Emilia in Othello (Click the character infographic to download.) Desperate Housewife You'd be desperate and jaded too if you realized that monogramming "Mrs. Emilia Iago" on all your towels meant that... you were married to Iago. Because here's the thing: Emilia is actually a total sweetie. She's just trapped in a marriage to possibly the most malevolent Shakespearean villain ever. Older and more cynical than Desdemona, Emilia develops a close relationship to young Des. It's actually pretty aww-inspiring: Emilia and Desdemona bond over husband trouble. Emilia's super-bitter take on her married life with Iago contrasts with Desdemona's (temporarily) idealistic marriage to Othello. Emilia's one dishonest act towards Desdemona—stealing her special handkerchief—turns out to have devastating consequences. The loss of the handkerchief is what convinces Othello that Desdemona is guilty of infidelity, and Emilia's little theft ends up causing her friend's death (at least in part). But she redeems herself, or at least gives a good shot at trying.

It's Emilia who discovers the truth about Iago's plotting and reveals it to the world. She can't bring Desdemona back to life, but she does clear her friend's name. She ends up sacrificing her life so that Desdemona won't be remembered as a "whore." Iago kills Emilia as payback for unmasking him, but Emilia dies proud that she set the record straight. Breaking Up Is Hard to Do (When You're a Wife in 1604) Emilia's relationship with Iago really seems like a marriage made in hell. Iago constantly mocks and disrespects her. He never seems to offer her any affection, and he always talks trash about women in general. Despite this (or because of this— Stockholm Syndrome 's no joke) Emilia seems eager to please him. She steals Desdemona's handkerchief in the hope that Iago will appreciate her for once. "I nothing but to please his fantasy," she says as she does so (3.3.343). But her attempt to make the handkerchief hand-off a teasing, flirtatious interaction fails miserably: Iago grabs the handkerchief and tells her to go away.

Later, it seems like Emilia is aware of Iago's thirst for power and wishes she could gratify it. She asks Desdemona, "Who would not make her husband a cuckold to make him a monarch? I should venture purgatory for 't" (4.3.85-87). So Emilia ends up seeming like that horrible stereotype: the poor girl with no self-confidence who's stays with a total dirtbag because she craves affection. Emilia goes so far as to betray her friend for the love of her man. And yet, despite her submissiveness, Emilia's obvious bitterness boils over in a final scene during which she says that husbands are usually to blame when their wives cheat on them: EMILIA But I do think it is their husbands' faults If wives do fall. Say that they slack their duties, And pour our treasures into foreign laps; Or else break out in peevish jealousies, Throwing restraint upon us. Or say they strike us, Or scant our former having in despite. [...] The ills we do, their ills instruct us so.

(4.3.97-115) After all, men cheat on women all the time—why shouldn't women have an equal right to infidelity? Considering that this was written in the early 1600s, Emilia's monologue is about as close as we will get to a feminist manifesto. But like Shylock's "Hath not a Jew eyes" speech in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice , it's not perhaps the best argument for equality. Shylock argues that Jews are people, too—and so they have an equal right to revenge. Emilia argues that women are people, too—and so they should have an equal right to cheat on their spouses. These aren't the most uplifting messages. Throughout most of the play, Iago has the upper hand in his interactions with his wife. But the final scene is payback time for Emilia. Shakespeare scholar Harold Bloom points out that of all the people in the play, Emilia is the only one that Iago underestimates—and she's the only one who ultimately can bring Iago down. That's an interesting irony. Iago, who is so good at predicting and manipulating other people's behavior, only fails to understand one person...

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2108 Words | 5 Pages Love and Desdemona Essay ...bride Desdemona. In act one, scene three, Desdem the all the actsOthello, the central character of William Shakespeare's play is an excellent leader but a poor reasoner and foolish lover. The tragedy of `Othello' is largely due to Othello's personality and life experience. Othello believes himself to be loved and respected by everyone around him as most people refer to him as the "noble General Othello". Othello, after realizing his tragic mistake of murdering his innocent wife,... 2800 Words | 8 Pages Role of Desdemona Essay ...How do you interpret the character and role of Desdemona in Othello? If any character in Othello embodies goodness, it is Desdemona. In simple terms, she appears to be the antithesis of all the evil and malice that is represented by Iago. Yet she is not a completely ‘flat’ character – Shakespeare gives to her certain characteristics and human qualities that result in her being a far deeper and more interesting character. Much of the interest in her is owing to...

1057 Words | 3 Pages SparkNotes: Othello: Analysis of Major Characters Analysis of Major Characters Themes, Motifs & Symbols Othello Beginning with the opening lines of the play, Othello remains at a distance from much of the action that concerns and affects him. Roderigo and Iago refer ambiguously to a “he” or “him” for much of the first scene. When they begin to specify whom they are talking about, especially once they stand beneath Brabanzio’s window, they do so with racial epithets, not names. These include “the Moor” (I.i.57), “the thick-lips” (I.i.66), “an old black ram” (I.i.88), and “a Barbary horse” (I.i.113). Although Othello appears at the beginning of the second scene, we do not hear his name until well into Act I, scene iii (I.iii.48).

