- (English Othello) the hero of William Shakespeare’s tragedy “Othello” (1604). Representing a very accurate adaptation of Giraldi Cintio’s short story “The Moor of Venice” from his collection “One Hundred Stories” (1566), which became known to Shakespeare, apparently in someone’s… … Literary heroes
- (on behalf of the hero of the Shakespearean tragedy). A common noun to designate a jealous spouse. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. OTHELLO, hero of Shakespeare’s tragedy “Othello”, Moor,... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language
Jealous Dictionary of Russian synonyms. Othello, see jealous Dictionary of synonyms of the Russian language. Practical guide. M.: Russian language. Z. E. Alexandrova. 2011… Synonym dictionary
The hero of the play of the same name by William Shakespeare (1564 1616), a jealous Venetian Moor. Believing the slander, he kills his wife, then, in despair, himself. Playfully ironic about a jealous man. Encyclopedic Dictionary of winged words and expressions. M.: “Lokid... ... Dictionary of popular words and expressions
- “OTELLO”, USSR, MOSFILM, 1955, color, 109 min. Drama. Based on the tragedy of the same name by W. Shakespeare. The first film role of Evgeny Vesnik (Rodrigo). Cast: Sergei Bondarchuk (see BONDARCHUK Sergei Fedorovich), Irina Skobtseva (see SKOBTSEVA Irina Konstantinovna) ... Encyclopedia of Cinema
OTHELLO F1- see. The hybrid has a unique precocity. The ripening of small tuberculate fruits occurs on the 40-45th day after emergence. Crispy, pleasant taste, genetically without bitterness, the fruits are used for fresh consumption and canning.… … Encyclopedia of seeds. Vegetables
"Othello"- OTELLO, ballets based on the same plot. tragedies by W. Shakespeare. 1) Under the name Othello, or the Moor of Venice, in 5 acts. Computer, stage and ballet S. Vigano. 6.2.1818, La Scala, Milan, art. A. Sanquirico; Othello N. Molinari, Desdemona A.… … Ballet. Encyclopedia
For the term "Othello" see other meanings. Othello 67 ... Wikipedia
Books
- Othello, Shakespeare William. "Othello" is a tragedy that gave culture unsurpassed images of a jealous man, an envious intriguer, as well as a noble beloved, with her faithful heart and sublime soul. An undoubted masterpiece...
A summary of “Othello” should begin with the history of the work. As you know, the plot was borrowed by Shakespeare from the book “One Hundred Tales” by Cintio Giraldi. In general, borrowing images and reworking plots was typical for the writer. Ancient chronicles, short stories, picaresques, sailors' stories - all this provided Shakespeare with rich material, which he took full advantage of when creating his magical works. As for Othello itself, the summary should begin with the fact that the author calls the central character of the play the Moor. The name in Europe designated all immigrants from Spain and Central Africa, that is, Arabs and Berbers. The Moors were considered skilled sailors and warriors. Some researchers put forward the theory that the main prototype of the jealous person was the Italian Maurizio Othello, who commanded the Venetian troops in Cyprus. Little information has been preserved about him; we only know that the non-literary Othello lost his wife under extremely mysterious circumstances - perhaps there was a murder, which he, however, successfully concealed. If you visit Cyprus today, the locals will proudly show you the castle in Famagusta where Othello allegedly strangled his innocent wife. Perhaps you have already skimmed the summary of Othello, then you may have a question: why did Shakespeare give his hero black skin? The answer is simple: the abbreviation for the name Maurizio is “Mauro”, which means “Moor” in Italian.
Plot
A summary of “Othello” can fit in a few lines: the famous commander Othello meets Desdemona, a girl from a rich and noble family. Struck by his courage and enchanted by his wonderful stories, the girl gives her heart to the Moor, which naturally enrages her arrogant and arrogant father. Soon the marriage takes place, and the commander and his young wife leave for a remote garrison. There, his assistant Iago and the nobleman Roderigo, in love with Desdemona, are already preparing a conspiracy: Iago convinces the Moor that Desdemona gave herself to Cassio. To give credibility to the slander, the two-faced Iago steals the girl’s handkerchief and throws it to Cassio. For the jealous Othello, this evidence becomes irrefutable proof: in a rage, he strangles the sufferer, and after the truth is revealed, he stabs himself to death.
