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Requirements:
● Characterization ● The Problem

● Major Characters ○ Complications

● Minor Characters ○ Climax

● Suspense ○ Denouement

● Tone ○ Recognition

● Situational Irony, Irony of Events ○ Reversal

● Mood ● Round Character

● Motif ● Flat Character

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 ● Setting

MUST include original artwork (2 Pieces)

MUST include three embedded videos of MY creation (at least two minutes long).

MUST-INCLUDE Weebly Tools:

● Title ● Button

● Text ● Document

● Image ● Videos

● Gallery ● File

● Slide Show ● Block Quote

● Map

Your website must have ​at least 5 pages​ other than the home page.

INCLUDE Symbaloo!

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Characterization … Iago

● REPRESENTATIVE ARTWORK

○ Pictures of Satan

○ Puppetmaster

● How Iago REACTS to certain situations and people

○ SOLILOQUIES

■ “Thus do I ever make my fool my purse … I hate the Moor … I know not

if’t be true but I, for mere suspicion in that kind, will do as if for surety.”

(I.3.377 - 384)

■ “If I can fasten but one cup upon him, with that which he hath drunk

tonight already, he’ll be as full of quarrel and offence as my young

mistress’ dog.” (II.3.44 - 48).

■ “For ‘tis most easy Th’inclining Desdemona to subdue in any honest suit.

She’s framed as fruitful as the free elements …” (II.3.329-332)

○ Manipulative, intelligent, and temperamental.

Characters

Major Characters
● Othello

○ Othello is a major character in the play who, through his own insecurities

about he and his wife, is manipulated by Iago to commit murder and

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 mistake friendly intentions for infidelity. As the general of the Venetian

army, he exhibits authority and respect to all of those underneath him. As

it is with many Shakespearean plays, onlookers are able to observe

Othello's eventual downfall as he regrets his actions.

● Iago

○ Constantly alluded to as the devil, Iago is a master of manipulation who

causes problems for all of the other characters in the play. He is selfish,

jealous, and devious, but he is able to cleverly channel these feelings into

elaborate plans and tactics. He has no regard for other people except

himself, and in turn he is able to effectively manipulate those around him

by taking advantage of their emotional states and dilemmas. Every

sentence he speaks is well-thought, and he always aims to build trust

among those he wishes to use for his own personal gain.

● Desdemona

○ Desdemona is the beautiful wife of Othello who throughout the play,

retains her graceful demeanor and kindness. Since the start of the play

where Othello and Desdemona married each other, their love dared to

stand against anything. Her and Othello were both strongly in love

together, but through Iago's manipulations this love eventually faltered.

Though Iago had never intended anything specifically against Desdemona,

she ended up being murdered at the hands of Othello as a result of Iago's

manipulations.

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● Cassio

○ Cassio is the former lieutenant of Othello. A talented soldier with a great

heart, Cassio was manipulated by Iago to commit bad decisions under the

influence of alcohol. Afterwards, Cassio was convinced by Iago to attempt

to regain his position by speaking with Desdemona, which was actually a

ploy to convince Othello that Cassio was trying to sleep his wife. Cassio

had not discovered Iago's plans until it was too late, and he played a major

role in the unfolding of events leading to the climax of the play.

● Bianca

○ Bianca is a prostitute of Cyprus who is in love with Cassio. They have a

playful relationship that leaves both of them non-exclusive. In the play,

she helps push forward the misunderstanding regarding Desdemona's

handkerchief. Additionally, Iago is able to use Cassio's relationship with

Bianca to make Othello think that Cassio treats Desdemona as he would a

prostitute.

● Roderigo

○ Roderigo is the fool of "Othello." As the fool, he is the character most

susceptible to Iago's manipulations. In accordance, he and Iago were the

first characters to appear in the play. Throughout the play, he commits a

multitude of "foolish" acts, with his primary motivation being his love for

Desdemona. Iago takes advantage of this constantly as he aims to use

Roderigo's wealth and stupidity for his own gain.

● Emilia

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 ○ Emilia is the attendant to Desdemona and wife to Iago. She seems to be

aware of Iago's terrible personality and manipulations, and she provides

Desdemona advice as Desdemona and Othello's relationship worsens. In

contrast to Desdemona, Emilia holds experience regarding matters with

love and marriage, and this shows through the advice she provides for

Desdemona. She continues to fulfill her duties both as an attendant and

wife, however, as she does attempt to get into the room as Othello

suffocates Desdemona.

Minor Characters
● Brabantio

○ Brabantio is a Venetian senator who has befriended Othello. He is also the

father of Desdemona, and Othello’s acquaintance with him sparked the

lovers’ relationship. As a result of Iago’s manipulations, he becomes angry

with Othello for eloping without his blessing. This leads to Othello’s trial

where he speaks of how he and Desdemona progressed, proclaiming his

undying love for her.

● The Duke of Venice

○ The Duke of Venice leads Venice, overseeing trials and military decisions.

He oversees Othello’s trial and sends him, the general of the Venetian

army, to Cyprus.

● Montano

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 ○ Montano is the governor of Cyprus. He gets involved with Cassio after

Cassio gets drunk, and he appears at the end of the play to “tie off the

loose ends” of the events that unfolded regarding Iago, Othello, Cassio,

Emilia, Roderigo, and Desdemona.

● Lodovico and Gratiano

○ Lodovico and Gratiano are relatives of Brabantio. They serve as

ambassadors of Venice, and serve their role at the end of the story by

capturing Iago and finishing the situation with Othello.

