(Othello and Desdemona by Daniel Maclise)

This image is a fine one! First off, I like the style and the colors are very fitting and vivid. Something that stands out in particular is Othello’s clothing. The robes are rich, elegant, and functional; we’d expect as much from a powerful military man, but the odd accessory out is the head wrap. It closely resembles a turban, and for this it must be examined. I’ve already established in previous image analyses the influence of Orientalism on artists, and in turn, art’s influence on the pervasiveness of Orientalism on the European public. This painting seems to be no exception, depicting Othello, who has canonically rejected his Muslim identity to his dying breath, in the dress of a typical Muslim Turk (presumably). Artistic license seems to beat out canon every time in these paintings, huh.

This scene seems to depict Act 3 Scene 3, after Iago’s first planted the seeds of suspicion in Othello’s mind, about Desdemona’s faithfulness, or lack thereof. The artist portrays this well in Othello’s facial expression, the seeds growing and rooting themselves into his core. Desdemona, with her strawberry handkershief, the token of her love and symbol of her devotion, is face-to-face with Othello. They are level for the first time in these image analyses.

The most interesting character here, though, is the person at the top right corner who I can only presume to be Emelia. She looks on at this scene, her line of sight is directed at Othello. She is behind a curtain, yet her hand is visible in the light, as it rests on the pillar. Her presence here, in the text, makes it seem like she should be at Desdemona’s side, and yet she is hidden from site. This reminds me of the way Othello hides as he sees Cassio talk about Bianca and sees the strawberry handkerchief. This seems as though it’s been an intentional composition on the artist’s part to depict the foreshadowing.

This is kind of funny, but also kind of alarming:

http://www.neimanmarcus.com/Othello-Bed-Linens/prod141980102/p.prod

Adventure tale and hard-won battle,

Hard on me, soft on us,

Struggled for your kisses, pliant

I chose your love and that was that.

Villainy, do you know it?

You do now, and so do I.

To say I had before I met you,

Forgiven thus, I’d have to lie.

Match me here, match me now,

I’m pious in my undertaking,

Lord in Heaven, Your Design,

Knaves have cast it for the breaking,

I, your love, have broken thus.

“I kissed thee ere I killed thee. No way but this,/Killing myself, to die upon a kiss.” (5, 2, 420-421)

I wrote this poem from Othello’s perspective. His death scene, though it had that passage of him lamenting his own legacy, felt much more like a testament to Desdemona. His dying breath was upon her lips. He recognized in himself, that he was a great man who fell to cheap villainy, who understood that his love was not false simply because it failed; it was true but was out of his control. His power in life did not, in death, strip the Moorish identity he’d cast away long ago, and he killed himself not because of his hatred of it, but because of his hatred of the events it inspired, no matter how unrelated it may have looked to him at the height of his power.

Othello’s religious identity was something I explored in this poem. I felt it was a great dimension to his character, not just that he pronounced his identity, but because he lived it. Othello and Desdemona’s relationship was one built on the sanctity of marriage, and the respect that came for that and not pursuing each other out of wedlock. That devotion to sanctity is what inevitably led to the “in” Iago needed to set his plan in motion, and ultimately, their devotion to their religion and each other played a role in the tragedy that ended their lives.

I titled this poem kind of obviously, but essentially, story is what brought them together, and deceitful tales are what led to their deaths.

Othello Act 1: Brabantio agrees to his daughter Desdemona´s marriage (http://www.agefotostock.com/en/Stock-Images/Rights-Managed/IAM-0390002929)

(https://crimsonchevalier.wordpress.com/emilia/)

Emilia, darling woman! What a great character! She puts up with Iago as a husband, she dotes on her mistress lovingly, with devotion and loyalty, and she gets a real shit ending. Let’s begin.

It’s clear to see from the beginning that Emilia enjoys serving Desdemona, or at the very least, has no real objection to her position. If she did, I think Shakespeare would have created a different character in her, going so far as to make her henchwoman to Iago. But Iago works alone, and Iago hates women, so that’s not a thing. Emilia’s wonderful and pure up until the handkerchief.

The Handkerchief Dilemma

Why does Emilia give Iago the handkerchief? This doesn’t seem like something she’d do based on what we know so far about Emilia. In fact, her words and actions in that very scene do not match up! She says Iago keeps asking her to steal the handkerchief, and then she says that Desdemona loves that thing so much because it’s a token from Othello, and THEN she says she’ll just make a copy of the pattern to make her husband happy. AND THEN, in the next scene, she gives that very handkerchief to Iago! It’s a strange scene that adds depth to Emilia’s character, but it seems so out of place that it has to be examined further.

Up until this point, we’ve not seen much interaction between Iago and Emilia, and there hasn’t been anything to indicate that he is either a good or bad husband, aside from our own judgments of him as a person. But when Emilia begins speaking about his role in her taking the handkerchief, she calls him “wayward”, indicating that their marriage is somewhat difficult due to the way Iago is. This means that Emilia is somewhat aware of Iago’s true villainous character. And then, even when she does decide to steal the handkerchief, she says she is doing it to “…please his fantasy” (3, 3, 343). This is truly bizarre. She knows that her mistress loves the thing, and doesn’t want to lose it. She knows that Iago is not an altogether savory person, and yet she says she will give him the handkerchief anyway. Iago calls her foolish, he obviously does not appreciate his wife. She is doing this behind Desdemona’s back. Yet, she does not seem like a villain. Iago could not have known about the handkerchief dropping by accident. She had no real incentive to take it, so I can only believe that her intentions were to sate her OWN curiosity. Which is fine! What a wonderfully complex character! And when Desdemona realizes that it’s missing, Emelia lies! She says she doesn’t know where it is, which IS a truth in itself, but she knows that she wouldn’t be lying had she not given Iago it. Furthermore, she doesn’t even get the truth from Iago about his intentions with the handkerchief. Raw deal.

And she beats herself up over it like you wouldn’t believe. She’s remorseful the second Othello mentions that his suspicions were proven true when he saw the handkerchief. She is shocked and outraged and reveals that she gave it to her husband. And then, after he has been outed, Iago kills her. As if there wasn’t enough damage done. He’s already been found out, and he kills her because he hates her for not covering for him. Villainous wretch. And then the poor woman begs to be placed by her mistress’ side to die by her. She seems willing to die, as long as it is in the service of her mistress.

<3 u Emelia, you didnt deserve what you got

“She gave me for my pains ⟨ ohhhhHHhhhHHH ⟩ a world of ⟨ sighs ⟩.” (1, 3, 183)