By 10:30 a.m. Tuesday (2/26) morning, please post your
1.) Thesis Statement. This statement must be clear, well-worded, and ARGUABLE. No facts or summary!
2.) 2 or 3 Topic Sentences (depending on whether you will have 2 or 3 body paragraphs to support your thesis). These sentences must also be clear, well-worded, and ARGUABLE.
I will post my response to your work by the end of the day tomorrow, so check back for valuable feedback. If I do not approve any part of your posted work, you MUST repost with your updated work so I can make sure you are on the right track.
I am doing this to help you, people. Don't waste this opportunity to get feedback on these important essay elements...
Thesis: The persona that Iago demonstrates in public differs drastically from his private persona that illustrates his true selfish intentions.
ReplyDeleteFirst topic sentence: Iago is a great friend in public but in private it is clear he has no true friends and cares only for himself.
Second topic sentence: In public, Iago shows great love and loyalty to Othello, but in private Iago shows nothing but hatred.
Third topic sentence: When dealing with different crises in this play, Iago appears to act selflessly to help others publically, but privately readers see he is acting only for himself.
Great, Ravonte!!
Deletethesis: Othello acts very anxious around Iago, but acts very relaxed and nonchalant around Desdemona.
ReplyDeletetopic sentence 1:Around line 3.3.133, Othello is very intense about getting proof from Iago.
topic sentence 2: Around line 3.3.94, Othello is very kind and does not want to hurt Desdemona.
thesis: at the start of the play, Othello is rational and Desdemona is passionate; Iago's manipulation makes them switch their demeanors and thus compromise their identities.
Deletets1: in the beginning Othello acts and thinks rationally while Desdemona follows her heart.
ts2: Othello's passionate and demanding behavior in 3.4 causes Desdemona think more rationally about her husband.
THESIS:
ReplyDeleteOthello is a weak character because he is bipolar and impressionable, and people use him to intimidate others with his emotions.
TOPIC SENTENCE 1:
Oedipus will listen to anyone and believe them; but if two people contradict each other, he will become angry.
TOPIC SENTENCE 2:
Oedipus assumes that people are trying to plot against him when really nobody except Iago wants to hurt him.
TOPIC SENTENCE 3:
Iago lies to Oedipus to get him mad at characters to furthermore continue his plot of madness.
(Othello is a weak character because he is bipolar and impressionable, GREAT) (and people use him to intimidate others with his emotions. I DON'T UNDERSTAND THIS PART. By "people" do you mean Iago?)
DeleteOedipus will listen to anyone (singular) and believe them (plural); but if two people contradict each other, he will become angry.
Topic Sentence 2 is a fact.
TS3: I think you mean Othello, not Oedipus. And this is a fact.
I like your analysis of Othello as weak, Jake. You have two reasons he is weak (he is inconsistent and impressionable). Can you think of a third reason he is weak? I think you will have a great outline then.
Thesis: The handkerchief is supposed to be a sign of love and affection, but in actuality it only spawns hate and jealousy.
ReplyDeleteTopic sentence: The handkerchief represents Othello’s faithfulness in Desdemona, so when the handkerchief falls that is the transition point between when he has little doubt on the matter to when he falls into Iago’s trap.
Topic sentence: Othello misuses the purity of the meaning of the handkerchief to uncover the truth of whether he has been made a cuckold of or not.
Thesis and topic sentence 1 are good (really push yourself to prove TS1--you will need some close analysis to prove it is THE turning point).
DeleteTS2 seems factual and wordy. Can you come up with another supporting point about the symbolism of the handkerchief? This could be a good place for you to argue that it causes jealousy with Bianca as well.
Thesis: The men in Othello tend to have secret meaning to what they say, while the women are very obvious and blunt with the message they try to convey; this lack in communication ultimately leads to Iago succeeding in his plan to ruin Othello.
ReplyDeleteTopic sentence: When Bianca was talking to Cassio, she was being very clear that she was jealous of Cassio's other woman. This shows how she is willing to express her feelings, while Oedipus is very quiet about is opinion.
Topic sentence: Iago uses hidden meanings in a way that lead Othello to believe that Iago truly has his beset interest at heart, when in reality Iago is out to ruin his life.
Topic sentence: Desdemona is very clear when telling Othello to reinstate Cassio, but what she doesn't realize is that in Othello's eyes she is incriminating herself when in reality she is just trying to e a good friend to Cassio.
Thesis: Needs to be more concise and revised. Also, I don't think you are saying it is a lack of communication as much as MIScommunication, right? They communicate differently.
DeleteI would also organize your essay differently. Have one paragraph about how women communicate, another about how men communicate, and then a concluding paragraph about how the different affects them both.