Later, Othello’s will be the last of the three ships to arrive at Cyprus in Act II, scene i; Othello will stand apart while Cassio and Iago supposedly discuss Desdemona in Act IV, scene i; and Othello will assume that Cassio is dead without being present when the fight takes place in Act V, scene i. Othello’s status as an outsider may be the reason he is such easy prey for Iago. Although Othello is a cultural and racial outsider in Venice, his skill as a soldier and leader is nevertheless valuable and necessary to the state, and he is an integral part of Venetian civic society. He is in great demand by the duke and senate, as evidenced by Cassio’s comment that the senate “sent about three several quests” to look for Othello (I.ii.46). The Venetian government trusts Othello enough to put him in full martial and political command of Cyprus; indeed, in his dying speech, Othello reminds the Venetians of the “service” he has done their state (V.ii.348).

Those who consider Othello their social and civic peer, such as Desdemona and Brabanzio, nevertheless seem drawn to him because of his exotic qualities. Othello admits as much when he tells the duke about his friendship with Brabanzio. He says, -“[Desdemona’s] father loved me, oft invited me, / Still questioned me the story of my life / From year to year” (I.iii.127–129). -Othello is also able to captivate his peers with his speech. The duke’s reply to Othello’s speech about how he wooed Desdemona with his tales of adventure is: “I think this tale would win my daughter too” (I.iii.170). Othello sometimes makes a point of presenting himself as an outsider, whether because he recognizes his exotic appeal or because he is self-conscious of and defensive about his difference from other Venetians. For example, in spite of his obvious eloquence in Act I, scene iii, he protests, “Rude am I in my speech, / And little blessed with the soft phrase of peace” (I.iii.81–82).

While Othello is never rude in his speech, he does allow his eloquence to suffer as he is put under increasing strain by Iago’s plots. In the final moments of the play, Othello regains his composure and, once again, seduces both his onstage and offstage audiences with his words. The speech that precedes his suicide is a tale that could woo almost anyone. It is the tension between Othello’s victimization at the hands of a foreign culture and his own willingness to torment himself that makes him a tragic figure rather than simply Iago’s ridiculous puppet. Iago Possibly the most heinous villain in Shakespeare, Iago is fascinating for his most terrible characteristic: his utter lack of convincing motivation for his actions. In the first scene, he claims to be angry at Othello for having passed him over for the position of lieutenant (I.i. 7–32). At the end of Act I, scene iii, Iago says he thinks Othello may have slept with his wife, Emilia: “It is thought abroad that ’twixt my sheets / He has done my office” (I.iii.369–370).

Iago mentions this suspicion again at the end of Act II, scene i, explaining that he lusts after Desdemona because he wants to get even with Othello “wife for wife” (II.i.286). None of these claims seems to adequately explain Iago’s deep hatred of Othello, and Iago’s lack of motivation—or his inability or unwillingness to express his true motivation—makes his actions all the more terrifying. He is willing to take revenge on anyone—Othello, Desdemona, Cassio, Roderigo, even Emilia—at the slightest provocation and enjoys the pain and damage he causes. Iago is often funny, especially in his scenes with the foolish Roderigo, which serve as a showcase of Iago’s manipulative -abilities. He seems almost to wink at the audience as he revels in his own skill. As entertained spectators, we find ourselves on Iago’s side when he is with Roderigo, but the interactions between the two also reveal a streak of cowardice in Iago—a cowardice that becomes manifest in the final scene, when Iago kills his own wife (V.ii.231–242).

Iago’s murder of Emilia could also stem from the general hatred of women that he displays. Some readers have suggested that Iago’s true, underlying motive for persecuting Othello is his homosexual love for the general. He certainly seems to take great pleasure in preventing Othello from enjoying marital happiness, and he expresses his love for Othello frequently and effusively. It is Iago’s talent for understanding and manipulating the desires of those around him that makes him both a powerful and a compelling figure. Iago is able to take the handkerchief from Emilia and know that he can deflect her questions; he is able to tell Othello of the handkerchief and know that Othello will not doubt him; he is able to tell the audience, “And what’s he then that says I play the villain,” and know that it will laugh as though he were a clown (II.iii.310). Though the most inveterate liar, Iago inspires all of the play’s characters the trait that is most lethal to Othello: trust. Desdemona Desdemona is a more plausible, well-rounded figure than much criticism has given her credit for.

Arguments that see Desdemona as stereotypically weak and submissive ignore the conviction and authority of her first speech (“My noble father, / I do perceive here a divided duty” [I.iii.179–180]) and her terse fury after Othello strikes her (“I have not deserved this” [IV.i.236]). Similarly, critics who argue that Desdemona’s slightly bizarre bawdy jesting with Iago in Act II, scene i, is either an interpolation not written by Shakespeare or a mere vulgarity ignore the fact that Desdemona is young, sexual, and recently married. She later displays the same chiding, almost mischievous wit in Act III, scene iii, lines 61–84, when she attempts to persuade Othello to forgive Cassio. Desdemona is at times a submissive character, most notably in her willingness to take credit for her own murder. In response to Emilia’s question, “O, who hath done this deed?” Desdemona’s final words are, “Nobody, I myself. Farewell. / Commend me to my kind lord. O, farewell” (V.ii.133–134).

