Othello Rhetorical+Literary Devices

logos appeal to reasonOthello convinces Roderigo that Desdemona and Cassio are sleeping together, and later that he should kill Cassio.
pathos appeal to emotionIago knows Othello loves Desdemona, so he will get particularly upset about her infidelity.
ethos Appeal to character”You know I love you”Using Cassio’s reputation
metaphor Animal/sexual metaphors
intimation hinting to things”She did decieve her father…””Beware of jealousy””Men should be what they seem”
repetition Animal/sexual imagesIago repeats Othello’s words to cast doubt
imagery language that appeals to the sensesAnimal/sexual references to Brabantio, Othello
connotative language implied meaningAnimal/sexual words: topped and cope
well-placed silences on stage w/o speakingSlap sceneTalked about by Desdemona, Emilia
leading/rhetorical questions Did Cassio and Desdemona…”Honest, my lord?””Indeed?”
ellipses …, lets sentence/thought trail offSays bad things about Desdemona, then stops and excuses himself
paralipsis calling attention to something by saying it’s not important”Leave it to time””But for a satisfaction of my thought”
irony a contrast between expectation and reality”I have a conscience””You know I love you””Cassio’s my worthy friend”
understatement litote, deliberately less intense statement than meaning”Scattering and unsure observance””I see this hath a little dashed your spirits””He is much changed”
apostrophe directly addressesing an absent or imaginary person, or some abstraction”Arise, black vengeance”
soliloquy speech to oneselfIago’s speech as he plans to “turn goodness into pitch”Othello’s speech as he prepares to kill Desdemona
crisis where the conflict reaches a turning pointOthello believes Iago, they decide to kill Desdemona and Cassio
foreshadowing the use of hints and clues to suggest what will happen later in a plotThe Willow SongDesdemona: “Shroud me in these sheets”Othello: “Chaos is come again”
blank verse unrhymed iambic pentameter
iambic pentameter a poetic meter that is made up of 5 stressed syllables (feet) each followed by an unstressed syllable
metaphor a comparison without using like or asJealousy as the green-eyed monster
simile a comparison using like or asThe thought of Emilia and Othello together gnaws like a poisonous mineral at Iago’s innards
personification the act of attributing human characteristics to abstract ideas etc.Jealousy as green-eyed monster