"Good gentleman, let me have leave to speak./ 'Tis proper I obey him - but not now!" Emilia [5.2.192-193]

Questions: Act 5 scene 2 lines 1-233

Answer in full sentences, with quotations. Type your responses and post to your blog.

1. Othello believes that he must kill Desdemona as a way to stop her from causing the pain he has suffered to anyone else 'Yet she must die, else she’ll betray more men'. By having this as his reason Othello believes that he is killing Desdemona for an honourable cause.
   
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2. In his scene it is evident that Shakespeare is following the racial stereotypes of the time when Emilia describes Othello as the 'blacker devil'. This adheres to the racial stereotypes of Elizabethan times as ethic minorities were often associated with hell and the devil as they were seen as 'deformed' which often had connotations with hell and its abnormal surroundings.;
3. During line 68 where Othello believes that Cassio has confessed to having an affair with Desdemona he has in fact confessed that he has slept with Bianca. Othello is left to believe that he is talking about Desdemona because Cassio shows Iago her handkerchief leading Othello to put the two scenarios together
4. Emilia says "Good gentleman, let me have leave to speak./ 'Tis proper I obey him - but not now!" This quote indicates that Emilia is not the sort of women that is going to conform to the expectations of society but she does make it apparent that she knows she is breaking them. Women where expected to be 'mild, timorous, tractable and benign'. In this scene Emilia break all of these stereotypes and speaks about what she thinks is right. here it can also be suggested that Emilia is accepting that she is going to die for speaking the truth. this can be suggested when she say 'but not know' as she could be informing the audience that she has stayed quite for too long and now must speak out against her husband even if that means she will lose her life because of it. this revels that Emilia is one of the strongest female characters in this play even though she isn't of a high social status but she is still willing to speak out and ask questions, which is the opposite of Desdemona.
5. Once Emilia realises what Othello has done to Desdemona she begins to verbally insult Othello, associating what she says around his race. he makes several references to him being a 'devil' as they unnaturalness of ethnic minorities was often associated with hell and the devil. she also describes Othello to be 'as ignorant as dirt'. she describes him in this way to emphasise how foolish he was to believe Iago's lies as she knows him better than anyone and knows that he manipulates people into getting what he wants. she also describes his as a 'cruel moor'. this contrast from the image of Othello which is portrayed at the beginning of the play as a 'valiant moor'. this contrast is a representation of how Othello's status and power has deteriorated. although he is always represented as a moor showing how he will always be inferior due to his ethnic background, no mater his social status.

How does Shakespeare create a sense of fear and confusion in Act 5 scene 1? Consider:

• Setting
• Language
• Structure of lines
• Use of characters
• Other dramatic methods

During this scene Iago and Roderigo are discussion how they are going to kill Cassio. Iago is trying to convince Roderigo that he should kill Cassio because he is the one that has stolen Desdemona from him, although his true motif is so he doesn't have to get involved as it would ruin his opportunity to become lieutenant.


The setting of this scene is important to creating a sense of fear and confusion. This is because the setting of the street leads it to be a vulnerable place as their would have been no street lighting. Having this sense of vulnerability builds up fear in both the audience and the characters as they cannot anticipate when the attack is going to happen. After the attack it also leaves confusion as the characters are unaware of who has fought who and the amount of people wounded which is displayed by Shakespeare's use of short lines and constant use of questions.


Shakespeare's use of entrances and exits at this point in the play also helps to add to the sense of confusion. This is because the use of having so many characters on the stage creates a manic atmosphere.


Iago's aside at the end of this scene is also something which heightens the fear in the audience. 'This is the night,That either makes me, or foredoes me quite.' as an audience we then feel fear because we know that this is the point where Iago's plan all falls into place and Othello will kill Desdemona. we feel fear as an audience because we have created a sense of empathy for Desdemona as we now that she has committed the affair Othello believes her to have.

