Macbeth and Othello Essay - 2866 Words

Macbeth and Othello â€Å"Upon my head they plac’d a fruitless crown And put a barren sceptre in my gripe, Thence to be wrench’d with an unlineal hand, No son of mine succeeding† (Macbeth, III.i.62) â€Å"Renew I could not like the moon† (Timon of Athens, IV.iii.68) What distinguishes Macbeth and Othello from other tragedies is the fact that their protagonists are neither fathers nor sons, mothers nor daughters. We know nothing of Macbeth or Othello’s parents, and neither of them has children. Lady Macbeth makes a passing reference to having once â€Å"given suck† and to â€Å"how tender ‘tis to love the babe that milks [her]† but never returns to the subject, and in any case, what remains impressed in one’s memory is the line that†¦show more content†¦Similarly, Desdemona is very distinctly no longer her father’s daughter: she has severed ties with him and no longer feels obliged to associate herself with him or define herself in terms of him, to the point where she claims she â€Å"would not [in her father’s house] reside to put [her] father in impatient thoughts by being in his eye† (I.iii.241). She is only â€Å"hitherto [his] daughter† (183). It is also interestin g to note that the only mention of her mother is made in this passage—we have a brief glimpse of her mother â€Å"preferring [Brabantio] before her father† (186) before she vanishes again into obscurity. That said, what is much more striking is Othello’s complete lack of parentage. After all, one might argue that in Desdemona’s case cutting herself off from her father is acknowledging that she has one. In the case of Othello, there is no mention of a father, a mother, not even a glimpse of a past family. We hear of his past conquests and victories, the battles in which he has fought and the seas he has sailed, but there is no personal history or any sense that someone came before Othello, that he is connected to anything less ephemeral than a list of battles. â€Å"The story of [his] life from year to year† is depicted in terms of â€Å"battles, sieges, fortunes that [he has] pass’d† rather than parentage (I.iii.128). The same holds true forShow MoreRelatedSimilarities Between Macbeth And Othello1075 Words   |  5 Pagessimilarities. Mainly, Macbeth in Macbeth and Othello in Othello are ultimately the exact same person, despite being different peo ple in different environments. Furthermore, Lady Macbeth and Iago are similar in relation to the two main characters. First off, it is paramount to explore the secondary character’s personalities to emphasize their similarities. Shakespeare depicts Iago as having an insatiable lust for power. He uses Desdemona, oblivious to his plan, to trick Othello to ultimately have whatRead MoreEssay on Comparison: Macbeth and Othello1908 Words   |  8 PagesShakespeare presents the tragedies, Macbeth and Othello as plays filled with plots driven by manipulation. Shakespeare uses the power of language in the characters Iago and Lady Macbeth by using influential rhetoric to sway those around them and also lead to the deadly downfall of Othello and Macbeth. In both of their cases, Shakespeare reveals the power of power because when things do not go according to plan, their own downfall is inevitable as well. In Macbeth, Lady Macbeth’s actions show that womenRead MoreHuman Weakness in Macbeth and Othello2915 Words   |  12 PagesMacbeth is one of the best known plays written by Shakespeare in the 17th century, Jacobean period. It was the period where the belief in supernatural was greatly held and king James I himself, the author of Divine rights of king adhered in witchcraft and openly practiced the idea of kings being God’s representatives on earth, so to even complain about them was a sin. The tragic hero, brave and valiant Macbeth had all the required characteristics of the ideal Scottish soldier; valorous and gallantRead MoreEssay about Comparing Macbeth and Othello1019 Words   |  5 PagesComparing Macbeth and Othello A masterful playwright and poet named William Shakespeare in the Seventeenth century wrote both the tragedies Macbeth and Othello. In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the idea of one character becoming both victim and villain is introduced. Macbeth falls prey to others’ deception, and is supplanted with greed and hate when three witches trick him. When told that he is going to be King of Scotland, Macbeth does whatever he can to insure his property. In Macbeth’sRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Macbeth And Othello1417 Words   |  6 PagesHello, I’m William Shakespeare, the famous and historically known playwright of plays such as Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Othello and Macbeth. Today I will be talking to you all about two of my plays, Othello and Macbeth. I will also be talking to you all about the social, political and historical themes in my plays and my intent for writing them. I wrote Macbeth and Othello during the reign of King James the 1st of England. Events that were occurring during that time period and the feeling of theRead MoreWhat Are The Similarities Between Macbeth And Othello1267 Words   |  6 PagesWilliam Shakespeare is the playwright in which the works of Macbeth and Othello are written . These works are both written in Shakespeares signature style of tragedy where a character experiences a reversal of fortune at the hands of their own actions. A true tragic hero is a character who is admired while being flawed; has both good and evil characteristics; experiences a hamartia, a moral mistake or ignorant error; is given an opportunity for redemption yet continues refusing; experiences theRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Macbeth And Othello1984 Words   |  8 PagesExplore the ways in which characters emotions are manipulated in Macbeth and Othello The way that Shakespeare implements manipulation into Othello and Macbeth leads to significant emotional change in the majority of characters in both plays. This leads to protagonists’ eventual downfall in many cases, due to the language and imagery that Shakespeare creates in the tragedies. The schemists tend to exploit weaknesses in the victims, such as ambitions. This can be witnessed by the audience at a veryRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Macbeth And Othello 2034 Words   |  9 Pages A clear view of the relationships established in Macbeth and Othello can be seen through the inferior partner s views on the other person in the relationship, and also their balance of power. Lady Macbeth rarely addresses Macbeth with his real name, but instead with titles such as Great Glamis! and Worthy Cawdor - referring to his positions. However Iago refers to Othello with titles such as The Moorship, which is a play on Lordship - including a reference to his race. The useRead More Comparing Macbeth, Hamlet, and Othello Essay2768 Words   |  12 PagesComparing Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Hamlet, and Othello  Ã‚      Shakespeare’s tragedies were extremely popular in Elizabethan times and today. A tragedy is described as â€Å"a sad, serious story or play, usually ending with the death of the hero. A disastrous, fatal or dreadful event.† By comparing the three plays, Macbeth, Hamlet and Othello it is possible to see how he has used techniques appropriate to tragedy and how he applied them to his plays. The opening of the play is significant because itRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Macbeth Vs. Othello1006 Words   |  5 PagesNadia Chilcoat Macbeth vs. Othello Period: â…š 12/12/2014 Macbeth vs. Othello Ancient Greeks believed that a tragic hero must be admirable but flawed, someone the audience can sympathize with, and someone capable of good and evil. The main character must also have a doctrine of free will, in which they are able to redeem themselves, but they continue to fall freely in a downward spiral from a position of superiority. The audience must also be able to