Character system
A summary of “Othello” includes characteristics of the central characters. The first place in the tragedy is occupied by Othello - an undoubtedly tragic figure. A warrior, a hero, a loving spouse, an extremely trusting person, but terrible in anger. Having committed murder, he commits suicide, unable to bear His secretary Iago - a strong, unprincipled and immoral character. His devastated soul is contrasted with the character of Desdemona, a pure, naive, open, but spiritually strong girl.
Her image is accompanied by an atmosphere of doom: everything seems to hint at a tragic outcome. The death of Desdemona in this context becomes a genuine catharsis. Before us is a genuine drama, which Shakespeare created on the basis of an ancient plot - “Othello”. A summary, of course, cannot convey all the richness of the writer’s language, his mastery of metaphors, his wonderful play on words. Therefore, we advise you to still familiarize yourself with the work in the original.
Shakespeare "Othello", act one - summary
Scene 1. Desdemona, the young daughter of the famous Venetian senator Brabantio, a girl of extraordinary beauty and high spiritual qualities, at night, secretly from her father, runs to her lover - General Othello, a nondescript black Moor who is much older than her. In the middle of the night, the nobles Roderigo and Iago approach the house of the fugitive’s father, starting to shout that the “black Arabian stallion” Othello may be dishonoring Desdemona right now. Rodrigo hates Othello, since he himself previously acted as an unsuccessful candidate for Desdemona's hand. Iago is dissatisfied with the fact that the Moorish general made not him, but the young officer Cassio, his lieutenant (deputy).
Brabantio comes out onto the balcony. Still not knowing anything about his daughter’s escape, at first he does not believe the loudmouths and calls them both liars and scoundrels. But soon Brabantio becomes convinced: his daughter is really not at home. He calls the night watch and rushes with them to the “seducer.”
Scene 2. At the gates of Othello's house, a hostile skirmish takes place between Brabantio's men and the Moor's friends. She is stopped only by the news that all influential people have been urgently summoned to the palace of the ruler of Venice, the Doge. Brabantio and Othello go there.
Scene 3. The Doge reports that the Turkish fleet has put to sea with the intention of seizing the Venetian possession of Cyprus. Othello is given the task of defending this island from the Mohammedans. Brabantio demands an investigation into the case of the “kidnapping” of his daughter, insisting that the ugly, black Othello could achieve the love of such a beauty only through “sorcery” and “witchcraft.” The Moor, however, says that the affection between him and Desdemona arose when he described to her the story of his stormy military life, full of danger and adventures in distant countries. Sympathizing with the suffering Othello endured, young Desdemona fell in love with him. He also fell in love with her, and now wants to enter into a legal marriage with her. Othello's story is confirmed by Desdemona, brought on his behalf. The Doge and the senators decide that it is impossible to counteract their mutual passion. Desdemona declares her desire to go with Othello to the Cypriot war.
Othello and Desdemona in Venice. Artist T. Chassereau, 1849
The meeting disperses. Roderigo, who is present here, stands in despair, but Iago advises him “not to whine, but to take revenge.” He says that he will be able to cause discord between Desdemona and Othello if Rodrigo pays well for it. Iago is going to convince Othello that Desdemona is having an affair with Lieutenant Cassio - in order to discredit his own rival.
Shakespeare "Othello", act two - summary
Scene 1. Othello, Desdemona, Cassio, Iago and Roderigo sail to Cyprus. Here they learn: there will be no war with the Turks, because the entire Turkish fleet was lost in a terrible sea storm.
Scene 2. Rejoicing in his marriage to the woman he passionately loves, Othello invites all the inhabitants of the island to an evening feast at the palace.
Scene 3. Iago takes advantage of this for his evil plans. At night, he advises Rodrigo to disguise himself as a soldier and become one of the palace guards. When the guards come to check Cassio, Rodrigo must start a quarrel with him.
