OTHELLO ESSAY OUTLINE
Choose ONE of the following prompts for your essay ‘outline.’
1. A tragic hero is a larger-than-life person who is brought down by his own tragic flaw and whose downfall
evokes pity and fear in the audience. Discuss whether Othello fits the traditional characterization of a tragic hero
using evidence from the text to support your points.
2. Discuss the topic of appearance vs. reality in Othello by focusing on one or more of the following concepts:
notions of honesty/dishonesty, loyalty/disloyalty, love/lust, rich/poor, witty/dumb or stable/jealous. Provide your
own ideas about the uses of the word honest, and other deceptive words in the play and their various effects on the
audience and the play’s message regarding this theme.
3. Examine the role of jealousy, love, and/or betrayal in the play. You may want to pick one character (Iago or
Othello perhaps?) and focus on one issue. To avoid simply summarizing plot, your examination should focus on
how the character evolves as a result of jealousy, love and/or betrayal and how this leads to the work's underlying
message.
4. The three couples in Othello, Othello and Desdemona, Iago and Emilia, and Cassio and Bianca, create a kind of
structural ring in which masculine and feminine gender roles are explored powerfully and subtly. Focusing on the
female characters, outline an essay in which you discuss precisely how female gender roles are handled. Can
you identify a single role women are expected to fulfill or can you instead identify an array of expectations? Be
aware that Shakespeare’s handing of gender roles is very subtle. To respond to this question well, resist the desire
to come to familiar, or trite, conclusions.
FOR THE OUTLINE, DO THE FOLLOWING:
A. Write a complete introduction to the essay. Underline, highlight, or use bold print for the thesis statement
and for the directional statement.
B. Write the topic sentence for each supporting argument (3 supporting arguments in total). This topic sentence
must show connection to the previous argument and to the thesis.
List your evidence (three pieces of evidence) and find TWO quotations.
Write a concluding sentence for each supporting argument that sums up how your evidence proves your point,
and thus, the thesis.
C. Justify ONE of your supporting arguments in a fully developed paragraph (or two) using evidence from
the play to substantiate your claim. Include at least two quotations with full explanations of their significance in
relation to your argument. Remember to use a well-focused topic sentence, and, to sum up your points in a
concluding sentence that shows how your evidence links to the thesis.
D. Write the conclusion.
IN BRIEF:
1. Introduction – a complete introductory paragraph, including
 THESIS STATEMENT and DIRECTIONAL STATEMENT
2. TOPIC SENTENCE 1
-evidence, evidence (quotation), evidence (quotation)
CONCLUDING SENTENCE 1
3. TOPIC SENTENCE 2
-evidence, evidence (quotation), evidence (quotation)
CONCLUDING SENTENCE 2
4. TOPIC SENTENCE 3
-evidence, evidence (quotation), evidence (quotation)
CONCLUDING SENTENCE 3
FULLY DEVELOP ONE OF THE ABOVE SUPPORTING ARGUMENTS
5. Conclusion: Restate thesis and summarize your supporting arguments in light of the evidence you have discussed. As well,
briefly sum up how your thesis applies to the here and now in this day and age, or to life in general.