The play, then, depicts Desdemona contradictorily as a self-effacing, faithful wife and as a bold, independent personality. This contradiction may be intentional, meant to portray the way Desdemona herself feels after defending her choice of marriage to her father in Act I, scene iii, and then almost immediately being put in the position of defending her fidelity to her husband. She begins the play as a supremely independent person, but midway through she must struggle against all odds to convince Othello that she is not too independent. The manner in which Desdemona is murdered—smothered by a pillow in a bed covered in her wedding sheets—is symbolic: she is literally suffocated beneath the demands put on her fidelity. Since her first lines, Desdemona has seemed capable of meeting or even rising above those demands. In the end, Othello stifles the speech that made Desdemona so powerful. Tragically, Desdemona is apparently aware of her imminent death. She, not Othello, asks Emilia to put her wedding sheets on the bed, and she asks Emilia to bury her in these sheets should she die first.

The last time we see Desdemona before she awakens to find Othello standing over her with murder in his eyes, she sings a song she learned from her mother’s maid: “She was in love; and he proved mad / And did forsake her. She had a song of willow. / . . . / And she died singing it. That song tonight / Will not go from my mind” (IV.iii.27–30). Like the audience, Desdemona seems able only to watch as her husband is driven insane with jealousy. Though she maintains to the end that she is “guiltless,” Desdemona also forgives her husband (V.ii.133). Her forgiveness of Othello may help the audience to forgive him as well. How to Cite This SparkNote Othello begins on a street in Venice, in the midst of an argument between Roderigo, a rich man, and Iago. Roderigo has been paying Iago to help him in his suit to Desdemona. But Roderigo has just learned that Desdemona has married Othello, a general whom Iago begrudgingly serves as ensign.

Iago says he hates Othello, who recently passed him over for the position of lieutenant in favor of the inexperienced soldier Michael Cassio. Unseen, Iago and Roderigo cry out to Brabanzio that his daughter Desdemona has been stolen by and married to Othello, the Moor. Brabanzio finds that his daughter is indeed missing, and he gathers some officers to find Othello. Not wanting his hatred of Othello to be known, Iago leaves Roderigo and hurries back to Othello before Brabanzio sees him. At Othello’s lodgings, Cassio arrives with an urgent message from the duke: Othello’s help is needed in the matter of the imminent Turkish invasion of Cyprus. Not long afterward, Brabanzio arrives with Roderigo and others, and accuses Othello of stealing his daughter by witchcraft. When he finds out that Othello is on his way to speak with the duke, -Brabanzio decides to go along and accuse Othello before the assembled senate. Brabanzio’s plan backfires. The duke and senate are very sympathetic toward Othello.

Given a chance to speak for himself, Othello explains that he wooed and won Desdemona not by witchcraft but with the stories of his adventures in travel and war. The duke finds Othello’s explanation convincing, and Desdemona herself enters at this point to defend her choice in marriage and to announce to her father that her allegiance is now to her husband. Brabanzio is frustrated, but acquiesces and allows the senate meeting to resume. The duke says that Othello must go to Cyprus to aid in the defense against the Turks, who are headed for the island. Desdemona insists that she accompany her husband on his trip, and preparations are made for them to depart that night. In Cyprus the following day, two gentlemen stand on the shore with Montano, the governor of Cyprus. A third gentleman arrives and reports that the Turkish fleet has been wrecked in a storm at sea. Cassio, whose ship did not suffer the same fate, arrives soon after, followed by a second ship carrying Iago, Roderigo, Desdemona, and Emilia, Iago’s wife. Once they have landed, Othello’s ship is sighted, and the group goes to the harbor.

As they wait for Othello, Cassio greets Desdemona by clasping her hand. Watching them, Iago tells the audience that he will use “as little a web as this” hand-holding to ensnare Cassio (II.i.169). Othello arrives, greets his wife, and announces that there will be reveling that evening to celebrate Cyprus’s safety from the Turks. Once everyone has left, Roderigo complains to Iago that he has no chance of breaking up Othello’s marriage. Iago assures Roderigo that as soon as Desdemona’s “blood is made dull with the act of sport,” she will lose interest in Othello and seek sexual satisfaction elsewhere (II.i.222). However, Iago warns that “elsewhere” will likely be with Cassio. Iago counsels Roderigo that he should cast Cassio into disgrace by starting a fight with Cassio at the evening’s revels. In a soliloquy, Iago explains to the audience that eliminating Cassio is the first crucial step in his plan to ruin Othello.

That night, Iago gets Cassio drunk and then sends Roderigo to start a fight with him. Apparently provoked by Roderigo, Cassio chases Roderigo across the stage. Governor Montano attempts to hold Cassio down, and Cassio stabs him. Iago sends Roderigo to raise alarm in the town. The alarm is rung, and Othello, who had left earlier with plans to consummate his marriage, soon arrives to still the commotion. When Othello demands to know who began the fight, Iago feigns reluctance to implicate his “friend” Cassio, but he ultimately tells the whole story. Othello then strips Cassio of his rank of lieutenant. Cassio is extremely upset, and he laments to Iago, once everyone else has gone, that his reputation has been ruined forever. Iago assures Cassio that he can get back into Othello’s good graces by using Desdemona as an intermediary. In a soliloquy, Iago tells us that he will frame Cassio and Desdemona as lovers to make -Othello jealous.

In an attempt at reconciliation, Cassio sends some musicians to play beneath Othello’s window. Othello, however, sends his clown to tell the musicians to go away. Hoping to arrange a meeting with Desdemona, Cassio asks the clown, a peasant who serves Othello, to send Emilia to him. After the clown departs, Iago passes by and tells Cassio that he will get Othello out of the way so that Cassio can speak privately with Desdemona. Othello, Iago, and a gentleman go to examine some of the town’s fortifications. Desdemona is quite sympathetic to Cassio’s request and promises that she will do everything she can to make Othello forgive his former lieutenant. As Cassio is about to leave, Othello and Iago return. Feeling uneasy, Cassio leaves without talking to Othello.