Iago detains Cassio on the street after the feast and offers him another drink. Knowing that drunkenness makes him too violent, Cassio tries to refuse, but Iago persuades him with a friendly look. Cassio gets drunk and goes to check the guards. During this check, a fight breaks out between him and Rodrigo. Cassio also wounds the dignitary Montano, who is trying to separate the fighters.
Iago, who is right there, sends Rodrigo to sound the alarm. Citizens come running to the sound of the alarm, and Othello and Desdemona come. Having learned that Cassio was the instigator of the fight, Othello removes him from the rank of lieutenant. When everyone disperses, Iago inspires the upset Cassio with the idea of seeking leniency from the Moor through his wife. Iago knows: good Desdemona will not remain indifferent to Cassio’s request. This will give rise to a reason to convince Othello that his wife is taking care of the young officer for a reason.
Othello. Film-opera to the music of G. Verdi
Shakespeare "Othello", act three - summary
Scene 1. Following Iago's advice, Cassio asks Desdemona to work for Othello to return him the title of his deputy.
Scenes 2-3. Out of goodwill, Desdemona begins to remind her husband of Cassio too often. Seeing that Othello is unhappy with this, Iago skillfully intervenes in the matter. He seems to casually tell the Moor that the worst thing in life is the loss of family honor, and then remarks: “Your wife, after all, deceived her father in order to unite with you! Where is the guarantee that after marriage she will not deceive you?”
The ardent Othello is overcome by jealous suspicions. The general realizes with bitterness that he is much older than his wife and is also ugly. Othello considers it quite possible that Desdemona will fall in love with one of the younger men. Having once noticed Othello's preoccupied look, Desdemona attributes it to a headache. She tries to wrap a scarf around her husband's head, but he pulls away. The handkerchief falls to the ground and is picked up by Desdemona's maid, Emilia, Iago's wife. From her, the thing Desdemona lost gets to Iago.
Under the guise of “friendly directness,” he tells Othello that Cassio allegedly told him about his connection with Desdemona. Iago claims that he saw Cassio wearing a scarf with strawberry flowers, similar to one of Othello’s wedding gifts to his wife. The Moor, in anger, swears bloody revenge for his violated honor. Promising to make Iago his lieutenant, he instructs him to arrange the murder of Cassio.
Scene 4. Othello asks Desdemona where the handkerchief embroidered with flowers went. Desdemona cannot find him. Not yet aware of her husband’s jealousy, she again asks him to return Cassio to the rank of lieutenant.
Cassio finds a handkerchief planted by Iago in his room. He doesn't know who this thing belongs to. Cassio really likes the pattern of the scarf, and he gives it to his mistress Bianca to embroider the same one before the owner of what he found is discovered.
Shakespeare "Othello", act four - summary
Scene 1. To convince Othello of the veracity of his stories, Iago undertakes to start a conversation with Cassio about Desdemona in front of his eyes. He advises that the Moor should follow this conversation secretly, hiding. Othello goes into hiding. Iago stops Cassio passing by and begins to ask him not about Desdemona, but about Bianca. Cassio laughingly tells how she publicly throws herself on his neck, begs him to marry her, and imitates Bianca’s habits. Only fragments of the conversation reach Othello. He does not understand; this is not about his wife at all - and he attributes Cassio’s gestures and words specifically to her. As Cassio leaves, Othello tells Iago that he will kill Desdemona today.
Scene 2. In the evening, Othello accuses his wife of treason. Desdemona denies the accusations in tears. Othello leaves. Desdemona tells Emilia and Iago about his suspicions. The indignant Emilia says that Desdemona was clearly slandered by some villain, and Iago hypocritically advises Desdemona to wait until Othello’s anger subsides by itself.
Roderigo, meanwhile, begins to blame Iago. He had already received a lot of jewelry, promising with their help to persuade Desdemona to fall in love with Rodrigo, but he did not keep his promises. Iago in response suggests to Roderigo that they want to recall Othello from Cyprus, transferring the governorship to Cassio. The Moor will take Desdemona with him from here - and, perhaps, to distant, hostile Mauritania. The only way to avoid this is to kill Cassio. Rodrigo decides to commit this crime, Iago promises to help him.
Scene 3. As night falls, Desdemona gets ready for bed with Emilia's help. She is waiting for Othello with grave forebodings about how their date might end.
