation and Desdemona's Declaration

The first example from the text is the extreme nature of Desdemona's father Brabantio's reaction to the news that the Christian Moor has married his daughter. He is certain that Desdemona was lied to and tricked, and goes so far as to claim that Othello had drugged her:

"O thou foul thief, where hast thou stow'd my daughter? / Damn'd as thou art, thou hast enchanted her; / For I'll refer me to all things of sense, / If she in chains of magic were not bound, / Whether a maid so tender, fair and happy, / So opposite to marriage that she shunned / The wealthy curled darlings of our nation, / Would ever have, to incur a general mock, / Run from her guardage to the sooty bosom / Of such a thing as thou, to fear, not to delight. / Judge me the world, if 'tis not gross in sense / That thou hast practised on her with foul charms, / Abused her delicate youth with drugs or minerals / That weaken motion: I'll have't disputed on; / 'Tis probable and palpable to thinking. / I therefore apprehend and do attach thee / For an abuser of the world, a practiser / Of arts inhibited and out of warrant. / Lay hold upon him: if he do resist, / Subdue him at his peril." (Shakespeare 1.2.62–81)

Brabantio stresses that his daughter has always been calm, loving, and agreeable, and that she has never shown any interest in marriage — having in fact spurned all the suitable partners of her nation. He therefore claims the only way Desdemona would run to Othello, "to the sooty bosom / Of such a thing as thou" (1.2.70–71), is if Othello had practiced witchcraft or drugged her into submission.

Othello's answer comes later as he addresses the Duke of Venice: "She loved me for the dangers I had pass'd, / And I loved her that she did pity them. / This only is the witchcraft I have used." (1.3.167–169). To both the Duke and Brabantio, Othello stresses that Desdemona loved him of her own accord, and found her greatest reason for that love in listening — over many nights at dinner in her father's house — to his tales of military experience. In other words, she loved him not in spite of his station in life but because of it.

Desdemona responds for the first time to her father's accusations by stating that she "perceive[s] here a divided duty" (1.3.181) when she considers how much she owes her father and how much she now owes and loves Othello as her husband. When the question of traveling to Cyprus arises, Othello asks the Duke for Desdemona's leave to accompany him — not because he demands it but because she desires it — "to be free and bounteous to her mind" (1.3.265), in other words, to respect her wishes. All of these moments are expressive of Desdemona's unconditional love for Othello.

Conclusion: Shakespeare's Skepticism About Masculine Love

From these examples one can clearly see the unconditional love that Desdemona held for Othello until her dying breath, while Othello was rather easily convinced that she had betrayed him and that she should be hated rather than loved. Shakespeare's Othello thus presents a searching and skeptical view of masculine love: the play suggests that jealousy, social anxiety, and the fear of being an outsider can overwhelm even the deepest affection. Desdemona, the socially privileged character with the most to lose, proves paradoxically to be the one most capable of the love that transcends circumstance. Othello, who stood to gain the most from their union, allows his baser instincts to destroy what was freely given to him. Shakespeare's tragic skepticism, as Bell identifies it, ultimately asks whether unconditional love can survive in a world governed by jealousy, social hierarchy, and masculine pride — and answers, at least in this case, with a devastating no.

References

Bell, Millicent. Shakespeare's Tragic Skepticism. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2002.

Makransky, John. "Pure Perception and Equanimity of Heart." Religion & the Arts 12.1–3 (March 2008): 371–383. Ebsco Religion and Philosophy Collection. Web. 7 Dec. 2011.

Shakespeare, William. Othello: The Moor of Venice.

Smith, Shawn. "Love, Pity, and Deception in Othello." Papers on Language and Literature: A Journal for Scholars and Critics of Language and Literature 44.1 (2008): 3–51. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 5 Dec. 2011.

Stavropoulos, Janet C. "Love and Age in Othello." Shakespeare Studies 19 (1987): 125–142. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 5 Dec. 2011.

Walker, Jim. "Unconditional Love…" Christian Century 127.6 (March 23, 2010): 6. Ebsco Religion and Philosophy Collection. Web. 7 Dec. 2011.