ELIT 17 Class 12

AGENDARecitation 1Lecture:

Essay #1MLA format

Lecture: The Tragedy; OthelloDiscussion: Othello

Recitations

HOW TO WRITE A RESPONSE TO LITERATURE

Adapted from a handout from The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Interpretations of fiction are generally opinions, but not all opinions are equal.

A good, valid, and interesting interpretation will do the following:

avoid the obvious (in other words, it won’t argue a conclusion that most readers could reach on their own from a general knowledge of the story)

support its main points with strong textual evidence from the story and/or secondary sources.

use careful reasoning to explain how that evidence relates to the main points of the interpretation.

Choose the pieces of evidence you’ll be able to say the most about. Readers tend to be more dazzled with your interpretations of evidence than with a lot of quotes from the book.

Select the details that will allow you to show off your own reasoning skills and allow you to help the reader see the story in a way he or she may not have seen it before.

Select your evidence Skim back over the play and make a more

comprehensive list of the details that relate to your point.

Select the facts which bear the closest relation to your thesis statement.

• Now, go back to your working thesis and refine it so that it reflects your new understanding of your topic. This step and the previous step (selecting evidence) are actually best done at the same time, since selecting your evidence and defining the focus of your paper depend upon each other

Refine your thesis

• Remember this exercise?Revise the phrase for the prompt you

have chosen: “This play shows ______________________.

This is important because____________________.”

Once you have a clear thesis, go back to your list of selected evidence and group all the similar details together. The ideas that tie these clusters of evidence together can then become the claims that you’ll make in your paper.

Keep in mind that your claims should not only relate to all the evidence but also clearly support your thesis. Once you’re satisfied with the way you’ve grouped your evidence and with the way that your claims relate to your thesis, you can begin to consider the most logical way to organize each of those claims.

Organize your evidence

Avoid the temptation to load your paper with evidence from your story. Each time you use a specific reference to your story, be sure to explain the significance of that evidence in your own words.

To get your readers’ interest, draw their attention to elements of the story that they wouldn’t necessarily notice or understand on their own.

If you are quoting passages without interpreting them, you’re not demonstrating your reasoning skills or helping the reader. In most cases, interpreting your evidence merely involves putting into your paper what is already in your head.

Interpret your evidence

Keep in Mind

Don't forget to consider the scope of your project: What can you reasonably cover in a paper of 3 to 6 pages?

Eliminate wordiness and repetition to ensure that you have room to make all of your points.

See me if you are lost or confused!

MLA Formatting Review: Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xAc4yZ8VSA

Questions

Shakespearean TragedyThe Substance of a Tragedy - from A.C. Bradley

The Notion of Tragedy

Tragedy is an imitation of action. It is serious, complete and of a certain magnitude. It treats of events which are pitiful and terrible and concerns the reversal from good fortune to bad of a great man who, by reason of some weakness or defect of character, is thus the cause of his own downfall. Because this man is great, either by birth or position, his downfall seems more terrible than if he were an ordinary man; it has also far-reaching effects in the lives of others. Because morally he is a man like ourselves- neither eminently virtuous nor viciously depraved- h is misfortune arouses in us the emotion of fear. Because his downfall is partly his own fault, and because it seems to be far out of proportion to the evil of his actions, we experience a feeling of pity for him. Through our sympathies with this tragic hero we undergo a catharsis or purgation of the emotions. Taken from Aristotle’s Poetics:

Tragedy: a drama that depicts serious and important events that cause suffering and distress, as well as an unhappy ending for the protagonist

The TragedyConcerned primarily with one personEssentially a tale of suffering and calamity leading to deathThe suffering and calamity are exceptional. They befall a significant person.They are also, as a rule, unexpected, and contrasted with previous happiness and/or glory.Attended by tragic pity.When he falls suddenly from the height of earthly greatness to the dust, his fall produces a sense of contrast, of the powerlessness of man, and of the omnipotence - perhaps the caprice - of Fortune or Fate.