Emilia prepares Desdemona to meet Othello. Artist T. Chassereau, 1849
Shakespeare "Othello", act five - summary
Scene 1. Roderigo and Iago lie in wait for Cassio on the street at night. Rodrigo rushes at him, but Cassio is saved from the blow of the blade by his strong shell. He himself seriously wounds Rodrigo, but Iago, who ran out from the ambush, rips open Cassio’s leg and disappears unrecognized. Lodovico and Gratiano, relatives of Desdemona, who arrived in Cyprus as ambassadors from Venice, come running to Cassio’s cries for help. Iago also appears with a torch. Feigning indignation at the crime committed against Cassio, he attacks the “murderer” Rodrigo and stabs him to death.
Scene 2. Meanwhile, Othello enters Desdemona's bedroom. The beauty of his wife enchants him, but the Moor convinces himself that he must deal with the “traitor.” Having asked if she “prayed at night,” Othello announces to Desdemona that he will now kill her for her relationship with Cassio. No excuses for the innocent help. The Moor begins to strangle Desdemona, and then, hearing a knock on Emilia’s door, hits his wife with a dagger.
The Murder of Desdemona by Othello. Artist A. M. Kolen, 1829
Othello opens the door to Emilia. She talks about the attack on Cassio. Desdemona, who came to her senses for a moment, says from her bed that she died innocently - and dies. Othello proudly admits that it was he who killed his wife, “an inveterate sinner,” and tells Emilia: Desdemona’s relationship with Cassio was exposed to him by Iago. Emilia begins to loudly scold her husband, a “terrible liar,” and hotly reproaches the murderer Othello.
Enter the Venetian ambassadors and Iago. Emilia tells everyone about the murder of Desdemona, shames Iago for slandering an innocent woman, and tells how she found the handkerchief Desdemona dropped and gave it to her husband. Iago stabs Emilia and runs away. The ambassadors rush to catch him.
Othello, realizing the terrible truth, groans loudly. The ambassadors return with the captured Iago. Cassio is brought in on a stretcher, who says: Before his death, Rodrigo managed to tell about all the intrigues of Iago, confirming Emilia’s words. Othello loudly curses himself, wounds Iago with the sword, and then stabs himself with it, falling on the bed next to the dead Desdemona. Shocked by everything they learned and saw, the ambassadors transfer control of Cyprus to Cassio and instruct him to carry out a harsh trial on the villain Iago.
Verdi played a leading role in the creation of the libretto for Othello. According to his instructions, Boito changed the plan several times and rewrote entire scenes. Shakespeare's plot has undergone significant changes. The composer concentrated the action around the main conflict - the clash between Othello and Iago, giving it a universal sound, freeing the intrigue from small everyday details.
Having completed the work in November 1886, Verdi took direct part in its production. The premiere took place on February 5, 1887 in Milan and resulted in a true triumph of Italian national art. Soon this opera was recognized throughout the world as Verdi's best, most perfect creation.
Music
“Othello” is a musical tragedy that amazes with its truthfulness and depth of embodiment of human characters. The musical portraits of Othello - a hero and warrior, a passionate loving spouse, a trusting man and at the same time furious in his rage, the meek and pure Desdemona, the treacherous Iago, trampling all moral laws - are marked by extraordinary relief and dramatic power. Choral episodes complement the images of the main characters, expressing the attitude of the people towards them. An important role in the opera is played by the orchestra, which conveys the emotional atmosphere of events and the exceptional richness of psychological shades.
The first act opens with a grandiose vocal-symphonic picture of a storm, which immediately introduces you into the thick of intense struggle and sharp clashes. The climax of this dynamic scene is the appearance of Othello, accompanied by a joyful chorus. In the feast scene, the whimsical choir “Joy of the Flame,” with its melody and picturesque orchestral accompaniment, seems to depict the flaring fires of festive bonfires. Iago's drinking song is permeated with caustic sarcasm. The duet of Othello and Desdemona “The Dark Night Has Come,” preceded by the soulful sound of solo cellos, is replete with melodic melodies. At the conclusion of the duet, a passionate, ecstatic melody of love appears in the orchestra.