Thesis: Othello, like Iago, becomes his own opposite/enemy. (He also brings this whole situation on himself--which will later tie into my conclusion as to why)
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Othello's jealousy eventually turns; he goes from the beginning of Act 3 being content, to an insanely jealous man who is raging with anger at Desdemona and Cassio.
Topic Sentence 2: Othello's love for Desdemona changes like the wind, and he is too quick to judge. At one minute he loves her and says she wouldn't cheat on him, to the next where he's cursing her and plotting to kill her. Once Iago tells him something, he starts to believe what he is being told after awhile.
Topic Sentence 3: Othello's transformation from a strong military leader to an unconfident and suggestible ruler proves to show that he not only has two sides but that he is letting his love life interfere with his job--hurting him even more.
DeleteLove your thesis.
DeleteYour first two topic sentences are plot summary more than arguments...make sure every topic sentence is stating an argument about one way Othello is his own worst enemy. You are on the right track with the end of topic sentence 3.
Thesis Statement: Othello goes from being an eloquent and physically powerful general to a person who is full of insecurities, and is in a marriage that suddenly consists of destructive jealousy.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence1: Iago is the master of transforming the feelings Othello has towards others. In this case, Iago is the one who planted the jealousy idea in Othello’s mind.
Topic Sentence 2: Desdemona begins to realize the jealousy has completely taken over the loveable man she once knew.
Topic Sentence 3: Othello puts all of his trust in one person at a time. He puts his entire confidence in the honesty of Iago, and that becomes the main reason for his troubled marriage.
This is too much summary, Maddie. The most argumentative part of your idea here is that Othello makes the mistake of only trusting one person at a time.
DeleteI also like the idea of analyzing their marriage and arguing for the reasons why their marriage becomes so vulnerable so quickly.
Thesis: Iago's and Emilia's relationship contradict each other because even though they are husband and wife they mostly say negative things to each other, especially Iago.
ReplyDeleteTopic sentence: Iago is sexist because he is against women
Topic sentence: Iago abhors Emilia.
Topic sentence: Emilia hates Iago as well and doesn’t trust men.
Great, Misaki. But I am not sure their relationship "contradicts each other"--I think it is more that their relationship is flawed.
DeleteThesis: Black and white are the most important opposites in Othello because they are what create the chaos in the play.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Iago is white physically, but he is really black inside, so he portrays a good perception to other people that easily believe his goodness, but this only ends up creating the dark chaos that occurs.
Topic Sentence 2: Othello is black physically, but he is really white inside, but he contradicts Iago's perceptions because he is perceived as he truly is inside, but Iago's darkness takes over Othello's goodness, which creates much more chaos.
Whew! I am a little confused by these topic sentences, Janet, but I love the idea that black and white creates chaos (grey, if you will) in this play. Can you develop the idea that black (evil) mixed with white (goodness) leads to grey (chaos)?
DeleteThesis: Black and white are the most important opposites in Othello because they create grey, which is the chaos in the play.
DeleteTopic Sentence 1: Iago is white physically, but he is really black inside, this creates the shade of grey, the shade representing chaos because the perception of what he is, good, goes against the reality that he's bad, which creates the murky grayness.
Topic Sentence 2: Othello is black physically , but he is really white inside, but Iago's darkness takes over Othello's goodness, which creates the grey shade and thus the chaos.
Thesis statement: Out of the main characters Othello, Desdemona, Cassio, and Iago, Iago is the only one who has a name that suits him : Iago "he who supplants."
ReplyDeleteTopic sentence 1: Cassio's name means "vain" ;although he is not, Iago supplants people's perceptions into thinking that he is in fact, vain, thus turning Cassio into an ass.
Topic sentence 2: Iago replaces Othello's once angelelic perceptions of his wife Desdemona into seeing her as a lying demon worthy of ill-fated punishments such as death.
Great thesis, Christelle (nice research--where did you find this?). But I would make the topic sentences more about the ways Iago supplants. Be more direct and clear.
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ReplyDeleteThesis: Iago uses the relationship between jealousy and love to manipulate everyone throughout his plan to take down Othello and Cassio.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Rodrigo started out just being in love with Desdemona, but Iago used his jealousy to turn that love into hate for Othello.
Topic 2: Without Cassio's love for Othello, Iago would never had been able to complete his plan.
Topic 3: The love for Othello and Desdemona was the strongest love in the play, but after Iago's manipulation it has turned into the strongest hatred in the play.
Your thesis and topic sentence 1 are strong and on target, Zack, but your final two topic sentences veer off course a bit. Stay focused on how Iago uses the relationship between love and jealousy to manipulate people (Othello, Roderigo, and Cassio).
DeleteTHESIS: Throughout the whole play, the role of the blind against the sighted foreshadow and determine Othello's fate.
ReplyDeleteTOPIC SENTENCE 1: The blind characters helped Iago put his plan into action by believing his 'good guy' actions.
