1. LQ: Can I develop my understanding of characterisation?
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AS Paper 1: Othello
Lesson 14
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of characterisation?

2. Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences B4
Outstanding Progress: you will confidently explore through detailed and sophisticated critical analysis how writers use these aspects to create meaning B3
Excellent Progress: you will explore structure, form, language, themes and contexts, commenting on specific aspects with reference to how they shape meaning B2
Good Progress: you will show awareness of structure, form, language, themes and contexts, commenting on specific aspects with reference to how they shape meaning
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?

3. LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
Without looking around the room, back through your notes, or opening the book, answer the following questions as fast as you can (5 minutes)
What is AO1?
Where is the play set?
What is the name of Iago’s wife?
What is AO2?
How is the exam structured?
What do made Desdemona fall in love with Othello?
What is AO3?
Can you remember one of the racist insults from the first scene of the play?
What is AO4?
Make sure that you are making detailed notes as we discuss
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis

4. Class reading of Act 4 scene 1.
LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
Class reading of Act 4 scene 1.
As we read consider the following questions:
Why is this scene particularly upsetting?
What are the specific ways that Othello’s character has transformed
Can you develop your understanding of the way women are presented throughout?
What can you say about the importance of proof?
To what extent do we blame Othello for his own downfall?
Othello – spiral, hits Des, Iago watching over him, Iago suggestion that he
Speech
Violence
Physical ‘savage madness’
Nobility – had the eyes and ears of the Venetian court, now hides so that he can eavesdrop on a conversation
Ext: Can you refer to the play as a whole in your response?
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis

5. LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
1. Why is this scene particularly upsetting?
Witnessing Othello’s downward spiral
Hits Desdemona
The audience watches as Iago stands over him, refers to his game as ‘medicine’
Othello – spiral, hits Des, Iago watching over him, Iago suggestion that he
Speech
Violence
Physical ‘savage madness’
Nobility – had the eyes and ears of the Venetian court, now hides so that he can eavesdrop on a conversation
Ext: Can you refer to the play as a whole in your response?
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis

6. 2. What are the specific ways that Othello’s character has transformed
LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
2. What are the specific ways that Othello’s character has transformed
Loses the power of speech
Loses control of physicality
Othello once has the eyes and ears of the Venetian Court, he now hides so that he can eavesdrop a conversation in his quest to get ‘proof’
Othello – spiral, hits Des, Iago watching over him, Iago suggestion that he
Speech
Violence
Physical ‘savage madness’
Nobility – had the eyes and ears of the Venetian court, now hides so that he can eavesdrop on a conversation
Ext: Can you refer to the play as a whole in your response?
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis

7. LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
3. Can you develop your understanding of the way women are presented throughout?
Misogyny is shown in the way that Cassio refers to Bianca
Bianca only ever seen in relation to men
Cassio laughs as the suggestion that he might marry her
Her jealousy mirrors Othello’s, but as she has no rights, she is unable to assert herself as the wronged party
"I will chop her into messes! Cuckold me!"
Othello – spiral, hits Des, Iago watching over him, Iago suggestion that he
Speech
Violence
Physical ‘savage madness’
Nobility – had the eyes and ears of the Venetian court, now hides so that he can eavesdrop on a conversation
Ext: Can you refer to the play as a whole in your response?
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis

8. LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
4. What can you say about the importance of proof?
Othello insists on proof. To Iago, says ‘woe upon thy life’ should he not be able to get proof
Heavy reference to ocular proof, Othello is happy to wait while Iago lures the information out of Cassio and assumes a great deal despite not being able to hear anything
Props were often seen as cheap and were rarely used within Shakespeare plays yet in Othello we have seen two. What do they symbolise?
Othello – spiral, hits Des, Iago watching over him, Iago suggestion that he
Speech
Violence
Physical ‘savage madness’
Nobility – had the eyes and ears of the Venetian court, now hides so that he can eavesdrop on a conversation
Ext: Can you refer to the play as a whole in your response?
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis

9. LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
5. To what extent do we blame Othello for his own downfall?
What is Othello’s greatest fear at this point? Is it that his wife is sleeping with another man or is it that he is being cuckolded?
Othello reacts angrily thinking he is mocking him as a cuckold (often portrayed as a horned man), saying "Dost though mock me", and his next line is "A horned man's a monster and a beast". Again the dehumanising animalistic imagery demonstrates perhaps his greatest fear to be mocked as a cuckold.
Othello – spiral, hits Des, Iago watching over him, Iago suggestion that he
Speech
Violence
Physical ‘savage madness’
Nobility – had the eyes and ears of the Venetian court, now hides so that he can eavesdrop on a conversation
Ext: Can you refer to the play as a whole in your response?
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis

10. LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
Look at the following extract from Act IV. How does it evidence that Othello is losing the power of thought?
Lie with her, lie on her? We say lie on her,  when they belie her! Lie with her, zounds!, that’s  fulsome! – Handkerchief! confessions! handkerchief!  – To confess, and be hanged for his labour! First, to be  hanged, and then to confess: I tremble at it. Nature  would not invest herself in such shadowing passion  without some instruction. It is not words that shakes  me thus. Pish! Noses, ears and lips. Is’t possible?  Confess? handkerchief! O devil! (IV.1.35–41)
Othello – spiral, hits Des, Iago watching over him, Iago suggestion that he
Speech
Violence
Physical ‘savage madness’
Nobility – had the eyes and ears of the Venetian court, now hides so that he can eavesdrop on a conversation
Ext: Can you refer to the play as a whole in your response?
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis

11. LQ: Can I analyse the effect of foreshadowing in Act 1 Scene 3?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?
LQ: Can I analyse structure, form, language, themes and contexts in Othello?
LQ: Can I identify the changing traits of characters?
There are a number of points to be made about this breakdown. Firstly, Othello’s fractured sense of self is conveyed through the lexis and syntax. Previously the hero spoke of himself in the first and third person (their usage conveyed his nobility and status as hero); now his use of pronouns ‘we’, ‘they’, ‘his’, ‘I’, ‘me’ suggests insecurity. His use of questions suggests this too. Othello’s identity is threatened because he no longer feels he ‘knows’ his wife; he cannot trust her looks and words. There is a terrible irony in the fact that Othello declares 'It is not words that shake me thus'; the events of the play and the violence of his outburst here suggest that words are the cause of Othello’s destruction. Note the use of disjointed prose rather than measured verse: reason has given way to passion. Othello has also begun to use oaths ('zounds!') which are associated with Iago, suggesting not only the ensign’s power as a speaker, but also his ability to influence and control the powers of speech of others. Right at the end of this speech we struggle to make any sense of Othello’s words ('Pish! Noses, ears and lips. Is’t possible? / Confess? handkerchief? O devil!'). These lines suggest the hero’s degradation and degeneration.
Othello – spiral, hits Des, Iago watching over him, Iago suggestion that he
Speech
Violence
Physical ‘savage madness’
Nobility – had the eyes and ears of the Venetian court, now hides so that he can eavesdrop on a conversation

12. Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences B4
Outstanding Progress: you will confidently explore through detailed and sophisticated critical analysis how writers use these aspects to create meaning B3
Excellent Progress: you will explore structure, form, language, themes and contexts, commenting on specific aspects with reference to how they shape meaning B2
Good Progress: you will show awareness of structure, form, language, themes and contexts, commenting on specific aspects with reference to how they shape meaning
LQ: Can I further develop my understanding of characterisation in Act 1?

13. Literary technique quiz
LQ: Can I further my understanding of the plot and begin to look closely at language?
LQ: Can I develop my understanding of the events of and consider their impact on the play as a whole?
Literary technique quiz
words or actions is clear to the audience or reader although unknown to the character.
figure of speech that juxtaposes elements that appear to be contradictory.
Dramatic Irony
Oxymoron
attributing of human emotion and conduct to all aspects within nature
Allusion
Hubris
Pathetic Fallacy
reference to a place, person, or something that happened
excessive pride or self-confidence
Monologue
Aside
Paradox
a statement that contradicts itself 
intended to be heard by the audience but is supposed to be unheard by the other characters in the play
A speech presented by a single character, most often to express their mental thoughts aloud,
Ext: Can you come up wit any others?
1 change/deception
2 with respect but are willing to acknowledge Brab’s accuations of witchcraft
3 agressive
Blank verse
Soliloquy
Foreshadowing
a warning or indication of (a future event)
poetry written in regular metrical but unrhymed lines, almost always iambic pentameters
a speech made to the audience in which a character reveals their inner thoughts
Key words: Play, drama, genre, contexts, historical, social, cultural, race, religion, gender, Venice, Cyprus, attitude, audiences, character analysis