Othello is the most
domestic of Shakespeare's tragedies' —discuss.
0r
Show Othello as a
domestic tragedy.
Othello,
the Moor of Venice has been regarded as a domestic tragedy by some critics
because it shows how the domestic life of Othello and Desdemona is ruined by
the machinations of a villain, Iago by name. Iago through his machinations and
crafty means makes Othello jealous of Cassio and suspicious of Desdemona. He
begins to doubt his innocent wife of having immoral relation with Cassio. He
suffers terrible mental tortures, and spurred on by Iago, ultimately destroys
first Desdemona and then himself. Thus it
has a close resemblance with the plot of a domestic tragedy, though it is a
drama of contemporary life, having for its background a historical event of
recent occurrence.
But
Othello is not a private individual. He is descended from a royal family. He is
a soldier and a military general of great ability and renown. He is considered
indispensable for the defense of Cyprus and is appointed as the Governor of
Cyprus by the Duke of Venice. Thus he is a man of importance occupying a
conspicuous place in the life and affairs of the state of Venice. He can in no
way be regarded as a private individual—like the hero of a domestic tragedy.
By
virtue of his exceptional abilities, Othello is head and shoulders above the
common run of mankind. Noble and daring, he had a romantic career and travelled
widely over distant lands. By telling his tales of travels he is able to win
over the heart Of Desdemona, a girl of exceptional beauty and grace. He can
command and inspire confidence by his honesty and frankness. When such an
individual falls, his fall produces the pity and terror proper to the bile
tragedy.
In
a domestic tragedy, the action of the drama moves on a common everyday level.
There is neither remoteness nor any suggestion of serious, fatal forces working
against human beings. But the action of Othello does not take place in familiar
England; we are transported to romantic Venice and from there to the remote
unknown Cyprus. We feel that there is some hidden forces, malignant and
hostile, Iago, the embodiment of evil, appears with all his evil designs which
fill us with foreboding. The impression of Destiny working against the hero
driving him to an inevitable doom is further strengthened by preponderance of
the Chance element.
To sum up, Othello is not a domestic tragedy
but in it the commonplace has been lifted up, and transformed to the level of a
heroic tragedy. A trifle thing like the handkerchief, has been used to bring
about the catastrophe, and arouse the emotion of pity and fear. So it is a pure
tragedy, truly cathartic in its effect.
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