Othello Essay Example for Free

Othello Essay In Shakespeare’s Othello, we see the protagonist Othello being deceived due to his openness of nature and credulity. When Iago estimates Othello’s character as follows, â€Å"The moor is of a free and open nature, / Those thinks men honest but seem to be so. / And will as tenderly be led by the nose/ As asses are. † (II. i. 387-90). We see that it is this trait of his which strained his relationship with his beloved Desdemona. The great tragedy of Shakespeare, Othello, starts with a marriage which was based on a very strong bond of love between Othello and Desdemona. From the early part of the play itself, it is evident that Othello has a slight feeling about his inferiority in terms of beauty and color. He substantiates this point by telling that instead of loving him for what he is, â€Å"She loved me for the dangers I had pass’d, / And I loved her that she did pity them. † (I. iii. 167-8) We see that throughout the play, Othello is a victim of his own jealousy and Iago’s betrayal. This gives way to a change in attitude towards his lady love- Desdemona. As a result, Desdemona, once the whole world of Othello, became his ‘most loved enemy’ who happened to die by his own hands. Hence we can see that love in their relation reaches the highest point that even the lover’s life is at the disposition of her better half. That too as a victim of suspicious loyalty Desdemona is believed by him to be immersed in an affair with his trusted lieutenant, Cassio. To take advantage of the grains of suspicion in the mind of Othello about Desdemona, Iago sets the stage through her handkerchief. Othello is convinced by Iago that his fears about Desdemona’s disloyalty towards him are beyond doubt by promising that he saw Desdemona’s handkerchief with Cassio: â€Å"By Heaven, that should be my handkerchief† (IV. . 147). It is here that we get the most evident proof of Othello towards his wife as the love for his wife is well conveyed by making it clear that he can not bear to live knowing that his wife has become a whore,: â€Å"Aye, let her rot, and perish, and be damned tonight, for she shall not live. † (IV. i. 168). Thus a man, who was hailed for his royal lineage, his skill for adventure, his most efficient soldiership, his openness of nature and credulity, his modesty, and dignity stoops to the level of a murderer without any second thoughts. He did so because he loved his wife so dearly so that whether he lived or died, whether he maintained his reputation or not, nothing was of importance to him compared to his love for Desdemona. Here their relationship turns out to be ironic for it is difficult for a common man to think that one would murder someone for intense unblemished love. On the other hand, we see Desdemona forgetting her very self out of her self-effacing love and devotion for Othello. She idolized him, as she says: â€Å"I saw Othello’s visage in his mind/ And to his honours and his valiant parts/ Did I my soul and fortunes consecrate. (I. iii. 251-3). When she was charged with infidelity, and that her husband could not have done anything more unkind, she could only protest: â€Å"His unkindness may defeat my life,/ But never taint my love. † (IV. ii. 159-61). Her tactlessness that springs from her purity and innocence was what brought about her death. If she had imbibed the worldly maxims, which Emilia dispensed, she might have averted the disaster. She made a capital blunder in engaging herself to solicit for Cassio. She had not the remotest idea that her action might be misinterpreted. She did not realize it even at the visible displeasure of her lord. A woman of the world would have taken the hint, and pressed no more Cassio’s suit. Iago, in spite of himself, meant but the simple truth when he said, â€Å"She is of so free, so kind, so blessed a disposition, she holds it a vice in her goodness not to do more than she is requested. †(II. iii. 298-9). Not till the last moment did the truth break upon her mind that she had compromised herself by pleading for Cassio. It is the simplicity and purity of Othello and Desdemona, in all means that is exploited by Iago, who was trusted to the utmost by both, especially Othello. Othello’s life was always lived by faith, instead of right. Moreover, he was a man whose nature was passionate and high, generous in thought and ready in action. He considered all that is subtle and devious as dishonor, and as Desdemona understood about him, jealousy and suspicion was foreign to his nature. His life was always identified with his absolute trust in Desdemona. But when a person who was too honest to him throughout and a good friend full of experience, honor, devotion and delicacy to him, exhorted too vehemently that Desdemona is not at all honest to him and that she is having a very passionate love affair with Cassio, his innocence and purity forces him to believe it. Desdemona too is a victim to the darker shades of finer feelings like innocence, purity and simplicity. She is a saint who always stood firm for love, be it to her father or her husband. She firmly believes that there is nothing in this world that cannot be recovered by true love. Her answer concerning the fatal handkerchief, â€Å"It is not lost; but what an if it were? †(II. iv. 79) shows she, most pathetically and with a childlike innocence, endeavors to uphold the truth of her relation to her husband. If she had tried to reply to the accusation she was in, with harsh words, her angelic stature in the minds of those who