Othello inquires whether it was Cassio who just parted from his wife, and Iago, beginning to kindle Othello’s fire of jealousy, replies, “No, sure, I cannot think it, / That he would steal away so guilty-like, / Seeing your coming” (III.iii.37–39). Othello becomes upset and moody, and Iago furthers his goal of removing both Cassio and Othello by suggesting that Cassio and Desdemona are involved in an affair. Desdemona’s entreaties to Othello to reinstate Cassio as lieutenant add to Othello’s almost immediate conviction that his wife is unfaithful. After Othello’s conversation with Iago, Desdemona comes to call Othello to supper and finds him feeling unwell. She offers him her handkerchief to wrap around his head, but he finds it to be “[t]oo little” and lets it drop to the floor (III.iii.291). Desdemona and Othello go to dinner, and Emilia picks up the handkerchief, mentioning to the audience that Iago has always wanted her to steal it for him.

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.

Through Iago’s machinations, Othello becomes so consumed by jealousy that he falls into a trance and has a fit of epilepsy. As he writhes on the ground, Cassio comes by, and Iago tells him to come back in a few minutes to talk. Once Othello recovers, Iago tells him of the meeting he has planned with Cassio. He instructs Othello to hide nearby and watch as Iago extracts from Cassio the story of his affair with Desdemona. While Othello stands out of earshot, Iago pumps Cassio for information about Bianca, causing Cassio to laugh and confirm Othello’s suspicions. Bianca herself then enters with Desdemona’s handkerchief, reprimanding Cassio for making her copy out the embroidery of a love token given to him by another woman. When Desdemona enters with Lodovico and Lodovico subsequently gives Othello a letter from Venice calling him home and instating Cassio as his replacement, Othello goes over the edge, striking Desdemona and then storming out. That night, Othello accuses Desdemona of being a whore.

He ignores her protestations, seconded by Emilia, that she is innocent. Iago assures Desdemona that Othello is simply upset about matters of state. Later that night, however, Othello ominously tells Desdemona to wait for him in bed and to send Emilia away. Meanwhile, Iago assures the still-complaining Roderigo that everything is going as planned: in order to prevent Desdemona and Othello from leaving, Roderigo must kill Cassio. Then he will have a clear avenue to his love. Iago instructs Roderigo to ambush Cassio, but Roderigo misses his mark and Cassio wounds him instead. Iago wounds Cassio and runs away. When Othello hears Cassio’s cry, he assumes that Iago has killed Cassio as he said he would. Lodovico and Graziano enter to see what the commotion is about. Iago enters shortly thereafter and flies into a pretend rage as he “discovers” Cassio’s assailant Roderigo, whom he murders. Cassio is taken to have his wound dressed. Meanwhile, Othello stands over his sleeping wife in their bedchamber, preparing to kill her.

Desdemona wakes and attempts to plead with Othello. She asserts her innocence, but Othello smothers her. Emilia enters with the news that Roderigo is dead. Othello asks if Cassio is dead too and is mortified when Emilia says he is not. After crying out that she has been murdered, Desdemona changes her story before she dies, claiming that she has committed suicide. Emilia asks Othello what happened, and Othello tells her that he has killed Desdemona for her infidelity, which Iago brought to his attention. Montano, Graziano, and Iago come into the room. Iago attempts to silence Emilia, who realizes what Iago has done. At first, Othello insists that Iago has told the truth, citing the handkerchief as evidence. Once Emilia tells him how she found the handkerchief and gave it to Iago, Othello is crushed and begins to weep. He tries to kill Iago but is disarmed. Iago kills Emilia and flees, but he is caught by Lodovico and Montano, who return holding Iago captive.

They also bring Cassio, who is now in a chair because of his wound. Othello wounds Iago and is disarmed. Lodovico tells Othello that he must come with them back to Venice to be tried. Othello makes a speech about how he would like to be remembered, then kills himself with a sword he had hidden on his person. The play closes with a speech by Lodovico. He gives Othello’s house and goods to Graziano and orders that Iago be executed. Othello Navigator: Characters: Emilia, Iago's wife, Desdemona's waiting gentlewoman Emilia, Iago's wife, Desdemona's waiting gentlewoman After it's decided that Desdemona will go to Cyprus, too, but that Othello must leave immediately, he instructs Iago to stay behind for a day in order to carry papers from the Senate and also to escort Desdemona to Cyprus. He says, "Honest Iago, / My Desdemona must I leave to thee: / I prithee, let thy wife attend on her" (1.3.294-296) .

Othello's request is as a good as a command and Emilia becomes Desdemona's companion and servant. At the end of the scene, in Iago's soliloquy, he says "it is thought abroad, that 'twixt my sheets / He has done my office" (1.3.387-388) . "Abroad" means "everywhere," and Iago's "office" (function) between his sheets is to have sex with his wife. Iago is saying that everyone thinks that Othello is having an affair with Iago's wife. The rest of the play makes it clear that none of this is true; Othello and Iago's wife are not even vaguely interested in one another, and no one thinks otherwise. [ Scene Summary ] When Emilia arrives in Cyprus with Desdemona, Cassio welcomes her and then says to Iago, "Let it not gall your patience, good Iago, / That I extend my manners; 'tis my breeding / That gives me this bold show of courtesy" (2.1.97-99) . Whereupon Cassio kisses Emilia.

