OTHELLO:::ANALYSIS OF MAJOR XTERS

Character List

Othello
The play's protagonist and hero. A Christian Moor and general of the armies of
Venice, Othello is an eloquent and physically
powerful figure, respected by all those around
him. In spite of his elevated status, he is
nevertheless easy prey to insecurities because of
his age, his life as a soldier, and his race. He possesses a "free
and open nature," which his
ensign Iago uses to twist his love for his wife,
Desdemona, into a powerful and destructive
jealousy (I.iii.381).


Desdemona - The daughter of the Venetian senator Brabanzio. Desdemona
and Othello are
secretly married before the play begins. While in
many ways stereotypically pure and meek,
Desdemona is also determined and self-
possessed. She is equally capable of defending
her marriage, jesting bawdily with Iago, and responding with dignity
to Othello's
incomprehensible jealousy.


Iago - Othello's ensign (a job also known as an ancient or
standard-bearer), and the villain of the
play. Iago is twenty-eight years old. While his
ostensible reason for desiring Othello's demise is
that he has been passed over for promotion to
lieutenant, Iago's motivations are never very
clearly expressed and seem to originate in an obsessive, almost
aesthetic delight in
manipulation and destruction.


Michael Cassio - Othello's lieutenant. Cassio is a young and
inexperienced soldier, whose high
position is much resented by Iago. Truly devoted
to Othello, Cassio is extremely ashamed after
being implicated in a drunken brawl on Cyprus
and losing his place as lieutenant. Iago uses
Cassio's youth, good looks, and friendship with Desdemona to play on
Othello's insecurities
about Desdemona's fidelity.

Emilia - Iago's wife and Desdemona's attendant. A cynical, worldly
woman, she is
deeply attached to her mistress and distrustful of
her husband.

Roderigo - A jealous suitor of Desdemona. Young, rich, and foolish,
Roderigo is convinced
that if he gives Iago all of his money, Iago will
help him win Desdemona's hand. Repeatedly
frustrated as Othello marries Desdemona and
then takes her to Cyprus, Roderigo is ultimately
desperate enough to agree to help Iago kill Cassio after Iago points
out that Cassio is another
potential rival for Desdemona.

Bianca - A courtesan, or prostitute, in Cyprus. Bianca's favorite
customer is Cassio, who teases
her with promises of marriage.

Brabanzio - Desdemona's father, a somewhat blustering and
self-important Venetian senator.
As a friend of Othello, Brabanzio feels betrayed
when the general marries his daughter in secret.

Duke of Venice - The official authority in Venice, the duke has great
respect for Othello as a public
and military servant. His primary role within the
play is to reconcile Othello and Brabanzio in Act I,
scene iii, and then to send Othello to Cyprus.

Montano - The governor of Cyprus before Othello. We see him first in
Act II, as he recounts
the status of the war and awaits the Venetian
ships.

Lodovico - One of Brabanzio's kinsmen, Lodovico acts as a messenger
from Venice to
Cyprus. He arrives in Cyprus in Act IV with letters
announcing that Othello has been replaced by
Cassio as governor.

Graziano - Brabanzio's kinsman who accompanies Lodovico to Cyprus. Amidst the
chaos of the final scene, Graziano mentions that
Desdemona's father has died.

Clown - Othello's servant. Although the clown appears only in two
short scenes, his
appearances reflect and distort the action and
words of the main plots: his puns on the word
"lie" in Act III, scene iv, for example, anticipate
Othello's confusion of two meanings of that
word in Act IV, scene i.

WRITTEN BY COMRADE OLAMILEKAN
08179545998