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1. Desdemona agrees to Cassio’s case because she knows that they are close friends and due to the fact that he helped to get Desdemona and Othello together in the first place
2. When Iago say ‘ha! I like not that’ he is referring to the fact that he can see Cassio and Desdemona talking to each other. By doing this he is making Othello feel paranoid because it makes him think that they are doing something they shouldn’t instead of having a harmless conversation.
3. After Othello repeatedly urges Iago to tell him what's on his mind, Iago says "O, beware, my lord, of jealousy;/It is the green eyed monster, which doth mock / The meat it feeds on." Othello responds with ‘O misery’. By saying this Othello is showing that he has fallen out of certainty of his love to Desdemona as he describes it as a misery. This could then suggest that he wants reassurance and sympathy from Iago and also the truth to what he thinks is happening.
4. Iago says that all the women of Venice ‘dare not show their husbands; their best consciousness is not to leave’t undone, but keep’t unknown’. This is then suggesting that he sees all women to be untrustworthy as they will keep secrets from their husbands. This then reinforces the doubt Othello has at it makes him believe that it is not an uncommon situation, making him question his wife’s loyalty
5. As stated by Thomas Coryat in ‘Coryats Crudities’ the women of Venice are described as Courtezan of Venice displaying them all be to prostitutes and therefore unfaithful.
6. This contextual evidence may then influence Othello’s decision to believe Iago about being unable to trust his wife because during the 1600’s this was the way Venetian women were displayed and along with the fact that Desdemona went behind her father’s back to get married with Othello it also suggests that she would do the same to him with another man
7. Iago echoes Brabantios earlier warning to Othello by saying ‘she did deceive her father, marrying you; and when she seemed to shake, and fear your looks, she loved them most’.
8. In this statement Iago makes the statement that it is unnatural for Desdemona and Othello to be together because of his race as he takes reference to his looks and how it was something that she should fear
9. During this scene Desdemona handkerchief becomes an important piece of stage business. It is first produced as she gives it to Othello to help him with his headache.; at this point Othello drops it on the floor and Emilia picks it up so that she can give it to Iago hoping that he will give it back to her as a token of his love. She does this because Othello first gave Desdemona the handkerchief as a token of his love to her and this is all Emilia wants from Iago
10. The fact that Emilia is able to see the importance the handkerchief has to both Desdemona and Othello could be something which motivates her to take it as it is all she wants from her husband.
11. When Othello returns to the scene he warns Iago with ‘ha, ha, false to me?’ showing that he realised Iago has been lying to him
12. Iago proves to Othello that Desdemona is disloyal by saying that  “I lay with Cassio lately, And, being troubled with a ranging tooth, I could not sleep. There are a kind of men so loose of soul, That in their sleeps will mutter their affairs: One of this kind is Cassio .In sleep I heard him say ‘Sweet Desdemona, Let us be wary, let us hide our loves’; And then, sir, would he gripe and wring my hand, Cry out ‘Sweet creature!’, and then kiss me hard, As if he plucked up kisses by the roots, That grew upon my lips; then laid his leg Over my thigh, and sighed, and kissed, and then Cried ‘Cursed fate, that gave thee to the Moor!’”
13. during this scene Othello's language becomes more monosyllabic. this is to represent how Othello is become more similar to Iago showing how well he has managed to manipulate him.

classical tragedies

Classical tragedies

What is a classical tragedy?

A classical tragedy is the story of a hero (or heroine) that experiences a reversal of fortune set in motion by the gods as a result of hubris. The hero of the tragedy is often of a high status and the story often ends in their death.

The concept was an idea that was first thought up by the Greeks in ancient Athens during the 5^th century BC.

Examples of early classical tragedies include:

• ‘Oedipus the king’ by Sophocles, which was first performed in 429BC
• ‘Oedipus at Colonus’ by Sophocles, in 406BC
• ‘The Oresteia’ by Aeschylus, was first performed during 45BC
• ‘The Trojan Women’ by Euripides, was produced in 415BC
• ‘Hippolytus’ by Euripides, was first produced in Athens in 428BC

Aristotle

Aristotle was a Greek philosopher who was alive between 384BC and 322BC. He is best known his books which include work on subjects like poetry, theatre, music, biology, physics, zoology, and logic

‘Poetics’- Aristotle

This was written in 335BC by Aristotle giving his theory on tragedies. In this book Aristotle defines the aim of a tragedy bring about catharsis of the spectators, to arouse in them feelings of pity and fear and to purge them of these emotions so that they leave the theatre feeling cleansed and uplifted, with a heightened understanding of the ways of gods and men.

Plot, Characters, Diction, Thought, Spectacle, Melody are the six component parts which Aristotle says make up a tragedy.

Aristotle also states in this book that there are several things that make a good tragedy, these include characteristics: (1) it is mimetic, (2) it is serious, (3) it tells a full story of an appropriate length, (4) it contains rhythm and harmony, (5) rhythm and harmony occur in different combinations in different parts of the tragedy, (6) it is performed rather than narrated, and (7) it arouses feelings of pity and fear and then purges these feelings through catharsis. A well-formed plot must have a beginning, which is not a necessary consequence of any previous action; a middle, which follows logically from the beginning; and an end, which follows logically from the middle and from which no further action necessarily follows. The plot should be unified, meaning that every element of the plot should tie in to the rest of the plot, leaving no loose ends.

