Themes in Othello.
Themes in Othello In the play, Othello the Moor of Venice, many themes are conveyed. These themes include good versus evil, racism, jealousy and appearance versus reality. Jealousy is a major theme of the play. The imagery surrounding jealousy makes it a monster which controls the characters. Othello represents how jealousy is one of the most corrupting and destructive of emotions. "I tremble at it. Nature/ would not invest herself in such shadowing passion/ without some instruction." (4.1.39-41) Othello jealousy overpowers him, as he trembles, at the idea of Desdemona and Cassio together. His statement about nature means that he believes he would not feel such powerful emotion and his mind would not be filled with images of them together, if it weren't really happening. Othello takes the intensity of his own emotional jealousy to the thought of Desdemona being unfaithful. It is also jealousy that prompts Iago to plot Othello's downfall, and jealousy is also the tool that Iago uses to arouse Othello's passions. Roderigo and Bianca demonstrate jealousy at various times in the play, and Emilia demonstrates that she too knows the emotion well, describing jealousy as "a monster/Begot upon itself, born upon itself". Even Iago warns Othello, saying, "O beware, my lord, of jealousy! / It is the green-eyes monster, which doth mock / The meat it feeds on."(3.3.163-165). Here