Emilia doesn't say anything to Cassio, but if she's shocked, she recovers enough to join in some joking between Desdemona and Iago. At the end of the scene, in Iago's soliloquy, he repeats his suspicion that Emilia is having an affair with Othello, and also says, "I fear Cassio with my night-cap too" (2.1.307) . [ Scene Summary ] After he persuades Cassio to appeal to Desdemona to get his job back, Iago plans to convince Othello that Desdemona is doing it because she is having an affair with Cassio. Fleshing out his plans, he says, "My wife must move for Cassio to her mistress -- / I'll set her on" (2.3.383-384) . However, there isn't a scene in which Iago tells Emilia to plead Cassio's case to Desdemona, and when we next see Emilia she's telling Cassio that Desdemona is already pleading his case to Othello.

[ Scene Summary ] After Cassio has lost his job, he asks to speak to Emilia, so that she will arrange a meeting with Desdemona. When Emilia appears she says, full of sympathy and reassurance, "Good morrow, good Lieutenant: I am sorry / For your displeasure; but all will sure be well" (3.1.41-42) . "Your displeasure" is the displeasure of Othello into which Cassio has fallen. Emilia explains that Desdemona is already speaking up for Cassio's reinstatement, but Cassio still wants to talk with Desdemona, and Emilia invites him in. [ Scene Summary ] At the opening of Act 3, Scene 3, we see Desdemona, Cassio and Emilia. Cassio has apparently already made his request to Desdemona, who is saying, "Be thou assured, good Cassio, I will do / All my abilities in thy behalf" (3.3.1-2) .

Emilia encourages her, saying, "Good madam, do: I warrant it grieves my husband, / As if the case were his" (3.3.4) , and Desdemona responds, "O, that's an honest fellow" (3.3.5) . Pity for Cassio leads Desdemona to make a bold promise, saying "before Emilia here / I give thee warrant of thy place" (3.3.19-20) . A "warrant" is a legally binding promise, and that's why Desdemona says "before Emilia here." Emilia is the witness that Desdemona has personally guaranteed that Cassio will get his job back. When Othello appears, Cassio leaves, but Emilia is present as Desdemona pleads Cassio's cause. Later in the scene, Desdemona, accompanied by Emilia, comes to call Othello to dinner. Othello, choked up with jealousy, makes the excuse that he has a headache, and Desdemona tries to bind his head with her handkerchief, but Othello impatiently pushes it away.

Emilia sees the handkerchief fall and stays to pick it up. She's glad she's found it because it's precious to Desdemona and because, as she says, "My wayward husband hath a hundred times / Woo'd me to steal it" (3.3.292-293) . (You probably shouldn't ask yourself when Iago asked Emilia to steal the handkerchief. He could have done it during the sea voyage from Venice to Cyprus, but that would mean he had his whole plan mapped out before he arrived in Cyprus, which doesn't seem to be true.) Emilia knows that the handkerchief was Othello's first gift to Desdemona, and that she always keeps it with her, "To kiss and talk to" (3.3.296) . Perhaps this is the reason that Emilia hasn't stolen the handkerchief, and even now she means to give it back to Desdemona. Emilia says she will "have the work ta'en out, / And give't Iago" (3.3.296-297) .

She means that she will have handkerchief copied and give the copy to Iago, even though she has no idea what he wants with it. However, Emilia doesn't have a chance to carry out her plan. Iago appears and Emilia hopes to please him by telling him about what she has just found. She says, "I have a thing for you" (3.3.301) . Iago replies with a nasty joke, "A thing for me? it is a common thing--" (3.3.302) . In guy-talk of Shakespeare's time a woman's "thing" was between her legs, and a "common thing" was one available to any man. When Emilia objects to the joke, Iago changes it to an ordinary insult by saying that it's a common thing to have a foolish wife. Despite Iago's bad treatment of her, Emilia still wants to please him, and she tells him that she has found Desdemona's handkerchief. Iago immediately tells her to give it to him, and when she asks what he wants with it, he snatches it from her.

She protests, "If it be not for some purpose of import, / Give't me again: poor lady, she'll run mad / When she shall lack it" (3.3.316-318) . But Iago doesn't give it back. He tells Emilia to keep her mouth shut about it and he sends her away. [ Scene Summary ] When Desdemona asks, "Where should I lose that handkerchief, Emilia?" (3.4.23) , she answers, "I know not, madam" (3.4.24) , which is a lie. And when Desdemona says that the loss of the handkerchief would be enough to make Othello jealous, if he were the jealous type, Emilia asks, "Is he not jealous?" (3.4.29) , which seems to indicate that she doubts that Othello couldn't be jealous. Emilia then watches as Othello comes in, berates Desdemona about the handkerchief, and leaves in the heat of anger. As soon as he's gone, Emilia says, "Is not this man jealous?" (3.4.99) .