Round Character

● Round character - ​complicated characters that undergo complex development 

EXAMPLE: Othello is a perfect example of a round character. At the beginning of the play,
Othello was a man known for his steadfastness in battle. Though a racial outsider, he held a
commanding presence that also worked to draw certain people, like Brabantio and Desdemona,
to his side. However, as Iago applied his manipulations, Othello gradually caved in. He started
to lose his eloquence, allowing his insecurities to take the best of him. By the end of the play,
Othello had fallen from grace. Realizing his own mistakes only after murdering his wife, Othello
kills himself in regret of his actions.

Flat Character

● Flat character - ​uncomplicated characters that undergo little to no 

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Suspense

● VIDEO

Situational Irony, Irony of Events

● VIDEO

Mood

Find particularly well-written passages that represent the atmosphere or emotional effect
generated by the work.

Mood​ - a literary element that evokes certain feelings or vibes in readers through words or
descriptions.

● “For whiles this honest fool / Plies Desdemona to repair his fortunes / And she for him
pleads strongly to the Moor, / I’ll pour pestilence into his ear: / That she repeals him for
her body’s lust, / And by how much she strives to do him good, / She shall undo her
credit with the Moor. / So will I turn her virtue into pitch, / And out of her own goodness
make the net / That shall enmesh them all.” (II.3.343-352)
○ MOOD: Vengeful and scheming. You can feel his “evil intent”.
● “This fellow’s of exceeding honesty, / And knows all qualities with a learned spirit / Of
human dealings. If I do prove her haggard, / Though that her jesses were my dear
heart-strings, / I’d whistle her off, and let her down the wind / To prey at fortune. Haply,
for I am black / And have not those soft parts of conversation / Into the vale of years - yet
that’s not much - / She’s gone: I am abused, and my relief / Must be to loathe her. O,
curse of marriage! / That we can call these delicate creatures ours and not their
appetites! I had rather be a toad / And live upon the vapour of a dungeon / Than keep a
corner in the thing I love / For others’ uses. Yet ‘tis the plague of great ones; / ‘Tis
destiny unshunnable, like death: / Even then this forked plague is fated to us / When we
do quicken.” (III.3.255 - 274)
○ MOOD: Agonizing and doubtful. Othello’s insecurities show.

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Motif

Identify multiple motifs that trace themselves throughout the work and heighten its appeal
through its appearances.

Motif​ - an object, idea, or concept recurring throughout a literary work. It normally has a
symbolic meaning that contributes to the development of an overall theme of the work.

● Satan
○ “Arise … Or else the devil will make a grandsire of you.” (I.1.92)
○ “Hell and night / Must bring this monstrous birth to the world’s light.” (I.3.397 -
398)
● Animals
○ Toad
■ “I had rather be a toad / And live upon the vapour of a dungeon / Than
keep a corner in the thing I love / For others’ uses.” (III.3.267-270)
○ Barbary Horse
■ “Because we come to do you / service, and you think we are ruffians,
you’ll have your / daughter covered with a Barbary horse; you’ll have your
/ nephews neigh to you, you’ll have coursers for cousins, / and jennets for
germans.” (I.1.112 - 114)
○ Black Ram and White ewe
■ “Even now, now, very now, an old black ram / Is tupping your white ewe.”
(I.1.89 - 90)
○ Beast
■ “I am one, sir, that comes to tell you, your daughter / and the Moor are
now making the beast with two backs.” (I.1.117)

The Problem

● VIDEO
○ Screencast a slide show DESCRIBING everything!
● After his appointment as “Ancient”, Iago builds a resentment towards Othello and
Cassio. Othello is resented for appointing Cassio to lieutenant instead of Iago. As a
result, Iago also despises Cassio for taking the position he believes is rightfully his. He
also hears of a rumor that Cassio had slept with his wife, Emilia.
○ With this animosity, Iago schemes to ruin the lives of Othello and Iago.

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Complications

● Cassio drinks a cup of alcohol and loses his position.

Climax

● Entirety of Act V
○ Iago manipulates Roderigo to kill Cassio … Iago kills Roderigo
○ Othello suffocates Desdemona.

Denouement

● Othello was to be taken in, but he pulls out a “secret knife” and commits suicide, dying
next to his wife in bed.
● Iago was captured by Lodovico and Gratiano awaiting execution in Venice.

Recognition

Reversal

Setting

● Set in the 16th century, the events of Othello take place on the island of Venice. While a
civil and strong society, Venice had its reputation as a hub for prostitution. At this time, it
was seen as a more culturally-accepting state as it allowed a Moor such as Othello to
rise to a station of power.
● Without these distinctions, “Othello” could not be “Othello”. The society Venice provides
helps to affect many characters’ decisions in the play, such as how Cassio made the
decision to drink despite having “very poor and unhappy brains for drinking” (2.3.31)

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Tone

Tone ​-​ ​An attitude of a writer towards a subject or audience.

Identify the writer’s tone, his attitude towards his subject, his audience, and himself.

● The tone in “O thello” is highly cynical and distrusting. This is mainly seen through Iago’s
manipulations. As the play progresses, virtuous and trusting characters such as Cassio
and Othello are affected by Iago’s world view. Iago distrusts everyone and wants
everything for himself. Despite his nastiness, however, Iago’s schemes still prevail in the
end.
● Through Iago’s actions, Shakespeare shows how in the real world, men will always end
up giving in to their temptations, fears, and desires. While everyone wants this to not be
the case, Shakespeare snaps his audience back into reality with a play where the “bad
guy” wins. Although the concept is sarcastic and almost unfair, he realizes and
emphasizes the nature of man.

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