loved her might have faltered. A close reading of the play substantiates the fact that Othello and Desdemona are the two most innocent people that ever existed. At first their relationship is romantic to the utmost but it takes a profane hue in course of time due to the lack of a perfect foundation for a relationship, by race, color, temper and character and hence we see an absence of trust, understanding and communication between the two. For Othello, the word ‘battle’ is of foremost importance as he was a perfect soldier. We see him telling about himself: Rude am I in my speech, / And little blessd with the soft phrase of peace; / For since these arms of mine had seven years pith, / Till now some nine moons wasted, they have usd/ Their dearest action in the tented field;/ And little of this great world can I speak/ More than pertains to feats of broils and battle. (I. iii. 81-7). In sharp contrast to this, we have Desdemona who is totally inexperienced in the ways of the world. It is Othello’s war stories that infatuate her. Once she identifies his virility and manliness, she is taken aback with a mad love towards him. But it should be debated whether that is a solid base on which a relation should be built on. We see that though she speaks so fondly about him, her understanding about his nature is minimum. She defends her newly born love for Othello, in the following words, (among other things), My downright violence, and storm of fortunes, / May trumpet to the world. My hearts subdud / Even to the very quality of my lord. / I saw Othellos visage in his mind, /†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ soul and fortune consecrate. (I. iii 248-253) Hence the whole play shows forth that it is innocence and purity that laid foundation to the failure of the relation between Othello and Desdemona who was renowned for the purity of love between them crossing all the barriers that were ‘built’ by man. These good qualities, undoubtedly, turned fatal in their all encompassing love. We find Anthony Trollope’s Lady Anna an apt sequel to the relationship presented between Othello and Desdemona. In the above-said novel we have Daniel Thwaite, a tailor and his lover, later wife, Lady Anna, who belongs to the aristocracy. There too we have Frederic instead of Cassio. In both these works we see that the people with whom the ladies are accused of having an illegitimate relation are far better and appropriate than their present spouses. This instills a feeling of inferiority in both the men and that is what takes the garb of jealousy and in course of time their intense love to their better halves become too bitter and lead them to much graver mistakes. Trollope, no doubt had Shakespeare’s Othello in mind, while he was drawing his caricatures of Lady Anna, Thwaite and Frederic to make them sequels to Desdemona, Othello and Cassio respectively.

Palestinian Christians: The Unknown Victims :: Essays Papers

Palestinian Christians: The Unknown Victims Johnny Yousef George Thaljieh has become known as the "Martyr of the Nativity Church." He was not a suicide bomber or even a stone thrower, just a 17-year-old kid who belonged to the small Palestinian Christian minority that is often forgotten in what is seen as a war between Muslims and Jews. There was a shooting that day in late October 2001, as there often is between Beit Jala and the Jerusalem suburb of Gilo, but none near the Nativity Church. As his mother says, â€Å"Nothing was done to make the Israeli sniper think Johnny was a threat.† He had just been to church and was playing with his 4-year-old cousin in Manger Square when the bullet struck him with a fatal blow. When the siege at the Church of the Nativity ended and Johnny was forgotten, the Israel Defense Force (IDF) pulled its soldiers, tanks and armored personnel carriers from Bethlehem and lifted the curfew on the city. The remains were a fractured, disjointed and disoriented Christian community. Not only were a large number of Orthodox Christians affected directly by the closure of the Church of the Nativity, but the great majority of Christian Palestinians in general were indirectly affected by the days of curfew, and what they consider siege. Many feel abandoned by Europe and the US, humiliated by Israel, often rejected by their Muslim neighbors, and worst of all, they fear their society is just a few years from extinction. Despite the initial jubilation that erupted when Israel lifted its curfew after a 39-day grueling standoff between the IDF and gunmen holed up in the Church of the Nativity, reality has come crashing down on this community. Unfortunately, the Christian population of Bethlehem only serves as one example among many. Thousands of Palestinians throughout the Middle East and the world are subjected to prejudice and neglect. Often, they are not welcomed by their Jewish and Muslim neighbors, and are forced to live in communities of fear. Receiving no coverage and attent ion from the media, these Christians try day after day to survive in lands that have been forced upon them. Palestinian Christians are a people searching for an identity. An identity that has been lost in the turmoil of the Middle East. (Dan 14) The exodus of the Christians from the region of the Palestinian Authority acquires special significance when one realizes that the entire Christian-Arab population of Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip currently totals only 61,000, about 2 percent of the Palestinian population of about three million.