A little later, when Desdemona is trying to make herself believe that Othello is upset by some problem at work and is just taking his frustrations out on her, Emilia again suggests that Othello may be jealous. When Desdemona declares that she has never given her husband any reason to be jealous, Emilia offers some wisdom about the nature of jealousy; she tells Desdemona that jealousy doesn't need a cause; "It is a monster / Begot upon itself, born on itself" (3.4.161-162) . Nevertheless, Desdemona refuses to believe that Othello could be jealous. Why doesn't Emilia say what she knows about the handkerchief? We might think that she would, even though she wouldn't want to admit that she gave Desdemona's precious handkerchief to Iago. After all, she sees the great fuss that Othello makes about handkerchief and comes to the conclusion that he is jealous. Furthermore, she's loyal to Desdemona, which is shown at the end of the play when she dies defending Desdemona's honor by telling the truth about the handkerchief. So why is she silent now?

A cynical answer would that if Emilia did tell Desdemona now, the play would be a lot shorter, and not a tragedy. However, Emilia's silence is more than a mere plot device. Despite what she has just seen, she doesn't seem to make the connection between Iago and Othello's jealousy. This may be because she has such a low of opinion of men that Othello's jealousy seems almost normal. In this scene she expresses her opinion of men by joking that "'Tis not a year or two shows us a man: / They are all but stomachs, and we all but food; / They eat us hungerly, and when they are full, / They belch us" (3.4.103-106) . Also, later in the play we learn that Iago has accused her of having an affair with Othello, which is pure fantasy on Iago's part. Thus, in her mind, men are strange creatures who are likely to get jealous for no reason at all. Another reason she doesn't make the connection between Othello's jealousy and Iago is that she -- like everyone else in the play -- puts absolute trust in "honest" Iago.

In the last scene of the play, when Othello tells her that Iago has told him that Desdemona gave the handkerchief to Cassio, Emilia refuses to believe it until the moment that Iago himself confirms it. [ Scene Summary ] Even after he has decided the time and place of Desdemona's death, Othello seems to need more proof of her guilt, so he questions Emilia about Desdemona and Cassio. He asks, "You have seen nothing then?" (4.2.1) , and Emilia answers that not only has she seen nothing, she has never suspected anything. Othello, however, continues to question her, asking if she's seen Cassio and Desdemona whisper, or if Desdemona ever sent Emilia away when Cassio was there. Emilia not only says that nothing of the sort ever happened, she stands up for Desdemona, saying, "I durst, my lord, to wager she is honest, / Lay down my soul at stake" (4.2.12-13) .

Othello, however believes that Emilia is lying, and he proceeds to speak to her as though she were the madam of a whorehouse in which Desdemona is a whore. After Othello has left, Emilia expresses her outrage at his treatment of Desdemona, saying to husband, "Alas, Iago, my lord hath so bewhored her. / Thrown such despite and heavy terms upon her, / As true hearts cannot bear" (4.2.115-117) . She also comes very close to guessing the truth of the matter. She believes that someone has put ideas into Othello's head and says, "I will be hang'd, if some eternal villain, / Some busy and insinuating rogue, / Some cogging [cheating] , cozening [deceiving] slave, to get some office, / Have not devised this slander; I will be hang'd else" (4.2.130-133) . She is sure that someone must be pouring poison into Othello's ear because she has been a victim of something similar.

As she says to Iago, "Some such squire he was / That turn'd your wit the seamy side without, / And made you to suspect me with the Moor" (4.2.145-147) . Emilia has gotten it more than half right, but she doesn't know that it is her husband Iago who is the "eternal villain" who is poisoning Othello's mind against Desdemona, and who poisoned his own mind against his own wife. [ Scene Summary ] After the state dinner in honor of Lodovico, Emilia--full of concern for Desdemona--asks her how it's going with Othello: "How goes it now? he looks gentler than he did" (4.3.11) . Desdemona tells Emilia, "He says he will return incontinent [immediately] : / He hath commanded me to go to bed, / And bade me to dismiss you" (4.3.12-14) . In this context "dismiss" doesn't mean that Emilia is to be fired from her job; it just means that Othello doesn't want her with Desdemona when he returns.

However, that is enough to alarm Emilia, who exclaims, "Dismiss me?" (4.3.14) . Desdemona, however, does not share Emilia's attitude and prepares for bed. The ills we do, their ills instruct us so. (4.3.93-103) Desdemona has been talking as though having an affair was the most horrible thing imaginable; Emilia's point is that men do it all the time, just for fun, or for love, or because they give in to temptation. And if men "change us for others," their wives will learn to do the same, because women are just like men. [ Scene Summary ] At the end of the scene in which Roderigo was supposed to kill Cassio, but only wounds him, and is himself killed by Iago, Emilia enters. She asks Iago, "Alas, what's the matter? what's the matter, husband?" (5.1.111) . Iago explains, of course without mentioning that he caused it all, then tries to pin everything on Bianca.

He tells Emilia to go find out where Cassio had supper, then asks Bianca if that worries her. Bianca declares that Cassio had supper with her, and she's not worried about it. Emilia calls her a "strumpet," and Bianca replies that she's just as honest as Emilia, which outrages Emilia, who exclaims, "As I! foh! fie upon thee!" (5.1.123) . Iago then sends Emilia to deliver the news to Othello and Desdemona, just as though he didn't know that Othello is on his way to kill Desdemona. [ Scene Summary ] Moments after Othello begins to smother Desdemona, Emilia calls from the other side of the locked door: "My lord, my lord! what, ho! my lord, my lord!" (5.2.85) . Shortly after Othello lets Emilia into the room, Desdemona revives and cries out from behind the bed curtain, "O, falsely, falsely murder'd!" (5.2.117) . Emilia asks what that was, and Othello again pretends total ignorance.