For a tragedy to arouse pity and fear, we must observe a hero who is relatively noble going from happiness to misery as a result of error on the part of the hero.

Hamartia: Greek for "error.") An offense committed in ignorance of some material fact; a great mistake made as a result of an error by a morally good person.

Tragic flaw: A fatal weakness or moral flaw in the protagonist that brings him or her to a bad end. Sometimes offered as an alternative understanding of hamartia, in contrast to the idea that the tragic hero's catastrophe is caused by an error in judgment.

Hubris: Overweening pride, outrageous behaviour, or the insolence that leads to ruin, the antithesis of moderation or rectitude.

Peripeteia: Peripeteia (Anglicized as peripety; Greek for "sudden change.") A reversal of fortune, a sudden change of circumstance affecting the protagonist. According to Aristotle, the play's peripety occurs when a certain result is expected and instead its opposite effect is produced. In a tragedy, the reversal takes the protagonist from good fortune to catastrophe.

Recognition: In tragic plotting, the moment of recognition occurs when ignorance gives way to knowledge, illusion to disillusion.

Catharsis: Often translated from Greek as purgation or purification.) the feeling of emotional release or calm the spectator feels at the end of tragedy. The term is drawn from Aristotle's definition of tragedy, relating to the final cause or purpose of tragic art. Some feel that through catharsis, drama taught the audience compassion for the vulnerabilities of others and schooled it in justice and other civic virtues.

The Hallow Men

The Hallow Men by T.S Elliot
Why are they afraid of looking at the 'eyes'? What do they think would happen if they were exposed to the eyes?


Over all Elliot's description of the Hallow men is to show a description of people who have opinions about the world but don't put their opinions across. Having this in mind the 'direct eyes' described in the first stanza of the poem could be seen as the eyes of the people who get their opinions across and control society. This can be interpreted as this because they are 'direct', they know exactly what they want to happen and what stop until they have done so. The fact that they are remembered 'only as the hallow men' also suggests that these 'eyes' have power as to them everyone else isn't important and has no effect on society. Due to this it could be interpreted that the Hallow Men are scared of the 'eyes' because they have such strong views. This could be something that they fear because it could end up changing what they think as its so influential on them and as their name suggests they are 'hallow', they are full people who are not open to change. As a Marxist critic this could then further be interpreted to be similar as the situation between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie in the capitalist society. This is because the proletariat passively accept the society which the bourgeoisie have set up for them, in this poem they are the Hallow Men and the bourgeoisie are the 'eyes'. This then could link back to the fact that they are afraid of being exposed to the 'eyes' because they are apart of a capitalist society of being exploited and alienated by the bourgeoisie, so don't express their opinions for change and do this by staying out of contact with the bourgeoisie.

Philip Larkin

Larkin's poetry cynically portrays a society in which the proletariat “are deluding themselves” rather than presenting a hopeful picture of society where “they go beyond the limits which society sets for them” to what extend do you agree with this?




Larkin shows through a number of his different poems how he sees that the proletariat are trapped within a capitalist society. In his poem ‘the large cool store’ Larkin shows how the proletariat are entrapped by the bourgeoisie by making them feel the same. He uses harsh words like ‘simple’ and dark colours like ‘browns’ and ‘greys’. These choices of words show that he is almost mocking the proletariat, that they are dull boring people who are ill-educated. Through this he could be suggesting that the proletariat are deluding themselves due to the lack of education the bourgeoisie have provided them with. Marxism then enables this to be interpreted in a way which suggests that this lack of education is because the bourgeoisie own both the base and superstructure which shape our society. This then means that they control what is put into the education system to purposely benefit the bourgeoisie. During this poem Larkin also shows entrapped the proletariat are within this capitalist society. This is shown when the people who are buying the clothes from these 'large cool stores' are described to 'leave a dawn low terrace houses timed for factory, yard and site'.  By doing this Larkin is not only showing how entrapped the proletariat are but also how deluded they are, as they are making these clothes but then buying them. From a Marxist point of view this can then be taken and interpreted that this is a way in which the bourgeoisie keep themselves in power. This is because during the 1950's the people working in the factories would have been paid minimum wages for their labour, this therefore keeps the bourgeoisie in power because they then go and spend these wages back on the clothes they've made, which then transfers back to the owners of the shops, who are the bourgeoisie. Consequently this shows to the extent to which the bourgeoisie have created a false consciousness within the proletariat because although they feel like their developing their social situation by having these clothes they are really only reinforcing the existing capitalist society. Larkin again suggests that they are deluded by saying ‘to suppose they share that world’. Here this can be interpreted to show that the bourgeoisie have embedded a false consciousness within the proletariat to feel that they live in a same world with them. By saying ‘to suppose’ also gives of the impression that it will never happen it is just something they can dream of happening. Although this overall poem can in some ways be interpreted in a way which suggests that the proletariat aren't deluding themselves by thinking they are just as good, but that they are breaking down the boundaries that society has set them. Andrew Motion is a Marxist critic who suggests this by saying 'the argument is whether the shoppers are deluding themselves when they buy something... or are they going beyond the limits which society sets for them'. By saying this it could suggest that Motion is getting across a point of view which shows that maybe the proletariat aren't alienating themselves from their own personality be deluding themselves but are actually rebelling through the superstructure ideas the famous Marxist Gramsci had.



