During Shakespeare's time, human morals, ethics, and behaviours were heavily influenced and represented through religious values. In many of Shakespeare’s plays, he is able to represent and use these themes of moral and immoral actions to engage readers; perhaps relating to their personal lives. Within Othello, Shakespeare represents Othello’s morality as a complex interaction between his values and his easily manipulable personality, ultimately leading to his tragic downfall. In Act 4 Scene 1, Othello’s morals begin to drop as Iago ‘poisons’ his mind to believe that his wife, Desdemona, is unfaithful. Othello begins to act irrationally and his morals begin to plummet downwards due to his manipulable personality. Within Act 3 Scene 3, it’s quite apparent how Othello’s irrational actions have been caused by his decline in morals, and vise versa, ultimately leading to his tragic fate. Finally, during Act 5 Scene 2, we watch as Othello’s immoral actions and irrational decisions quickly take over his relationship with his wife, leading to the unjust death of both Desdemona and himself.
Within Act 4 Scene 1, Iago’s influence on Othello’s morality becomes seemingly apparent, specifically when Iago has convinced Othello that Desdemona has cheated on him with Cassio. Iago was able to easily influence and manipulate Othello due to his excessive trust in others, causing Othello to make morally questionable and irrational decisions, ultimately leading to his tragic downfall. Within Act 4, Othello states: “How shall I murder him, Iago?” (4, 1, 161), after Iago has convinced him that Cassio has been sleeping with Desdemona. This statement from Othello contrasts with his previous beliefs on the morality and ethical reasoning behind violent revenge. This can be seen in Act 1 Scene 2: “Good signor, you shall more command with years than with your weapons.” (1, 2, 62). This contrast of personal beliefs through the play's progression ultimately displays how fragile and gullible Othello’s morals are to Iago’s manipulative abilities, causing Othello to act irrationally, leading him on a path of unjust murder and revenge. The use of the word “murder” often comes up nearing the end of the play, perhaps foreshadowing events to come, such as Desdemona's unrighteous death; however, this could also be adding an interesting sense of anticipation, strain, and vitality to the scene, as we see Othello present himself in a violent way opposed to the relatively moral and collected man we see through the first three acts of the play. Along with the use of increasingly violent dialogue from Othello in Act 4, it can also be noted that his lines become shorter and more abrupt as his morality declines. “I will chop her into messes! Cuckold me?” (4, 1, 190) This quotation is an ideal example, as we see how his thoughts have become abrupt, violent, and scattered in disbelief due to his easily manipulable personality. This ultimately links into the pattern of moral decline we see in Othello, as he becomes a more violent and irrational individual, looking for revenge (much like Iago). During these times it was believed that being known as a “cuckold” took away a man's honour, and even his status. Perhaps this could further explain the logic behind Othello’s decreased morality, as he was once a well respected man who respected others, but when he seemingly became a “cuckold” he lost a part of his status as a well represented and masculine figure. Within the essay The Motivation of Iago, published by the John Hopkins University Press and written by John C. McCloskey, a writer of many notable analytical Shakespeare essays, McCloskey states that "For Iago’s pathetic victim the tragedy lies in the fact that he allows his emotions to usurp his reason..." (p. 27). Interestingly, we see this similar trait (acting based on feeling rather than fact) within Othello shortly after stating “I’ll see before I doubt, when I doubt, prove…” (3, 3, 194) This shows how his morals represent and are directly connected to his manipulable personality and unconditional trust within Iago, ultimately leading to his tragic downfall.
Throughout the play, it is evident that Othello’s decisions become progressively less moral and more irrational, this is especially evident in Act 3 Scene 3 during the incident regarding the handkerchief. Othello’s moral complexity and reasoning is heavily influenced through his irrational emotions, showing how Shakespeare intended to have Othello’s morality represented as his hamartia. Within act 3 Scene 3 of the play, Othello complains of a headache, and Destimona offers a handkerchief to help comfort him: “Let me but bind it hard, within this hour/ It will be well. (pulls out a handkerchief)” (3, 3, 290). Othello’s reaction to his wife’s kind gesture was less than kind, immoral and quite irrational: “Your napkin is too little,/ Let it alone./ Her handkerchief drops” (3, 3, 293). This act of rejection displays how Othello created his own downfall due to his decreased morality through the play. Had Othello put aside his bias due to Iago’s manipulation and accepted his wife’s gesture of kindness, the handkerchief would never have ended up in the hands of Iago, and then Cassio. Othello’s irrational behaviour due to his manipulated morals caused his downfall, ultimately leading to his tragic end. During Shakespeare's time it was believed that when a man’s wife cheats on him and becomes a cuckold, the man begins to grow horns from his skull. It’s thought that this is the reason for Othello's headache, as he is intending to be passive towards Desdemona. Interestingly, Desdemona is attempting to solve Othello’s headache (proving her innocence), and he rejects her kind gesture, displaying how irrational Othello’s actions have become through his decreased morality, eventually leading to Desdemona’s murder. During this scene, it could be argued that Othello’s handkerchief symbolises a piece of his status, morality, and masculinity. The act of the handkerchief falling “(pulls out a handkerchief)... Her handkerchief drops” could represent the fall of Othello's morals. When Emilia “(picks up the handkerchief)” (3, 3, 297) it could be foreshadowing to Act 5 Scene 2 where she reveals the truth of Iago’s manipulation to Othello, which ultimately spikes his morals upwards, causing Othello’s anagnorisis. Following this theory, Othello described the handkerchief as “too little” for his head. Perhaps this could be an indication of how his morals have decreased, and his irrational thoughts have begun to consume his headspace, leaving no room for, and causing him to ‘reject’, or belittle, his former moral status. Within the essay Love’s Reason in Othello, published by the John Hopkins University Press, and written by the notable Shakespere author E. K. Weedin, Jr., Weedin states that: “...the theory that good is the end and purpose of reason.” (p. 295) Weeden implies that the goal of reasoning is not only to make moral decisions, but also to come to an end goal, which is a common “good”. Perhaps this could explain the ethical reasoning behind Othello’s drive to act immorally towards Desdemona after falling for Iago’s manipulative tricks, as he himself is hoping to resolve conflict by eliminating the ‘bad’ within his life; when in reality his perception of morality has been skewed by Iago. Othello’s acts of irrationality is ultimately what led to his decline in morals, and eventually the downfall of Desdemona and himself.
