Aaron Anker
AP English 2012
Othello’s Honorable Justice
Othello is perhaps one of the most docile and arguably a foolish protagonist of Shakespeare’s;
his agenda is simple and straightforward, establish and maintain justice at any cost. Othello's tragic
inability to understand how someone could lie to him fits perfectly and tragically in his super objective
to protect justice and make his world fair and just for everyone. Othello is to blame for each of his
actions and is responsible for those actions. But what makes Othello seem uncompassionate and cruel is
not what it seems, it is more than a desire for vengeance that he never should have had, it is a desire for
justice on a fundamental level. Iago recognizes that Othello will do anything to be just and this is
perhaps one reason why Iago feels wronged by Othello. The death of Desdemona, the expulsion of
Cassio, and the death of Othello himself are all desperate attempts to maintain justice and control by
Othello in a situation when he does not have all the facts and cannot make completely rational
decisions.
One of the most controversial actions taken on by Othello is the murder of his wife. In the
opening acts Othello clearly demonstrates his unabashed love for his wife, yet in Act V after he has killed
her he regards her with deep contempt and establishes that the murder of Desdemona is an act of
justice.
She’s like a liar gone to burning hell!
‘Twas I that killed her.
Othello’s actions are so just in fact that without knowing he is completely wrong he seems to almost
have just reasoning to murder Desdemona and even kills her in an almost respectable way. Before
Othello even accuses her of adultery he asks her
Have you prayed tonight, Desdemon?
Aaron Anker
AP English 2012
As if he hopes somehow that even in his cruel act of killing her she will go to heaven, which stresses
beyond the moment of her death his undying love for her. “He brings himself to kill his wife in spite of
his personal feelings—he does not want to kill her, but his sense of justice demands that he do so.”
(Crawford, Total Allegiance to Justice). Yet we as the readers challenge his decision and argue that his
actions were an overreaction and shortsighted in the red mist of his own anger. Using the evidence
available to him Othello makes an informed decision and follows up with appropriate and swift action to
compensate and regain control. Like a well trained military officer he is swift in his judgment and
thorough in his retaliation, which is perhaps a commentary in itself by Shakespeare that all military
personnel are somewhat dangerous and unstable because of their speedy and often brutal actions.
Othello kills Desdemona because given the information he has (though it is false information), he
reconciles the fact that the necessary thing to do is to kill Desdemona to set an example and maintain
justice, something a military man would and should do to maintain order.
Then there is the question of Othello’s own death, it can be seen as a mark of defeat and
recognition that he has lost everything and cannot come back. But perhaps more than that is his own
realization that mistakes have been made, he was shortsighted, he was foolish, and his gathered
information was misinformed. At the moment of his realization that he must right the wrong he has
committed he goes back to Desdemona as if he had never left, saying
I kissed thee ere I killed thee. No way but this,
Killing myself, to die upon a kiss.
Such a bold statement is makes perfect sense to the reader who has seen Othello’s descent into
madness at the hands of Iago, but it also reflects on Othello’s compassion that runs deeper than his
desire for military justice and honorable reason. Othello killed his wife our of justice and honor, he said
so himself.
Aaron Anker
AP English 2012
(speaking to lodovico who asked “what shall be said of thee?”)
Why anything:
An honorable murderer, if you will;
For nought I did in hate, but all in honor.
Yet he is also just as firm in his justice upon himself. When he knows the truth his only desire is to make
sure justice is served to those who need it, Iago may not be dead but he was unable to commit his crime
successfully, leaving Othello to deal justice upon himself as necessary.
Be not afraid, though you do see me weaponed.
Here is my journey’s end, here is my butt
And very seamark of my utmost sail:
Othello’s desire for justice transcends all other mediums; he is willing to sacrifice even his own life in the
name of justice because he too committed unforgivable actions. Othello uses the only tool he has left at
the end of the play that he has at his disposal, the ability to deal justice and keep his honor. By killing
himself he proves to the audience that no matter what, no one can truly take away another person’s
free will. Othello’s message to Iago is that he may have been lead blindly so far as to kill his own wife,
but Iago can never choose if Othello can live or die.
It is without a doubt that Othello eventually chooses his own destiny. Despite his mistakes and
how blinded by Iago he was, he maintains his desire for justice. Othello demonstrates that even though
he may not like something, if it is the best possible solution, he is willing to make the honorable and just
decision no matter the cost, even if it meant taking his own life and the life of Desdemona, whom he
loved dearly. Othello’s militaristic acquisition of evidence and swift judgement made him particularly
susceptible to the treachery of Iago but also helped him swiftly reestablish justice once he was handed
Aaron Anker
AP English 2012
the truth. Shakespeare’s last message of the play then, is that no matter what influences each of our
lives, the soul cannot be conquered.