In the second act, the characteristics of Iago and Othello take center stage. The image of Iago - a strong, unwavering, but spiritually devastated person - is captured in the large monologue “I Believe in a Cruel Creator”; in the firm, decisive musical phrases there is a hidden mockery, enhanced by the orchestral accompaniment (at the end there is an explosion of caustic laughter). An expressive contrast is created by the Cypriot chorus “You look - everything will sparkle,” emphasizing the purity and purity of Desdemona; the enlightened nature of the music is created by the sound of children's voices, the transparent accompaniment of mandolins and guitars. In the quartet (Desdemona, Emilia, Othello and Iago), Desdemona’s broad melodies, full of calm nobility, contrast with Othello’s agitated, sorrowful phrases. Othello’s Arioso “I say goodbye to you forever, memories,” accompanied by warlike fanfares, close to a heroic march; this is a brief musical portrait of a courageous commander. In contrast to this is Iago’s story about Cassio, “That Was the Night”; its insinuating, bewitching melody and swaying accompaniment pattern resemble a lullaby. The duet of Othello and Iago (oath of revenge) by the nature of the music echoes the arioso of Othello.
The third act is based on a sharp contrast between the solemnity of the mass scenes in which the people greet Othello, and his deep mental turmoil. The duet of Othello and Desdemona opens with the gentle melody of “Hello, my dear husband.” Gradually, Othello's phrases become more and more anxious and agitated; at the end of the duet, the initial lyrical melody sounds ironic and ends with an angry exclamation. The torn, gloomy, seemingly frozen phrases of Othello’s monologue “God, you could have given me shame” express depression and numbness: the melodious melody of the second part of the monologue is permeated with restrained sorrow. A wonderful septet with a choir is the pinnacle of drama: the leading role here belongs to Desdemona, her soulful melodies are full of sorrowful forebodings.
In the fourth act, the image of Desdemona takes precedence. A mournful orchestral introduction with a solo English horn creates a tragic atmosphere of doom, predicting an imminent denouement. This mood is intensified in Desdemona’s simple, folk song with repeated melancholy exclamations of “Willow! Willow! Willow!". A short orchestral intermezzo (the appearance of Othello), ending with a passionate melody of love, is distinguished by a wide range of feelings. The dialogue between Othello and Desdemona, built on short, nervous remarks, is accompanied by an alarming pulsation of the orchestra. The last characteristic of Othello is a short monologue “I am not terrible, although armed”; short phrases convey a feverish change of thoughts. At the end of the opera, highlighting the dramatic denouement, the melody of love again plays in the orchestra.
M. Druskin
“Othello” is Verdi’s highest realistic achievement, one of the best works of world opera classics.
Using the means of his art, the composer was able to convey the true spirit of Shakespeare's tragedy, although, according to the laws of the specifics of musical dramaturgy, a number of side moments and scenes were released in the opera, the turn of events was given more concisely and quickly, the contrasts of characters and dramatic situations were more sharply defined.
At the same time, a number of additional episodes were introduced, which made it possible to more widely reveal in the music the spiritual world of the characters and their characteristics. Such are the duet of Othello and Desdemona at the end of Act I and the “Cypriot chorus” in Act II, which gives an indirect characterization of Desdemona, praising the nobility and chastity of her moral character.
Act I is divided into three large scenes; Let's call them “Storm”, “Tavern”, “Night”. Each of them has its own musical and dramatic centers, which anchor the development of action and characters. The opera begins without an overture, replaced by a large dynamic choral scene; it is at the same time an indirect characteristic of Othello - the people's favorite and leader. In the second scene, the intrigue unfolds and the initial exposition of the image of Iago with his wonderful drinking song is given. The third scene is a love duet, in which the poetic appearance of Desdemona and the lyrical aspects of Othello’s character are outlined (for the two main themes of the duet, see examples 167 a, b). The end of the act - the highest bright point of the tragedy - is captured in a love theme of amazing beauty:
In Act II, the insidious and evil Iago comes to the fore. In showing a strong negative image, Verdi uses, as usual, not satirical, but dramatic means of expression. This is Iago’s monologue - the best example, along with the images of the priests in Aida, of this manner of Verdi. Angular, seemingly grinding chord progressions, frantic explosions of passages, tremolos, piercing trills - all this serves to outline the image of an inhuman, cruel enemy:
Further key points of Act II are presented in the “Cypriot chorus”, the quartet and the final “oath of revenge” - the duet of Iago and Othello, which is demonic in nature.