Critical Analysis: Life of Pi

By examining the novel Life of Pi, the three part novel by Yann Martel, one can observe the psyche of a man who has gone through a horrendous tragedy that has affected his life dramatically.   Martel chose the differing setting of India, Canada, the Pacific Ocean, and briefly in Mexico during the nineteen seventies.   From the conflicting cultures of the setting, the protagonist, Pi must deal with many adversities, yet he has survived all of them.   The novel is narrated in first person with Pi taking on the role of narrator. This gives an insight into the working of Pi’s mind.   A privileged glimpse of how an individual responds to the task of survival makes one wonder how he/she would respond in a similar situation.   It also shows what an individual will do to deal with the events that are just too horrible to accept. The plot is told in flashback and as a framed story.   The exposition is established early in the novel.   We learn that Pi is a man from India who now resides in Canada.   It is obvious that there has been some tragedy in his life, but it is not revealed until later.   Pi is married with a son and daughter.   The author discovers that he has a passion for cooking with lots of spices. This could be a way for him to connect with his past in India.   He uses so many layers of spices that it is just too intense for the author.   His overly spicy food is symbolic of his past.   Pi has tolerated his circumstances, but it is just too tragic for others to be able to identify.   As part one unfolds, Pi relates the history of his childhood in India.   His father had run the Pondicherry Zoo, and that is where he learns about the nature of animals as well as how human nature can parallel animals.   Pi is convinced that the animals are better off in the zoo that in the wild because some one must take care of them.   He also learns the way a human can achieve dominance over them. The conflict of the novel is established in the trip to his new home and the completely different culture he will encounter.   Pi’s family is killed in a shipwreck and he is the lone survivor.   He must now fight the forces of nature to stay alive.   Then he must learn how to deal the events that he has endured.   Another conflict in the story deals with religion. Pi was born into a Hindu family and throughout the novel he states that he considers himself primarily a Hindu.   Along the way, he discovered Christianity and a priest convinced him that he needed to become a Christian and Pi agrees.   His parents attend his baptism even though they do not accept the religion.   Finally Pi meets a Muslim and is persuaded to convert to Islam.   Again he embraces another religion.   Pi decides that he can be all of the religions. The rising action of the novel quickly becomes evident when Pi begins to relate his voyage to Canada.   His father decides that the family must move because of political unrest in their homeland.   Most of the animals are sold and the ones that couldn’t be sold are taken of the boat with the family.   After an accident, the boat sinks.   Pi, however, is the only one from his family to survive the shipwreck.   He and a zebra escape on a lifeboat, but the zebra is injured in the fall. Shortly after the life boat falls into the water, Pi spots his father’s tiger, Richard Parker.   The human name of the tiger is symbolic of the animalistic instinct of man.   The three survivors are soon joined by a hyena and an Orangutan.   At first all of the animals coexist with each other.   It is not long before the hyena chews the leg of zebra for a meal.   He then basically eats the animal alive.   The symbolism of the savagery of survival is evident in this incident. The hyena soon turns on the Orangutan and kills her as she is looking for her two sons.   Pi is amazed how human like she behaves.   Pi and Richard Parker become weary and dehydrated.   Pi learns how to fish and make drinking water out of sea water.   He uses his basic instincts for his survival.   The tiger finally kills the hyena, and even though Pi is glad that the hyena is gone, he becomes fearful of the tiger.   He realizes that he must gain dominance of the animal. He resorts back to the knowledge he gained at his father’s zoo.   Pi and Richard Parker are joined by another man and while Pi is suffering temporary blindness due to dehydration.   After battling hunger, lack of water, and the elements of nature, Pi’s lifeboat comes ashore in Mexico.   Richard Parker escapes into a wooded area and Pi is taken to the hospital. Two Japanese officials come to the hospital to interview Pi to gain information about the sinking of their ship.   