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Othello

Othello, the play by William Shakespeare, which was published in 1604, is about the dark-skinned general Othello, who kills his beloved wife Desdemona and himself out of delusional jealousy promoted by the schemer Iago. His Ensign Jago wants to take revenge on him because of an alleged injustice. With clever intrigues he drives Othello to murder his wife.

Main characters

• Othello: The title character Othello is drawn as a noble,

sincere character, although his dark skin colour makes him seem strange in Venetian society from the outset.

• Desdemona: Othello's wife; daughter of Brabantio
• Jago: Othello's trusted, but jealous ensign
• Cassio: Othello's loyal and most beloved captain
• Bianca: Cassio's lover

Action

The black Venetian general Othello is the protagonist in William Shakespeare's drama of the same name. The unscrupulous intrigues of his opponent Jago drive the tragedy forward. At her end, Othello strangles his beloved wife Desdemona. When Lagos' evil game is uncovered, desperate Othello chooses suicide. The play was premiered in London in 1604 under the title "Othello, the Moor of Venice". A text edition did not appear until 1622. Venice (1st act) and Cyprus (2nd to 5th act) are the locations in the 16th century.

The general Othello preferred the Florentine Michael Cassio to the Ensign Jago during a promotion. Iago wants revenge on Othello. Meanwhile, Othello secretly married the beautiful Desdemona, who had previously rejected the Venetian Roderigo. Desdemona's father resists in vain the connection with Othello.

Othello, highly esteemed by the Doge, and his entourage are sent to Cyprus. Tell him to fight off an attack by the Turks. Desdemona follows her lover accompanied by Jagos, Roderigo and her chambermaid Emilia, who is married to Jago.

The Turkish fleet falls victim to a severe storm. Othello then has a party prepared in Cyprus: The victory over the Turks and his wedding to Desdemona will be celebrated.

Roderigo hopes to win Desdemona over after all. He confides his entire fortune to Jago and follows his plans. Iago begins to spin his intrigue against Othello: He convinces Roderigo that Cassio and Desdemona have a relationship. He needs Roderigo's help to convict them.

Jago and Roderigo manage to discredit Cassio at Othello, so that he fires Cassio. Jago then advises Cassio to turn to Desdemona so that she can stand up for him at Othello. Desdemona presses Othello hard to look at the former lieutenant's misstep.

Othello is persuaded by Jago that Desdemona's intercession is in fact a relationship between her and Cassio. When the jealous Othello demands evidence, Jago can teach it to Emilia with the help of his ignorant wife. Fired by Iago, Othello's jealousy increases to hatred. He gives Iago the order to kill Cassio, while he himself wants to poison Desdemona. Iago advises Othello to strangle Desdemona.

Desdemona is not aware of any injustice. Emilia also vouches to Othello for the loyalty of her mistress. Meanwhile, Roderigo recognizes the hopelessness of his waiting for Desdemona and accuses Jago of embezzling his fortune. Jago can make Roderigo believe that only Cassio stands in the way of his happiness and instigate him to murder his rival. Cassio survives Roderigo's attack, while he is judged and stabbed by Iago as an alleged assassin.

Desdemona affirms her innocence and begs her husband for mercy. But Othello does not let himself be stopped and strangles her. He justifies his actions by invoking Jago's testimony. Emilia succeeds in uncovering the murderous intrigue before Jago stabs her behind her back. When Othello sees through the situation, he throws himself desperately into his sword. Cassio becomes commander in Cyprus and the captured Iago is handed over to the governor.

"Othello" is one of the most frequently played Shakespeare plays on German stages. Up to the present day, the themes of the drama are still a source of great fascination: Love and hate, jealousy and intrigues, xenophobia and violence have always occupied more than just theatregoers. This may explain Othello's general popularity as well as the multitude of adaptations, among them Verdi's masterful opera "Otello" (libretto by Arrigo Boito) and numerous film adaptations in the 20th century.

Historical classification

William Shakespeare lived from 1564-1616. Very little is known about the person and the writer William Shakespeare.

Shakespeare's time, the Elizabethan Age, is a "golden" time for England in political, scientific and cultural terms.

"Othello, the Moor of Venice" is one of Shakespeare's later plays. The premiere was probably in 1604. The first written records of the piece are a print of 1622 and the folio edition of 1623.