Pawns

Iago's character amazes me. I cannot believe how he has his plan so precisely mapped out. Not only is he plotting against Othello and Cassio, but he is also using Roderigo as a pawn in his game. It seems like everything Iago anticipates to happen or wants to happen, happens. Everything is going according to his plan. I feel like it is only a matter of time before something goes wrong and he is found out. I predict that Desdemona will be the one to figure it out since Cassio puts too much faith in every body and Othello's mind will be clouded with either love, hatred, or something else. Its just a matter of time to find out.

Realistic? Really?

Throughout Shakespeare's Othello (only Acts I-III so far), the author constantly conveys the play in a realistic manner. On the spectrum from literalistic imitation of reality to stylized or surrealistic representation, Othello falls very close to the realistic end. The events that take place, for example Cassio getting drunk and starting a fight with Montano (II.iii.135-145), are very possible to happen in the real world both in the time of Shakespeare and in our world today. Portraying the play like it was something that was (and still is to an extent) very possible to happen in real life enables the audience to relate to the events in the play. Desdemona's going behind her father's back and marrying Othello without his consent (I.i.165) has been a reoccurring event both in literature and in life. Anne Boleyn was secretly betrothed to Lord Henry Percy without her parents' knowledge before she was instructed to make her move on the king. Also, Iago's jealousy of Cassio and plotting to place himself in a higher position is a common theme that most of the audience can relate to by being a common human feeling. Since Shakespeare made Othello so relatable to life, his play is definitely on the realistic end of the spectrum.