Othello: Staring Laurence Fishburne

The film version of Othello featuring Laurence Fishburne had several adaptations that were not in the book we read. The one I will focus on is the scene where Iago is alone and speaking to the camera. He has a chess board in front of him with a black piece and 2 white pieces. Iago then says how he is going to take down the Moor which is signified by the black chess piece. I thought this is important because it signifies that Othello is most identifiable by the color of his skin. It also mirrors the complexity of a chess game with the plan that Iago concocts. Iago plans his actions and has a plan for each way that Othello or somebody can react. This is similar to a chess game where players will think of every possible outcome to ensure they make the right move going as far as to make a move now that will come in handy 5 turns after. The only problem Iago had was not planning for his wife to sell him out.

Act 5 Scene 2 Lines 223-228 “EMILIA: O thou dull Moor, that handkerchief thou speak’st of / I found by fortune and did give my husband, / for often with a solemn earnestness- / More than indeed belonged to such a trifle- / he begged of me to steal it. / IAGO: Villainous whore!”

This scene captures how Iago plotted to go after Othello from the very beginning by asking his wife to steal the handkerchief. The image also shows Iago plotting over chess pieces which is symbolic of his plotting over the characters in Othello.