The poem 'here' is one that you can say has close relations to 'the large cool store'. This is because they both take reference to the desires of the proletariat to be like the bourgeoisie. In the poem 'here' this is shown when it says 'push through plate-glass swing doors to their desires'. This is similar because just like in the 'large cool store' the shops hold what the proletariat think will give them higher status. This is done by them creating an materialistic image of themselves to being better by having all these products which the bourgeoisie own. Unlike the 'large cool store' you could say that in this poem the protagonists are rebelling against the stereotype of the capitalist society because they are pushing through the doors which have been set by society to marginalise them, to be able to reach their desires. Although later on in the poem the word 'simple' is used. Here Larkin could be making links to the proletariat that are trying to reach their desires as simple due to their lack of education. This could then suggests that Larkin is showing that although the proletariat can try to break out of this society, they will always stay trapped because it has been their way of life for so long right from education meaning there is nothing they can do to get out of this cycle. Larkin here presents his cynical opinion to equality between the classes as he is almost showing that, again like in the large cool store, the proletariat may feel like they can get their 'desires' in life but because it has always been this way they cant.




In the poem Mr Bleaney Larkin suggests to the reader that the bourgeoisie own the proletariat. This is shown a number of times through the poem. An example of this is when it says 'he stayed the whole time he was at the Bodies, till the moved him'. Not only does this suggest the fact that his body is lifeless and has had to be moved away, the political view of Marxism could suggest that this shows control. This is because the 'bodies' can also be regarded as the shells of cars in a factory. This could be interpreted to show control because 'they moved him' showing that he has been moved from job to job to suit the needs of the bourgeoisie. The power and control the bourgeoisie are suggests to have in this poem can also be seen when it says ‘’I’ll take it’’. This gives off this impression because here Larkin is buying the whole of this man’s life in just 3 simple words, showing the power the bourgeoisie have. By saying ‘take’ could also suggests through Marxist criticism that the bourgeoisie are stealing the lives of the proletariat. This would have been due to the capitalist society they say we live in and the fact that the bourgeoisie own everything we do.




In the poem Mr Bleaney Larkin also shows how little the proletariat have, ‘having no more than one hired box’. From a Marxist point f view this shows how weak the proletariat are compared to the bourgeoisie. This is because they might have so little but it doesn't even own to them it is 'hired'. A Marxist would then take this and say that they have hired it from the bourgeoisie, therefore keeping them in a state of power. This shows the proletariat to be marginalised into a way of life that they can’t escape from as they will always be giving themselves to the bourgeoisie. Over all in this poem by Larkin there is no clear suggestion to the proletariat passively excepting the capitalist society or rebelling against it. This is because it is all about the control of a man’s life after he had died so there is no way he can rebel. Although you could say that his life before he died has lead this because he has always been stuck with these class inequalities.




'Ignorance' is another poem by Larkin which can be interpreted to explore class inequality. Just by using the word 'ignorant' throughout the poem could be making suggestions with the fact that the proletariat are unknown to their exploitation by the bourgeoisie. A Marxists may say that this is because the bourgeoisie totally control every aspect of their lives through things in the base and superstructure. Another way in which Larkin suggests that the protagonists in this poem are passively accepting the capitalist society in which they live in is when it says ‘all our lives on imprecisions that when we start to die have no idea why’. The ‘imprecisions’ could be showing the vague lives in which the proletariat live as they don’t realise what the proletariat are doing. This vague life then only becomes clear to them just before they die, meaning there is nothing they can do to change it keeping the bourgeoisie in power.




After looking at a number of Larkin’s poems his cynical view on class equality suggests that he feels the proletariat are passive victims to the society and although they may feel that they can become equal ultimately there will be no change.

Philip Larkin riding a bike