He recounts the whole story of the sinking and his survival on the lifeboat.   After they listen to the story they leave to discuss the information they have just received.   They return after a short while and inform Pi that they do not believe his story. He then relates the story of his survival only substitutes humans for the animals.   They are horrified and he then asked them which story they prefer.   The men admit that the one with the animals was easier to accept.   It is then that the climax becomes evident.   The whole story of the animals was made up by Pi so that he could deal with the events that had happened to him.   The zebra had been a sailor, the hyena was an insane cook, and the orangutan was Pi’s mother.   Richard Parker is symbolic of   Pi’s animal instincts.   He finally gains dominance over them and it is his animal instincts that can alone help him survive. The falling action comes about when the two Japanese officials write their report.   They realize that Pi has no knowledge that can actually help them understand the wreck of their vessel.   They resolve that Pi’s survival with a ferocious tiger was unique story.   They, along with Pi, did what they had to do in their mind to be able to accept what had actually happened. Pi is a character that embodies the whole idea of survival.   All people go through adversity, and all have to learn to survive.   Many times it is painful.   An individual must come to grips in his/her own mind with what they must accept to continue on with daily life.   Martel takes this into consideration when writing this story.   Not only does he engage the reader by using suspense and the element of surprise, but he teaches mankind that we do what we have to do to cope. He also makes the point that even though humans have come so far with their scientific knowledge and technology yet they still have animalistic instincts when it comes to survival.   He could have set the story in the distant past, but instead he set it in the recent past.   There was an immense amount of technological and scientific knowledge in the nineteen seventies.   If our society were to lose our modern conveniences in a natural disaster, people would still revert to their instincts for continued existence. Works Cited Martel, Yann.   Life of Pi.   Canada: Random House of Canada, 2001.

Causes And Treatment Of Inflammatory Breast Cancer

Inflammatory Breast cancer, also known as IBC, is a rare type of cancer that attacks the body violently. The cancer cells block lymphatic vessels so the breast looks inflamed which is where it gets its name. IBC is one to five percent of breast cancer diagnosed in the United States. In a matter of weeks to months Inflammatory breast cancer is already at stage III or IV at time of diagnosis. It seems to be diagnosed at a younger age than most breast cancers. The median age is fifty-seven for IBC and sixty-seven for other breast cancer. It is more common in African American women than white women and is diagnosed at a younger age in African Americans. The average is fifty-four years old. It is more common in obese women than normal weight. It can be also be found in males (â€Å"Inflammatory Breast Cancer,† April 18, 2012). One symptom is abnormal warmth of affected breast. The others are enlargement of breast, redness that involves more than one third of the breast, thickening of skin on the breast, pitting or ridging of skin, like an orange peel, and can become harder than the other (â€Å"Signs and Symptoms,† August 28, 2014). The symptoms can worsen in a few days to even a few hours. These symptoms are very common to those of mastitis, and cellulitis. Mastitis and cellulitis are caused by bacteria and can be treated easily by antibiotics. If you are diagnosed with either of the above infections and it is not responding to medication then go see a breast professional.Show MoreRelatedInformative Essay : Inflammatory Breast Cancer Essay1736 Words   |  7 PagesInflammatory Breast Cancer Working as a nurse on a busy inpatient oncology unit can be rewarding. It is busy. It can be crazy. I see things that I would have never thought possible. Around Thanksgiving of 2012 I had a lady that came into the hospital with a host of problems. Before I could assess her and see what was happening, I had to peel off a very worn, purple, faux fur coat that was caked with blood. Removing her coat, I could see that her clothes were in similar shape. After going throughRead MoreBreast Cancer Awareness1695 Words   |  7 PagesThesis Statement: While both women and men can also get the breast cancer disease there is a cure with awareness to breast cancer. I. Breast Cancer and Who It Attacks A) What Is the Disease and