Towards the end of the play, Desdemona's goodness increasingly becomes represented by long-suffering martyrdom, perceived as a longstanding sign of acceptable femininity. In place of the headstrong heroine of the opening acts, Desdemona, increasingly stripped of agency, endures her husband's anger and humiliations – even his striking her in public – and eventually, while dying, tries to exonerate him for his murder of her. [115] Others perceive Desdemona's reaction as one of strength and dignity, not passivity. [116] Watts, Cedric "Othello's Magical Handkerchief" in Sutherland, John and Watts, Cedric (eds.) "Henry V, War Criminal? & Other Shakespeare Puzzles" Oxford World's Classics series, Oxford University Press, 2000, pp.76-84 at pp.78-79 Wells, Stanley (ed.) "Oxford Shakespeare Topics: Shakespeare in the Theatre– An Anthology of Criticism", Oxford University Press, 2000, pp.112–113. Siemon, James "Making Ambition Virtue" in Orlin, Lena Cowen (ed.) "Othello - The State of Play" The Arden Shakespeare, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2014, pp.177-202 at p.178 and p.198n.

Cathy Downes' 2001 production at the Court Theatre in Christchurch, New Zealand made effective use of a trope (which had had racist overtones when used by earlier European directors) of Othello reverting to his native culture: setting the action in the Waikato Land Wars, Othello was a British-adopted general leading forces against his own people, until finally bursting into a "terrifying wero" (a warrior's challenge) before exacting his revenge on Desdemona. [242] Aphra Behn's 1688 novel Oroonoko, and its subsequent dramatisation by Thomas Southerne, reset Othello's enslavement in the context of the then-current Atlantic triangle. [327] Nina Dunn is an award-winning video and projection designer who has created work for a wide range of shows internationally, working across theatre, opera, dance, musical theatre, immersive, fashion, live events and public art. Iago is ecstatic when Emilia gives him the handkerchief, which he plants in Cassio’s room as “evidence” of his affair with Desdemona. When Othello demands “ocular proof” (III.iii. 365) that his wife is unfaithful, Iago says that he has seen Cassio “wipe his beard” (III.iii. 444) with Desdemona’s handkerchief—the first gift Othello ever gave her. Othello vows to take vengeance on his wife and on Cassio, and Iago vows that he will help him. When Othello sees Desdemona later that evening, he demands the handkerchief of her, but she tells him that she does not have it with her and attempts to change the subject by continuing her suit on Cassio’s behalf. This drives Othello into a further rage, and he storms out. Later, Cassio comes onstage, wondering about the handkerchief he has just found in his chamber. He is greeted by Bianca, a prostitute, whom he asks to take the handkerchief and copy its embroidery for him. Iago persuades Othello to be suspicious of Cassio and Desdemona's relationship. When Desdemona drops a handkerchief (the first gift given to her by Othello), Emilia finds it and gives it to Iago at his request, unaware of what he plans to do with it. Othello appears and, then being convinced by Iago of his wife's unfaithfulness with his captain, vows with Iago for the death of Desdemona and Cassio, after which he makes Iago his lieutenant.The first professional performances of the play in North America are likely to have been those of the Hallam Company: Robert Upton ( William Hallam's advance man) performed Othello at a makeshift theatre in New York on 26 December 1751; and religious objections to theatre led the Hallam Company to perform Othello as a series of "moral dialogues" at Rhode Island in 1761. [201] 19th century [ edit ]

Watson, Robert N. "Tragedy" in Braunmuller, A. R. and Hattaway, Michael (eds.) "The Cambridge Companion to English Renaissance Drama" Second Edition, Cambridge University Press, 2003, pp.292-343 at p.329. Taylor, Gary "Shakespeare Plays on Renaissance Stages" in Wells, Stanley and Stanton, Sarah (eds.) "The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare on Stage", Cambridge University Press, 2002, pp.1–20 at p.4. Thompson and Honigmann, 2016, pp.13-14. The complete novella appears, in different translations, in Thompson and Honigmann, 2016 at pp.377-396 and in Neill, 2006, pp.434-444. Robert Smallwood writing for Shakespeare Quarterly in 1990, quoted by Welles, 2000, pp.307-313 at p.311. In addition to his theatrical performances noted above, the play was also central to Konstantin Stanislavski's writings, and to the development of his " system". In particular, the part of Othello is a main subject of his book Creating a Role. [328] In it, the characters of Tortzov, the director, and Kostya, the young actor - both partly autobiographical - rehearse the role of Othello in the opening act. [329]Othello and Iago are two of the five longest parts in the Shakespeare canon. At 1097 lines, Iago's is the larger of the two: only Hamlet (in Hamlet) and Richard (in Richard III) are longer. [138] Genre [ edit ] Orgel, Stephen "Introduction" in Sutherland, John and Watts, Cedric (eds.) "Henry V, War Criminal? & Other Shakespeare Puzzles" Oxford World's Classics series, Oxford University Press, 2000, pp.ix-xvi at p.xi. Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon. Scholars believe that he died on his fifty-second birthday, coinciding with St George’s Day. William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "The Bard"). His surviving works consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language, and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

M. R. Ridley in 1958, rejecting Walker's argument and accepting Greg's, argued that Q had greater authority and rejected F's changes as "memorial contamination" from a theatre prompt book or as "sophistications" by the editors of F. [54]

The character's own motives are never made clear, because Iago himself expresses too many motives: [144] Iago is an expert at manipulating the distance between characters, isolating his victims so that they fall prey to their own obsessions. At the same time, Iago, of necessity always standing apart, falls prey to his own obsession with revenge. The characters cannot be islands, the play seems to say: self-isolation as an act of self-preservation leads ultimately to self-destruction. Such self-isolation leads to the deaths of Roderigo, Iago, Othello, and even Emilia. Jealousy Shakespeare's source story in Cinthio takes place entirely in the long time scheme: Shakespeare appears to have introduced the shorter time scheme to increase dramatic tension, while also introducing moments where Iago's plot could fall apart – for example if Emilia had given an honest answer to Desdemona's "Where should I lose that handkerchief?" [177] or if Roderigo had chosen to denounce Iago. [178]