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Imposters Spring 1998 UC Berkeley

Othello Essay Assignment

 

Imposters Syllabus



ROUGH DRAFT DUE IN CLASS TUESDAY FEBRUARY 17
EDITED ROUGH AND FINAL DRAFTS DUE IN CLASS THURSDAY FEBRUARY 19


Write a provocative five page (typed, double-spaced) argument about Othello .



SOME LEADS

1. Explore a subtle characteristic or motivation of one of the players in this disaster, as discovered through very close attention to word choice, use of imagery, rhythm, or direction of rhetoric in one of their speeches.


2. Draw out a surprising parallel between two characters. Make sure you back up your claim or similarity with evidence of shared language, motivation, sequence of action, or tendency. Use the parallel to show how the moral world of Othello is far from black-and-white.


3. Defend a specific action that seems indefensible or irrational or thoughtless, using the text (and not just an appeal to common sense) as your evidence. On the basis of your defense, what new twist can you give to our understanding of one or more of the characters?


4. Language as a "forked plague" (III.iii.270): puns abound in the play. Pick one word with a particularly intriguing double (or multiple) meaning. What kind of situations seem to bring it up? Who understands which meanings of the word, and why? In what way might this word be understood as a theme of Othello?


5. How do characters try to control each other? Find a situation that seems particularly revealing of who has more power, and why he or she has it. Examine exactly how the dominant character asserts himself or herself, and think about what that has to say about strength in this play.