Who It Affects 1. Disease which is a malignant cancer 2. Cells forms within the tissue of the breast 3. Victims are shocked 4. Both men and women get this disease 5. Women will be diagnosed more than men II. Common Risks Factors For Breast Cancer A) This Disease Can Be Caused By 1. One’s diet and lifestyle Read MoreNeutrophil Essay774 Words   |  4 PagesCancer cells stimulate neutrophils to release neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) which promote cancer cell metastasis. Researchers look into using DNase 1, an enzyme known to digest NETs, as a possible treatment for abating metastasis. Neutrophils are the most abundant type of white blood cells in the human body. They are phagocytic leukocytes (ingesting any pathogens they come in contact with) that also produce inflammatory mediators and cytokines. NETs were discovered by scientists in 2004Read MoreBreast Cancer : A Disease That Comes Unexpectedly Essay1072 Words   |  5 PagesBreast cancer is a disease that comes unexpectedly; many people tend to overlook the symptoms. There are different types of breast cancers that require treatments and surgery. The course of treatment varies from patient to patient because there are many factors that can contribute to a patient’s treatment plan. Once the plan is in place, there are many things that will need to be done in order to ensure that the cancer will not return. Trying to beat cancer can be a long, extraneous, and in someRead MoreBreast Cancer : A Dangerous Disease799 Words   |  4 Pages I can explain so much about breast cancer because I have had family members die from this disease. Being around a person with cancer will heart your heart so bad. My cousin and uncle had it. Seeing them in so much pain hurt me so bad, but all I could do was pray. I would like to inform others aboutRead MoreBreast Cancer Essay1253 Words   |  6 PagesCancer lies dormant in all of us; all living organisms such as our bodies are making defective cells all the time (1). This is how tumors are developed. Our bodies are also equipped with a number of mechanisms that detect and keep such cells in check (1). Breast Cancer (BC), is the most common malignancy in women worldwide, and it is associated with high morbidity and mortality (2). These breast tumors are comprised of phenotypically diverse populations of breast cancer cells (3). However, chemoresistanceRead MoreStudy On Breast Cancer Management Guidelines Essay1584 Words   |  7 PagesSTUDY ON BREAST CANCER MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES ABSTRACT- Cancer is a big cause of death worldwide. Around the world Cancer of different types effect millions of population and leads to loss of lives. According to the available data through our complete and thorough nationwide registries on cancer (number of times something happens), number and death in India among males cancers of lung, mouth, oesophagus and stomach are leading places/locations of cancer and among females cancer of breast, cervixRead More Breast Cancer Essay1298 Words   |  6 PagesBreast Cancer There is a large amount of women who are diagnosed with breast cancer every day but they usually do not know a lot about it in terms of how it forms and the many ways it can be treated. Breast cancer is a very serious disease that shouldn’t be taken lightly; if it is left untreated it can spread to other organs and eventually kill you.   Even if you do not have breast cancer, chances are that you know or will know someone who will get it, so it is imperative that people understandRead MoreBreast Cancer : Cancer And Cancer1530 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Cancer† is the name for a group of diseases that start in the body at the cellular level. Even though there are many different kinds of cancer, they all begin with abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These abnormal cells lump together to form a mass of tissue or â€Å"malignant tumor†. Malignant means that it can spread to other parts of the body or Metastas ize . If the breast is the original location of the cancer growth or malignant tumor, the tumorRead MoreThe Role Of Inflammation And Cancer On Cancer Essay1604 Words   |  7 PagesBackground The role of inflammation in cancer The primary development of cancer results from the increase in proliferation of an aggregation of cells in a specific location in the body. Cancer also develops in three phases: initiation, promotion, and progression, which becomes important when explaining the role inflammation plays in its growth. Inflammation has a large part in the development and progression of the cancer and these contributions are eminent. These studies that have shown the relationship