The Tragic Flaw

The center of the tragedy may be said to lie in action issuing from a major character flaw or an action issuing from ignorance or error:

a) abnormal conditions of mindb) The supernaturalc) A chance or accidentThe action can be defined as conflict:

a) Between two personsb) Between two passions or tendencies, ideas,

principles, or forces.c) In the hero’s mind or soul

Tragic flaw-a fault or error of the protagonist which usually leads to his/her downfall or death

Aristotle’s Tragic Hero1. The tragic hero is a character of noble stature and has greatness.  This should

be readily evident in the play.  The character must occupy a "high" status position but must ALSO embody nobility and virtue as part of his/her innate character.

2. Though the tragic hero is pre-eminently great, he/she is not perfect.  Otherwise, the rest of us--mere mortals--would be unable to identify with the tragic hero.  We should see in him or her someone who is essentially like us, although perhaps elevated to a higher position in society.

3. The hero's downfall, therefore, is partially her/his own fault, the result of free choice, not of accident or villainy or some overriding, malignant fate.  In fact, the tragedy is usually triggered by some error of judgment or some character flaw that contributes to the hero's lack of perfection noted above.   This error of judgment or character flaw is known as hamartia and is usually translated as "tragic flaw" (although some scholars argue that this is a mistranslation).  Often the character's hamartia involves hubris (which is defined as a sort of arrogant pride or over-confidence).

4. The hero's misfortune is not wholly deserved. The punishment exceeds the crime.

5. The fall is not pure loss. There is some increase in awareness, some gain in self-knowledge, some discovery on the part of the tragic hero.

6. Though it arouses solemn emotion, tragedy does not leave its audience in a state of depression.  Aristotle argues that one function of tragedy is to arouse the "unhealthy" emotions of pity and fear and through a catharsis (which comes from watching the tragic hero's terrible fate) cleanse us of those emotions.   It might be worth noting here that Greek drama was not considered "entertainment," pure and simple; it had a communal function--to contribute to the good health of the community.  This is why dramatic performances were a part of religious festivals and community celebrations.

Aristotle’s Tragic Hero

From Aristotle’s Poetics

Shakespeare’s TragedyA drama of a significant person who, because of a flaw in character or in action, experiences a fall that leads to suffering and death; the events of the drama produce pity and fear in the audience.Drama: This means there is action involving a number of people interacting on a stage.

Shakespeare’s Tragic Hero

Significant Person: this is usually a king or prince, or a person of high standing in the community. More than this, the person is significant in that he is noted for being noble in character in some way that raises him above ordinary people.A Flaw: often, there is a serious problem or imperfection or predisposition in character that causes the hero to err in his or her actions; however, there are instances when the flaw is a coincidental action. The tragic hero is generally responsible for his actions and for his own death. The very character trait that makes the person exceptional may be also his flaw.

Shakespearean TragedyA Fall: the tragic hero “falls” physically to his death, but also falls in the sense of not realizing his true potential. There is a sense of waste at the end of the drama, of the person not having achieved what he or she should have achieved.Pity and Fear- these are emotions instilled in the audience. The audience identifies with the hero (we put ourselves in the hero’s shoes) and we thus feel pity for the hero during the fall. The audience also fears that such disasters can happen to us if we are not careful enough in real life.

More Terms Associated with Tragedy

1. Mimesis- representation or imitation of the real world in art and literature2. Anagnorisis- moment of critical discovery3. Catharsis- relief or purging 4. Opsis- visual elements5. Hamartia- a mistake, or taking a flawed path6. Hubris- pride, arrogance, out of touch with reality7. Mythos- myth- story, the plot8. Lexis- diction; language concerning vocabulary9. Peripeteia- a sudden reversal of fortune or change in circumstances10. Nemesis- arch-enemy11. Ethos- the moral element in dramatic literature that determines a

character's action rather than his or her thought or emotion.12. Melos-the succession of musical tones constituting a melody

The Tragedy of OthelloOthello is one of Shakespeare's four great tragedies (the others are Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth). Othello is unique among Shakespeare's great tragedies. Unlike Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth, which are set against a backdrop of affairs of state and which reverberate with suggestions of universal human concerns, Othello is set in a private world and focuses on the passions and personal lives of its major figures.