"That? what?" (5.2.118) , he says, as though he hadn't even heard anything. However, Emilia isn't put off. She recognizes Desdemona's voice, opens the bed curtains, and starts calling for help. Emilia also asks Desdemona who has done this to her, and Desdemona replies that she did it herself, then dies. Othello then says that he killed Desdemona because she was a whore. Emilia immediately springs to Desdemona's defense: "O, the more angel she, / And you the blacker devil!" (5.2.130-131) . Still trying to justify himself, Othello answers, "She turn'd to folly, and she was a whore" (5.2.132) . Emilia shoots back, "Thou dost belie her, and thou art a devil" (5.2.133) . When Othello tells Emilia that it was Iago who told him that Desdemona was unfaithful, Emilia is disbelieving.

Four times she asks if it was really her husband that said these things, and finally she says, "If he say so, may his pernicious soul / Rot half a grain a day! he lies to the heart: / She was too fond of her most filthy bargain" (5.2.155-157) . By "filthy bargain" Emilia means Desdemona's marriage to Othello. Insulted, Othello makes a threatening gesture, but Emilia defies him and again calls for help. When Emilia's cry for help is answered by Iago and others, Emilia says to her husband, "O, are you come, Iago? you have done well, / That men must lay their murders on your neck" (5.2.169-170) . She then demands that Iago deny he ever said anything about Desdemona being false. Iago, however, confirms that he did say that Desdemona was false. Emilia then denounces her husband, even though he repeatedly tells her to shut up and go home.

Iago even tries to use his sword on Emilia, but she defies him, too, and reveals what she knows about the handkerchief. Is the Relationship Between Othello and Desdemona as It s Presented in Essay - 956 Words Othello- Emilia, Desdemona Relationship Essay ...Emilia Desdemona Relationship In the play “Othello”, by William Shakespeare, there are two major feminine figures that attract our attention. One is the wife of the play’s tragic hero-Othello; the other is betrothed to one of the greatest villains of all time-Iago. They are part and parcel of what goes on in the play and eventually how the crisis of the play is resolved. These two females of the play can be compared and contrasted in a... 836 Words | 3 Pages Othello and Desdemonas Relationship Essay ...﻿Question: Ultimately, in this Shakespearean drama, it is the representation of intense human relationships that captivates audiences. Explore the representation of at least ONE intense human relationship in Othello, evaluating its significance in the play as a whole. Othello is an Elizabethan Shakespearean tragedy written by William Shakespeare in the early seventeenth century.

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1124 Words | 3 Pages othello Essay ...﻿Towards the ends of Othello both Emilia and Desdemona are confirmed as tragic heroines. Throughout the play, Emilia is beaten down by Iago, as a result of the gender inequality of the time and her low status as a woman. In the last scene though, she finally breaks through this and finds her voice and stands up to patriarchal domination, which leads her to her death, confirming her to be a tragic heroine. Differently, Desdemona starts off as being... 1524 Words | 4 Pages Critical Analysis of the Relationship of Othello and Desdemona in Shakespeare S Tragedy Othello Essay ...Write a critical analysis of the relationship of Othello and Desdemona in Shakespeare`s tragedy Othello. Pay special attention to the interracial character of this relationship and the use of racist stereotypes in the play. The contrast between The Moor Othello and the gentle Desdemona in Shakespeare`s tragedy Othello is noteworthy. Yet initially it looks...

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1198 Words | 3 Pages Scene 3 Scene 3 Bookmark this page Manage My Reading List Summary After the supper, Othello orders Desdemona to go to bed and to dismiss her attendant. Desdemona and Emilia discuss the situation; Emilia sees the marriage with Othello as a mistake, but Desdemona regrets nothing. She has a premonition of death and requests Emilia, if she should die, to wrap her body in one of her wedding sheets, which are now on the bed. Desdemona sings the "Willow Song," remembering the maid Barbary whose lover went mad and abandoned her, and she died singing this song. Analysis Emilia knows something is seriously wrong, but Desdemona's mind is preoccupied with the problem of her husband's love. She loves him so much that she cannot tell whether his love is lost or is yet recoverable. She has a vague premonition of death and requests of Emilia, "If I do die before thee, prithee shroud me / In one of those same sheets" (24-25). Desdemona has reacted to this crisis with the passivity of despair and grief, as was the tradition for women abandoned.

Othello, on the other hand, thinking he has lost Desdemona's love and fidelity, reacts with aggressive passions of accusations and violence. Desdemona tells the story of her mother's maid, Barbary, and her sad fate. "She was in love, and he she lov'd prov'd mad, / And did forsake her: she had a song of 'willow,' / An old thing @'twas, but it express'd her fortune, / And she died singing it" (27-30). Barbary is a parallel for Desdemona herself: her mother's maid is something like her mother's daughter, a girl under her mother's care and protection. This is the only time Desdemona mentions her mother, and she speaks of her in the distant past, as if she were dead. Desdemona's mother plays no part in the story of the courtship and marriage to Othello, and Desdemona speaks and acts as a woman alone, who takes full responsibility for her decisions. Desdemona and Barbary are not only alone in their sorrow but are both associated with strangers.

