| Act 1 Scene 1 | -Cassio is chosen by Othello as lieutenant; this makes Iago mad- Othello and Desdemona run away and secretly marry- Iago and Roderigo go and notify Barbantio, – Barbantio is angry about his daughter’s deceit |
| Act 1 Scene 2 | – Othello declares his love for Desdemona- Iago and Cassio are also present – Barbantio, Roderigo and officers arrive- Barbantio is angry at Othello marrying his daughter; says he wants him to go to prison- they go see the Duke and the other senators |
| Act 1 Scene 3 | – Othello and Barbantio go see the Duke and senators, both presenting their cases; Desdemona enters also declaring her love for Othello- Othello is not punished, but instead sent off to fight the Turks- while Othello is gone, Iago will look after Desdemona – Iago and Roderigo remain on stage; Iago confesses his hatred for Othello and his plans to bring him misfortune and sorrow |
| Act 2 Scene 1 | – Turkish fleet drowns=battle is over- Cassio safely returns- Desdemona, Emilia and Iago arrive- Iago complains about his wife Emilia- Desdemona defends her- in asides, Iago plots how to bring down Othello, using a fake affair b/w Cassio and Desdemona- Othello arrives- Iago plots and involves Roderigo in his plan; tells him to irritate Cassio and persuades him that Desdemona actually loves Cassio – Roderigo seems unconvinced, but agrees to help Iago, if he helps him in return- ends w/ Iago soliloquy, saying won’t be satisfied until he is equal w/ or has power over Othello |
| Act 2 Scene 2 | A Herald enters and proclaims that Othello is courageous and noble; there will be a party for the defeat of the Turks and his marriage |
| Act 2 Scene 3 | – Cassio and Iago stand guard- they talk about Desdemona’s beauty- Iago persuades Cassio to come and have a drink, so that he will grow angry and start a fight which will ruin his favour w/ Othello- Iago tells lies about Cassio’s drinking habits to soldier Montana- Cassio and Roderigo fight; Roderigo and Montano are injured- Iago tells Othello what has happened (exaggerated?)- Desdemona enters, to see what is going on- Cassio is demoted from lieutenant, very upset- Iago tells him to ask Desdemona for help, as she could convince Othello of his virtue- Cassio leaves, Iago plots to tell Othello of an affair b/w Cassio and Desdemona, which will seem true to him due to Desdemona’s increased fondness for Cassio, while she tries to help him- Roderigo enters, says to Iago he wishes to return to venice, Iago reprimands him- Iago states will use his wife’s position and make her convince Desdemona to take Cassio’s side |
| Act 3 Scene 1 | – some musicians play bad music and they are sent away- Cassio asks a clown to tell Desdemona that he wants to speak to her- Emilia comes and gets Cassio |
| Act 3 Scene 2 | – Othello, Iago and some Lords – Othello asks Iago to send a letter with his respects for the Senator of Venice- they walk to see the fortification walls |
| Act 3 Scene 3 | – Desdemona agrees to help Cassio- Desdemona pleads Cassio’s cause to Othello, but he is unwilling to listen due to Iago’s words about Dsesdemona and Cassio- Iago plants seed of doubt in Othello’s mind that his wife in unfaithful – Othello now suspects that Cassio and Desdemona are having an affair- Iago tells him to notice how often his wife mentions Cassio- after Desdemona drops it, Iago gets the handkerchief from Emilia-he uses it as proof of the affair, saying he saw Cassio wipe his beard with it, and that Cassio talked about Desdemona in his sleep- Othello believes deception and is devastated -he now wants to kill Cassio; Iago promises to help him do so- Iago is given back his position just under/next to Othello- Othello guesses nothing of Iago’s treachery |
| Act 3 Scene 4 | – Desdemona tries to find Cassio for a meeting w/ Othello- Desdemona is sad about losing handkerchief – Othello refuses to meet Cassio, asks for the special handkerchief he gave Desdemona, but it is lost and she cannot give it to him- Othello tells tales of the handkerchief’s magic and the consequences if it is lost or given away- Cassio enters, again asking Desdemona for help; she says she cannot right now- Iago learns of Othello’s anger and goes to speak w/ him- Desdemona cannot comprehend Othello’s turn in character- Bianca and Cassio on stage- they are lovers- Cassio has Desdemona’s handkerchief and gives it to Bianca |
| Act 4 Scene 1 | – Iago and Othello talk about what may have happened in the supposed affair b/w Cassio and Desdemona- Othello goes into an epileptic fit- Iago talks to Cassio about Bianca; Othello thinks they are talking about Desdemona – Bianca enters w/ handkerchief, asking Cassio why he gave it to her and accuses him of cheating- Iago uses Cassio’s possession of the handkerchief as proof – Othello and Iago plan how to kill Desdemona- Iago says he will kill Cassio- letter arrives from the Duke (Venice) through Lodovico, ordering Othello to return to Venice and for Cassio to be governor of Cyprus-in rage Othello hits Desdemona |
| Act 4 Scene 2 | – Othello asks Emilia what she knows about the affair b/w Cassio and Desdemona; she says she knows nothing b/c nothing has happened- Othello and Desdemona argue; he calls her a ‘wh0re’ – Iago tries to comfort Desdemona- Emilia thinks that someone sneaky and conniving set the whole thing up- Desdemona wonders what she can do to win back over Othello- Roderigo and Iago argue, as Roderigo no longer trusts Iago- they plan to kill Cassio together |
| Act 4 Scene 3 | – Othello orders Desdemona to go to bed- Desdemona tells Emilia of her mother’s old nurse who as she sung a “Willow” song as she died- Desdemona now sings the song again- Desdemona can’t believe that any woman would want to cheat on their husband; Emilia insists that they do for the right price- Emilia speaks out about the inequalities b/w husbands and wives |
| Act 5 Scene 1 | – Iago and Roderigo prepare to fight Cassio (Cassio is wearing armor)- Roderigo is injured by Cassio- Iago stabs Cassio in the leg- pretending to not be involved in the fray, Iago comes and kills Roderigo and then tends to Cassio’s wounds- Bianca comes and sees Cassio’s wounds; she is blamed by Iago – Emilia discovers what happened to Cassio |
| Act 5 Scene 2 | – Othello talks about killing Desdemona while she sleeps- Desdemona wakes, and they talk; she tries to convince him of her loyalty- Othello smothers Desdemona- Emilia comes in- she tells Othello that Cassio killed Roderigo but is still alive- Emilia discovers Desdemona is dead; she is very upset and again vouches for her late mistresses’ honesty- Montano, Gratiano, and Iago enter.- Emilia realizes the fray is Iago’s doing; he denies it and tries to shut her up- Emilia tells Othello that she found the handkerchief and gave it to Iago- Othello realizes Iago’s treachery; Iago tries to escape and stabs Emilia in the process- Emilia dies – Cassio comes and tells his side of the story; he has also found letters b/w Iago and Roderigo which act as evidence for their conspiracies – Othello kills himself- Gratiano, Desdemona’s uncle, inherits all of Othello’s property- Cassio is named Lord governor and is left to torture Iago |
Othello Scene By Scene Plot
September 7, 2019