Othello's swift descent into jealousy and rage and Iago's dazzling display of villainy have long fascinated students and critics of the play. The relationship between these characters is another unusual feature of Othello. With two such prominent characters so closely associated, determining which is the central figure in the play and which bears the greater responsibility for the tragedy is difficult.

The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice is believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story Un Capitano Moro ("A Moorish Captain") by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565.

The title-page of the first quarto, published in 1622, states that the play “hath beene diuerse times acted at the Globe, and at the Black-Friers, by his Maiesties seruants.”

Othello was played at court by the King’s Men on 1 November 1604. The play was given in Oxford in 1610. The title role was originally played by Richard Burbage, with Joseph Taylor as Iago.

Othello was included among the plays in the First Folio of Shakespeare's collected plays. However, the version in the Folio is rather different in length, and in wording: The Folio play has about 160 lines that do not appear in the Quarto.

The main reason behind Othello’s ability to withstand the changes in popular taste is that Shakespeare used universal human themes in the play. Racism, jealousy and love are feelings that persist in human society. Since these topics are the crux of the storyline in Othello, the play’s appeal remains strong. Today’s audiences still find Othello relevant. It is the ability of a great piece of literature to move audiences that makes it popular.

In Groups

Discuss your answers to the homework questions

Othello Acts 1, 2, and 3A brief summary?

On a street in Venice, there is an argument between Roderigo, a nobleman, and Iago, a Captain in the defense forces.

Roderigo, in love with the noble lady Desdemona, has paid large sums of money to Iago, on the understanding that Iago would give her gifts from him and praise him to her. Roderigo hopes to win Desdemona's love and marry her.

However, they now have news that Desdemona has left the house of her father, Brabantio, a Senator, and eloped with Othello, a Moor (an African) who is a General in the defense forces.

1. How does Shakespeare present the world of Venice in the first act, and how does he construct the interactions of his central characters (Iago, Othello, and Desdemona) with that Venetian world and with each other. How are these interactions complicated by the fact that Othello is a Moor (and what exactly does that mean?) and that Desdemona is a young woman?

BRABANTIO What is the reason of this terrible summons?What is the matter there?RODERIGO Signior, is all your family within?IAGO Are your doors locked?BRABANTIO Why, wherefore ask you this?IAGO Zounds, sir, you’re robbed. For shame, put on your gown!Your heart is burst. You have lost half your soul.Even now, now, very now, an old black ramIs tupping your white ewe. Arise, arise!Awake the snorting citizens with the bell,Or else the devil will make a grandsire of you.Arise, I say!

Brabantio, Roderigo, and Iago

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfaVgOJHzpQ&list=PL135A41AF3B965ABF&index=2

Beginning to 2:20

Kenneth Branagh as Iago

(1995)

Act 1, Scene 1, Lines 85 -161

Othello’s Speech to the Duke

Her father loved me, oft invited me,Still questioned me the story of my lifeFrom year to year—the battles, sieges, fortunesThat I have passed.I ran it through, even from my boyish daysTo th’ very moment that he bade me tell it,Wherein I spoke of most disastrous chances:Of moving accidents by flood and field,Of hairbreadth ’scapes i’ th’ imminent deadly breach,

Of being taken by the insolent foeAnd sold to slavery, of my redemption thence,And portance in my traveler’s history,Wherein of antres vast and deserts idle,Rough quarries, rocks and hills whose heads touch heaven,

It was my hint to speak—such was my process—And of the cannibals that each other eat,The Anthropophagi, and men whose headsDo grow beneath their shoulders. These things to hearWould Desdemona seriously incline.But still the house affairs would draw her thence, Which ever as she could with haste dispatchShe’d come again, and with a greedy earDevour up my discourse.[…]She loved me for the dangers I had passed,And I loved her that she did pity them.This only is the witchcraft I have used.Here comes the lady. Let her witness it.

