ENG 3U1 OTHELLO SEMINAR/ARGUMENT TOPICS
1. “I am not what I am.” Demonstrate how Iago’s deceptions contribute to the tragedy of the play.
Group members: _______________________________________________________
2. Demonstrate how characters’ fears and/or desires blind them to the true nature or motives of other characters.
Group members: _______________________________________________________
3. “The hero of a Shakespearean play always contributes in some measure to the disaster
in which he perishes” (Bradley). To what degree is this true of Othello?
Group members: _______________________________________________________
4. Othello explains at the end of the play that he “Lov’d not wisely, but too well” (Act 5, scene 2, 340). Illustrate the consequences of loving “not wisely” as it applies to three different characters.
Group members: _______________________________________________________
5. Examine how minor characters unwittingly contribute to the play’s tragic end.
Group members: _______________________________________________________
6. Demonstrate how the play follows the pattern of a classic tragedy, moving from order into chaos and back to a state of order.
Group members: _______________________________________________________
7. Hatred is often skin deep. Demonstrate the role that racial prejudice plays in Othello.
Group members: _______________________________________________________