The development of Act III is marked with great purpose. Its first half shows the growth of Othello's jealous feelings (the duet of Desdemona and Othello; the trio of Iago, Cassio and Othello), which leads to the climax of the opera - a septet with a chorus, where the contradictions between the two polar images of the tragedy: Desdemona and Iago are expressed with great force. The intonation of the lyrical themes that sounded in the love duet of Act I served as the basis for two Desdemona themes in the septet.
Its initial section (Es-dur, choir comments - As-dur) is dedicated to the exposition of these themes, which has a closed form, being framed by the first of the given themes.
In the second section, Iago becomes more active, the chorus’s remarks become more and more alarming, but they sound wary, in a whisper. This is the calm before the fierce battle that will break out in the third section (the main stages of the battle are As-dur, F-dur). Both themes of Desdemona are also used here, which gives this section a reprisal character. But the balance of forces has changed: the chant of the second lyrical theme in the bass is answered by Iago’s menacing phrase. Thus, throughout this masterfully written septet, the action moves inexorably towards a tragic denouement.
Act IV is the pinnacle of tragedy. With unusually restrained, stingy means, Verdi conveys the feeling of intense anticipation of a terrible catastrophe and its fulfillment, and - which is wonderful! - the music is dominated by muted tones and shades rrr(even ppppp!). Unexpected outbreaks of violent manifestations of despair or anger stand out all the more clearly. Such, for example, is the following phrase from Desdemona’s farewell to Emilia:
The atmosphere of guarded silence is brilliantly conveyed in the orchestral introduction. The melancholy melody of the cor anglais is accompanied by the mournful sigh of the flutes; Later, the opening “empty” fifth of the clarinets sounds like an inexorable sentence:
The thematic theme of the introduction permeates the entire first scene of the act with the song about the willow tree and Desdemona's prayer - these outstanding examples of Verdi's folk song lyrics. Echoes of this thematic theme also penetrate into the intonations of Othello, who regained his sight after the death of Desdemona. At the moment of his death, a wonderful melody of love appears from the duet of Act I (see example 165): thus, through the means of music, the composer cements in the memory of the listeners the noble and courageous, deeply humane image of the unfortunate Moor.
The musical dramaturgy of Othello develops rapidly and intensely. Verdi finally breaks with the principles of number structure: the action breaks up into scenes, but the transitions between them are smoothed out. The amazing skill with which Verdi combines end-to-end development with the internal completeness of the central dramatic moments is amazing. Iago's drinking song, love duet in Act I, Iago's "credo", "Cypriot chorus", "oath of revenge" - in Act II, Othello's aria, septet - in III, song about the willow tree and Desdemona's prayer, Othello's dying monologue in Act IV - all of these are, to one degree or another, completed, internally complete numbers, arising, however, in the process of the end-to-end development of music.
In this coherence of development, the role of both vocal and instrumental factors is great.
Verdi found in Othello the ideal balance between the recitative-declamatory and song-ariat beginnings. That is why the transitions from recitative forms to arioses are so organic in opera. Moreover, Verdi’s melodic generosity did not dry out, and he did not move away from the folk song origins that permeate the music of his creations. At the same time, her harmonic structure became bolder and brighter, and her tonal movement became more flexible and varied. All this helped convey the emotional nuances and richness of the characters’ spiritual world.
Verdi's orchestra also became more colorful and varied, without losing, however, its individual qualities - the rich and courageous sound of “pure” timbres, bright juxtapositions of contrasting groups, light and transparent coloring, powerful dynamics. And most importantly, the orchestra acquired the importance of an equal participant in the action and was imbued with songfulness to the same extent as the vocal part was imbued with declamation (Verdi said: “Good instrumentation does not consist in the variety and unusualness of effects - it is good when it expresses something.” Rimsky-Korsakov wrote enthusiastically about the “dramatic orchestra” of Verdi.).