Within Act 5 Scene 2, Othello’s poor moral reasoning leads to the corruption of his relationship with Desdemona, causing both of their tragic deaths. Through Act 5, it is quite evident that Desdemona is in a state of confusion, as Othello begins to act violently and irrational, supposedly without a reason. “And yet I fear you, for your fatal then/ When your eyes roll so. Why I should fear I know not,/ Since guiltiness I know not. But yet I feel I fear.” (5, 2, 40) Within this scene, we begin to see how Othello and Desdamona interact, now that Othello has been morally manipulated by Iago and is seeking revenge. Desdemona states she feels “fear” but does not know the reasoning behind it. Perhaps through the repetition of foreshadowing words such as “fear”, Shakespeare intended to create the sense of strain, confusion, and desperation that Desdemona feels towards Othello’s irrational actions. Additionally, this adds a sense of dramatic irony to the scene, as viewers are aware that Desdemona is in fact innocent; however, Othello deeply believes Iago’s lies. Through this use of cleverly worded phrases, readers and viewers are able to feel the sense of foreboding and immoral revenge radiating from Othello towards Desdemona, despite her innocence. Within the essay Lust for Audience: An Interpretation of Othello, published by the John Hopkins University Press, and written by the Shakespeare enthusiast with a Ph. D. in American literature, Majorie Pryse, Pryse states that: “Desdemona relies on the distinction between words and action as the yardstick by which to gauge the difference between storytelling and serious love.” (p. 465) This further emphasises Desdemona’s confusion towards Othello’s actions, as his “distinction between words and actions” becomes twisted as his moral standards decline, and he murders Desdemona. During the early 1600’s it was believed that when an individual dies with sins, they become stuck in a state known as ‘Purgatory’, similar to ‘Hell’. Before Othello murders Desdemona, he insists she confesses her ‘sin’ of being unloyal: “If you bethink yourself of any crime/ Unreconciled as yet to heaven and grace,/ Solicit for it straight.” (5, 2, 28) Perhaps this moral act on behalf of Othello was his final grasp of balance between the complex relationship of his moral values and manipulated personality; however, his morality continues to be represented through his unjust and irrational actions after he smothers Desdemona, killing her.
Othello’s morality through the play took many twists, and turns as he fell for Iago’s manipulative scheme, and plummeted morally. It’s not until Desdamona has been killed that Othello has his anagnorisis, and realises he has been tricked into becoming an immoral individual. Had Othello managed to maintain balance between his initial moral values that he possess at the beginning of the play, and been more aware of his hamartia (being easily manipulable), perhaps he would have been able to hold a grasp onto not only his values, but also his relationship with Desdemona. Building onto this theory, had Othello been more aware, and less irrational when acting towards others (for example, the handkerchief), he would have avoided many of his immoral actions as a whole, and his morality could have been represented as a strong and independent entity opposed to linking directly into his easily manipulable personality. It can be easily said that after killing Desdamona, and taking his own life out of pity, Othello was not able to meet innocent Desdemona in heaven, but he himself met a tragic fate of Purgatory.
Works Cited
McCloskey, John C. “The Motivation of Iago.” College English, vol. 3, no. 1, 1941, pp. 25–30. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/371329. Accessed 15 Oct. 2024.
Pryse, Marjorie. “Lust for Audience: An Interpretation of Othello.” ELH, vol. 43, no. 4, 1976, pp. 461–78. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/2872732. Accessed 15 Oct. 2024.
Shakespeare, William. SparkNotes. Othello (No Fear Shakespeare). SparkNotes, 2021.
Weedin, E. K. “Love’s Reason in Othello.” Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900, vol. 15, no. 2, 1975, pp. 293–308. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/449673. Accessed 15 Oct. 2024.
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