"Barbary," the name, means "foreigner." Desdemona married a foreigner, whom some called a barbarian, that is an uncivilized foreigner. Iago described the marriage as that between "an erring barbarian and a super-subtle Venetian"(I.3, 355-356), an opinion many Venetians would have held and that Desdemona would have been well aware of. Desdemona sings the "Willow Song," and, in this indirect way, she faces the real possibility that Othello is going mad and will desert her and that she may die of a broken heart. The "Willow Song" is an old one, existing in many versions before Shakespeare incorporated it into his play. Of special interest is line 52 that echoes, as it were, Desdemona's thoughts in lines 19-20. In the song, it is the male lover who is false and the cause of the poor woman's sighing and weeping.

Obviously the mood perfectly reflects that of Desdemona, whose love is so strong that she approves Othello's frowns, just as the "poor soul" (41) in the song approves her lover's "scorn" (52). Willow, also known as weeping willow, is associated in Shakespeare's plays with lost love. In Hamlet, staged three years before Othello, Ophelia drowns surrounded by willows and flowers; Gertrude describes the scene: "There is a willow grows askant a brook" (Hamlet IV.7, 166). Ophelia's love, Prince Hamlet, appeared mad and rejected her, and she lost her mind and died singing as she drowned. Ophelia and Barbary have almost the same story. All through this scene, while Emilia tries to comfort and cheer Desdemona, she knows that her husband Iago has the handkerchief, a fact that she could have revealed to Desdemona but does not. Possibly Emilia hopes nothing more will be heard of the matter, or she thinks to protect her husband from accusation if the handkerchief subsequently turns up somewhere.

Emilia had stood silently in the background (as a lady's maid should) when Othello demanded to see the handkerchief and Desdemona could not produce it (Act III, Scene 4), so she is aware that the handkerchief itself forms part of Othello's accusation. To speak now would seem too late, but to hide the information is not honest either. Emilia and Desdemona make a clear contrast in their approach to marriage and fidelity. Desdemona is a romantic who has married for love and values loyalty absolutely. Emilia has a practical intelligence and assesses each situation to decide which is the best course of action. She thinks that a wife's infidelity is a serious matter, only to be undertaken for good solid reasons of advantage: "who would not make her husband a cuckold, to make him a monarch?" (74-75) The other reason for a wife to be unfaithful is in reaction to the husband's misbehavior or maltreatment: "But I do think it is their husbands' faults / If wives do fall" (86-87).

Emilia's speech at the end of Act IV on the faults of husbands neatly balances Iago's speech in Act II on the faults of wives. Both speeches were heard by Desdemona, who dismisses them as not relating to her and her love. Glossary nightgown (34) a dressing-gown; robe. store (84) to fill; populate. peevish (88) silly. Othello Marriage Quotes Page 1 O, thou foul thief, where hast thou stowed my daughter? (1.2.80-81) When Brabantio confronts Othello for eloping with Desdemona (without his permission), he accuses his new son-in-law of being a "foul thief," as if Desdemona is piece of property that has been unlawfully taken away from him. We see this same attitude earlier in the play when Iago awakens Brabantio in the middle of the night proclaiming loudly "Awake! what, ho, Brabantio! thieves! thieves! thieves! / Look to your house, your daughter and your bags! / Thieves! thieves!" (1.1.80-82).

What's up with that? History Snack: It turns out that it's pretty common in Shakespeare's plays (and sixteenth-to-seventeenth-century England in general) for daughters to be considered their father's property – unmarried women are often portrayed as something to be stolen, bartered for and/or traded by men. In The Taming of the Shrew , for example, when Baptista Minola bargains with his daughter's suitor, he treats Bianca like a possession and even refers to himself as a "merchant" who is undertaking a risky business deal (The Taming of the Shrew, 2.1.22). Damned as thou art, thou hast enchanted her! For I'll refer me to all things of sense, If she in chains of magic were not bound, Whether a maid so tender, fair, and happy, So opposite to marriage that she shunned The wealthy curlèd darlings of our nation, Would ever have, to incur a general mock, Run from her guardage to the sooty bosom Of such a thing as thou—to fear, not to delight!

Judge me the world, if 'tis not gross in sense That thou hast practiced on her with foul charms, Abused her delicate youth with drugs or minerals That weaken motion. (1.2.82-94) Brabantio insists that Othello must have "enchanted" Desdemona – why else, asks Brabantio, would she run away from all the (white) eligible bachelors in Venice into the "sooty bosom" of the "Moor"? (Pretty obnoxious, wouldn't you say?) Brabantio's objection to his daughter's marriage to a black man gives voice to fears of miscegenation (when interracial couples marry/have sex, etc., resulting in "mixed race" children). 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. (1.3.429-433) We discuss this passage in " Jealousy ," but it's important to the theme of marriage as well.

Here, Iago suggests that his wife, Emilia, has cheated on him with Othello. Now, we know this is completely untrue. What we don't know is whether or not Iago actually believes that Othello has slept with Emilia. As we know, Iago lists multiple (and incompatible) motives for seeking to destroy Othello (elsewhere, he says he hates Othello because he was passed up for a promotion), so it's entirely possible that Iago's the one who makes up the rumor about Othello and Emilia. On the other hand, most men in the play assume that all women are promiscuous and unfaithful in general, so it's not so surprising that Iago would believe Emilia has been untrue.

Question: In ‘Othello’, to whom is Emilia, Desdemona’s maidservant, married?
Answer: IAGO