Thus, all the musical resources of the opera appeared in organic unity, which is a distinctive feature of the best realistic works of the world musical theater.
Unknown Shakespeare. Who, if not he [= Shakespeare. Life and Works] Brandes Georg
Chapter 49. “Othello.” - The meaning and character of Iago
Chapter 49. "Othello". - The meaning and character of Iago
If we pay attention to the fact that Macbeth explains the tragedy of life as the result of moral rudeness in alliance with malice, or more precisely, rudeness poisoned by malice, then it turns out that from here there is only one step to Othello. But in studying the tragedy of life as a whole, anger as a world factor, in Macbeth there is still no confidence, no major style.
Othello presents us with an incomparably larger, more confident style in this area.
Othello, from the point of view of the profane, is simply a tragedy on the theme of jealousy, just as Macbeth is a tragedy on the theme of ambition. Very naive readers and critics in their innocence imagine that at a certain moment in his life Shakespeare decided to study several interesting and dangerous passions and warn the audience against them. For this purpose, he wrote a work on the theme of ambition and the resulting dangers, then a similar work on the theme of jealousy and all the misadventures that it causes. But this is not how this thing is accomplished in the inner life of the creative spirit. The poet does not write essays on this topic. He begins to create not because of any preconceived decision or choice. Some nerve in it is touched, and that nerve vibrates and reacts.
What Shakespeare is trying to figure out for himself here is not jealousy or gullibility, but only the tragedy of life: how does it arise, what are its causes, what are its laws?
He was amazed by the power of anger and its significance in life. Othello is much less a study of jealousy than a new and more compelling study of malice in all its power. The thread running from the master to the work leads to the personality of Iago, not Othello.
Some naive researchers believed that Shakespeare created Iago on the model of the historical Richard III - therefore, he found him in some literature, in a chronicle.
No, Shakespeare undoubtedly met Iago in his life; he lived his mature years side by side with various traits of his character, day after day he encountered on his life’s path first this or that side of this personality, and finally, one fine day, when he fully felt and understood that smart, evil, low people can do, he fused all these fragments and cast them into one powerful image.
Iago has a larger style in this character than in all of Macbeth. Iago - in this one character there is more depth of thought, more knowledge of human nature, than in the whole of Macbeth. Iago is the very embodiment of great style.
He is not an evil principle, not the Old Testament devil, who, as we know, is stupid, and not the Miltonian devil, who loves independence and invents firearms, and not Goethe’s Mephistopheles, who speaks cynicisms, knows how to make himself necessary and for the most part turns out to be right - and in at the same time, he is not greatness in undaunted malice, not Caesar Borgia, who filled his life with terrible deeds.
Iago has no other goal before his eyes except his own benefit. That it was not he, but Cassio, who received the post of Othello's lieutenant - this is the circumstance that prompted his cunning to plot intrigues from the very beginning. He wanted this position and is trying to win it. But with all that, on the way to her, he picks up every benefit that can fall into his hands, and does not think twice about extracting all his fortune and jewelry from Rodrigo. He constantly hides behind lies and hypocrisy, but he has chosen a different impenetrable mask for himself: the bold severity, the direct, honest gloom of a soldier who does not take into account what others think or say about him. He never tries to curry favor with Othello, never with Desdemona, never even with Rodrigo. He is a frank, honest friend. He seeks his own benefit, while at the same time looking askance at others. Iago is schadenfreude in human form. He does evil in order to have the pleasure of harming; he triumphs at the sight of other people's torment and adversity. And at the same time, he is an eternal envy, fueled by the advantages and successes of others. He is not petty envy, content with desiring for himself other people's merits or other people's property, or considering himself more deserving of someone else's happiness. No, in the great personification of Iago, this is envious ill will, acting in human life as a powerful force, its very engine, this aversion to other people's perfections, manifested in the persistent denial of these advantages, in distrust or disdainful attitude towards them; it is an instinctive involuntary hatred of everything open, beautiful, bright, good and great.
Shakespeare not only knew that such envy existed, he snatched it from life and branded it forever. This is his immortal glory as a psychologist.