Orson Welles as Othello (1952)

Act 1, Scene 3, Lines 91-111 and Act 1, Scene 3, Lines 149-196

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHJjZ9vENzo

Questions

2. What sort of person is Iago, as he appears in act 1? Are you satisfied by the reasons he gives for hating Othello? What is Iago's relationship with Roderigo? Is he a trickster character? Why or why not?

RODERIGO Thou toldst me thou didst hold him in thy hate.IAGO Despise meIf I do not. Three great ones of the city,In personal suit to make me his lieutenant,Off-capped to him; and, by the faith of man,I know my price, I am worth no worse a place.But he, as loving his own pride and purposes,Evades them with a bombast circumstance,Horribly stuffed with epithets of war,And in conclusion,Nonsuits my mediators. For “Certes,” says he,“I have already chose my officer.”And what was he?Forsooth, a great arithmetician,One Michael Cassio, a Florentine,

Act 1, Scene 1, Lines 7-21

I hate the Moor,And it is thought abroad that ’twixt my sheets’Has done my office. I know not if ’t be true,But I, for mere suspicion in that kind,Will do as if for surety. (1.2. 429-434)

Questions3. What more do we learn about the nature of Iago

in act 2? What is the effect of having him share his thoughts and plans with us through his soliloquies? Pay attention to the language used in Iago's soliloquies. What sorts of descriptive language does he use? How does it contribute to the picture of Iago that Shakespeare is drawing?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ry5tPr1fJqo

Director: Jonathan MillerWriter: William Shakespeare (play)Stars: Anthony Pedley, Bob Hoskins, Geoffrey Chater

BBC Production for Television: Othello 1981

Iago’s Soliloquy: Act 2, Scene1, Lines 308-334

That Cassio loves her, I do well believe ’t.That she loves him, ’tis apt and of great credit.The Moor, howbeit that I endure him not,Is of a constant, loving, noble nature,And I dare think he’ll prove to DesdemonaA most dear husband. Now, I do love her too,Not out of absolute lust (though peradventureI stand accountant for as great a sin)But partly led to diet my revengeFor that I do suspect the lusty MoorHath leaped into my seat—the thought whereofDoth, like a poisonous mineral, gnaw my inwards,And nothing can or shall content my soul

Till I am evened with him, wife for wife,Or, failing so, yet that I put the MoorAt least into a jealousy so strongThat judgment cannot cure. Which thing to do,If this poor trash of Venice, whom I traceFor his quick hunting, stand the putting on,I’ll have our Michael Cassio on the hip,Abuse him to the Moor in the garb(For I fear Cassio with my nightcap too),Make the Moor thank me, love me, and reward meFor making him egregiously an assAnd practicing upon his peace and quietEven to madness. ’Tis here, but yet confused.Knavery’s plain face is never seen till used.

Questions4. At the beginning of 3.3 Othello is

completely in love with Desdemona. By the end of that scene, 480 lines later, Othello is ready to murder her for having an affair with Cassio. How have we gone from the first position to the second position so quickly? How does Iago plant the idea of Desdemona's infidelity in Othello's mind, and how does he make it grow?

Questions

5. What sort of person is Emilia, and what seems to be the nature of her relationship with her husband Iago? How does Desdemona's handkerchief come into play within that relationship between Emilia and Iago?

Read Othello Acts 4-5Post #12 1. How does the handkerchief function in act 4? Why is the handkerchief so important

to Othello?2. How is Othello changing in act 4? What is the effect of his public humiliation of

Desdemona by slapping her?3. What is the nature of the relationship between Emilia and Desdemona? What

especially is the effect of 4.3, in which we get an extended scene between these two women alone? How effective is Shakespeare in portraying this private world of women?

4. How does Othello approach the killing of Desdemona? What does he think he is doing, and why?

5. What is the effect of having Emilia play such an important role after the murder? Why is she now standing up to Othello and her husband? What is her reward?

6. Does Othello justify his killing of Desdemona? What is he doing in his last long speech?