Everyone has heard the objection made against Othello, that the tragedy is excellent because the hero and Desdemona are true and rare images, but Iago - who knows? And what is the rationale for his course of action? What explains such anger? It would be good if he was directly in love with Desdemona and hated Othello for this reason or for another similar motive!
Yes, if he were simply a rogue in love and a slanderer, then everything would undoubtedly have turned out simpler. But then, indeed, the whole drama would not be above vulgarity, and Shakespeare would not stand here at the height of his genius.
No! No! In the apparent lack of motivation, this is where the greatness and depth lie. And Shakespeare understood this. In his monologues, Iago constantly points out to himself the reasons for his hatred. Reading soliloquies in other plays of Shakespeare, we can see from them what the character is really like; it confesses them directly to us; even such a villain as Richard III is completely sincere in his monologues. It's a different matter for Iago. This half-devil constantly tries to explain his hatred to himself, constantly almost fools himself, imagining half-hearted motives in which he believes a little and strongly disbelieves. Coleridge aptly defined this movement in his soul with the words the motive hunting of a motiveless malignity (search for the cause of causeless malignity). Again and again he declares to himself that he believes that Othello was too close to his wife, and that he wants to take revenge for the insult. At times, in order to find a basis for his hatred of Cassio, he adds that he suspects him of having an intimate relationship with Emilia. As a side motive, which in any case is worth taking into account, he does not even disdain the motive of falling in love with Desdemona. He says (II, 1):
Yes, finally, I love her myself
Not a passionate lover's love,
Even though it may be such a huge sin
I don’t atone for this at all,
But partly because I want
I take revenge on him, out of suspicion,
That this Moor is slutty on bed
He climbed up to me more than once.
All this is half-dishonest attempts at self-understanding and self-justification. Bile, poisonous envy always has a motive behind it, legitimizing the hatred hidden in it and turning the desire to harm a more worthy person into just revenge. But Iago, who a few lines above said about Othello that he has a “faithful, gentle and noble soul,” is a thousand times too smart to think that he is deceived by the Moor; after all, he sees through it as through glass.
The universal human capacity for love or hate, for some very specific reason, would diminish and humiliate the superiority that Iago achieves in anger. In the end they threaten him with torture because he does not want to say a word in explanation or justification. Unyielding and proud, he probably wouldn’t open his lips even in torture, but he couldn’t give a real explanation. He slowly and persistently poisoned Othello's soul. We can trace the effect of the poison on the simple-minded Moor and see how the very fact that the poisoning process is successful embitters and intoxicates Iago more and more. But where the poison entered Iago’s soul, it would be illogical to ask, and he himself cannot answer it. The snake is poisonous by nature and produces poison, like a silkworm its yarn, like a violet its fragrance.
Shortly before the end of the drama (III, 2), there is an exchange of remarks that belong to the most profound remarks in the play and give the key to the bewilderment that overcame Shakespeare in these years at the sight of malice and during his exploration of the power of evil.
Emilia, who witnessed Othello's fury against Desdemona, tells her:
...I'll let myself be hanged
Kohl did not spread such slander
With the desire to find a place for myself,
Some despicable scoundrel
Some slacker, sycophant,
Some mean, flattering slave!
Yes, that's true, or let me be hanged!
Wow, there are no such people in the world!
Can't be!
Desdemona.
And if there are such people, God forgive them!
Emilia.
No! Let the gallows
Forgive me! May hell devour all his bones!
All three characters seem to be carved with a chisel in these short remarks. But Iago's remark is the most significant of them. “There are no such people in the world! Can't be!" - this is the thought in the shadow of which he lived and lives, the thought: others do not believe that such things exist.
Here we again encounter in Shakespeare Hamlet’s amazement at evil as a paradox, and we encounter the same indirect appeal to the reader that appeared in Hamlet and Measure for Measure, now repeated for the third time: do not say, do not believe that it is impossible ! The belief in the impossibility that there are villains in the world is a vital condition for a king like Claudius, a ruler like Angelo, an officer like Iago. Hence the words of Shakespeare: Verily I say unto you, that this highest degree of malice is possible.
It is one of the factors in the tragedy of life. Stupidity is another factor. On these two pillars rests the main result of all the disasters of earthly life.
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