TOPIC SENTENCE 2: In order for Iago to 'see' more, he blinded the other characters with his lies. Iago used this 'sight' to further put his plan into action.
Hmm...so who else "sees"? I like the idea of the blind and the seeing, but I don't see how it translates to this play. Who is the blind? Who can see? Interesting idea, but it needs to be fleshed out.
DeleteTopic Sentence: In Othello, the women are so naive about who the men really are because they trust them too much. The men in Othello do not trust the women, and because of this the women suffer. Too much trust and the lack of trust between males and females is the downfall of the characters.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1:Othello's lack of trust of Desdemona makes him assume she has done something wrong.
Topic Sentence 2:Emilia's is too trustworthy of Iago, and that causes him to take advantage of her.
Bailey, you can use this thesis, but this is pretty exactly what I told you all in class yesterday. You need to elevate it to an original point. The two topic sentences are also pretty much plot summary. Can you take this idea to a new level?
Delete
ReplyDeletethesis
White and black represents the good and bad, and the foul and the pure respectively. The colours are used to physically describe something as well as figuratively. In Shakespeare’s Othello, white and black are used throughout the play to describe the Moor in his rise to pure white and fall into black.
topic sentence 1
Othello rises into whiteness in front of the Duke because of his love story that defends his relationship with Desdemona against the accusations of it being a result of “spells and medicines bought of mountebanks” (Act 1.3. 74).
topic sentence 2
The Duke further brightens Othello’s reputation. He is one of the main characters of the play (although he contains few lines) because without his representation, Brabantio would have never begrudgingly accepted Othello and Desdemona’s marriage
topic sentence 3
Iago soon convinces Othello that Desdemona has wronged him and is the cause of Othello’s fall into blackness.
White and black represents the good and bad, and the foul and the pure respectively (**This isn't the correct use of "respectively." You need to say "white and black represent good and pure, bad and foul, respectively." You also have a misplaced modifier in the second sentence: The colours are used to physically describe something as well as figuratively.
DeleteAnd as for your thesis: you need to focus your essay on the use of the words "white" and "black" because that is what your thesis seems to be focused on: "In Shakespeare’s Othello, white and black are used throughout the play to describe the Moor in his rise to pure white and fall into black."
Thesis: Othello and Iago are two main characters in the play that exhibit the dual personality, which in turn affects other characters and how they behave.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: From the start of play up until the middle of act 3, Othello remains the eloquent, confident warrior and then suddenly becomes "a green monster" who can't think straight anymore.
Topic Sentence 2: Iago, the evil, hatred filled man manipulates his personality throughout the play to make him seem like a honest, concerned friend who is on their side.
Topic Sentence 3: Othello and Iago, due to their reshaped personalities, change the views of other characters making them turn against each other.
Can you push this deeper? Your thesis isn't arguable enough, and your TS1 and TS2 are summary. You need an argument about Iago and Othello.
DeleteThesis: Othello is a brave and independent general who oversees the entire military, but he is often manipulated and there for blind.
ReplyDeleteTS1: Othello has a fickle mind and often listens to story's told to him by those around him.
TS2: Othello's skin color is one in the same with what he sees, darkness.
TS3: The great general often boasts about his military successes but his blindness to the fact that Iago is manipulating him causes his downfall.
**therefore
Delete**stories
How is Othello blind, Billy? I don't really understand your argument re: Othello here. You need to go farther than Othello is blind to Iago's manipulations.
Thesis: Iago wears a mask: he wears a mask that makes him appear caring; in reality, he's cunning and manipulating. This two-facedeness ruins other people's lives.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence: He first sets out to tarnish Cassio's reputation. To achieve his goal of destroying Cassio, Desdemona, and Othello, Iago uses Rodreigo for his money.
Topic Sentence: Iago moves on to ruining Desdeomna through Othello and Cassio by planting lies in their heads.
Topic Sentence: Finally, Iago destroys Othello by not only having him erase everything that he cared about, but also by having Othello realize that he was manipulated into doing it.
Too much plot summary, Crystal. We know Iago is two-faced.
DeleteThesis=The reason for Othello's downfall is his ambition and lust for total control in his relationship and military duty.
ReplyDelete1st topic sentence=Othello, a Moor had to overcome numerous racial hardships in order to attain his social status.
2nd topic sentence=Due to the absence of a military obligation, Othello becomes so consumed with his marriage to Desdemona, that he inadvertently ruins it.
Conclusions- Othello's ambitions to have a perfect and honest marriage coupled with an esteemed military reputation was just too much for Othello as he ended with neither.
Quotes= "and farewell the plum’d troops and the big wars
That make ambition virtue! O, farewell,
Farewell the neighing steed and the shrill trump,
The spirit-stirring drum, th’ear piercing fife,
The royal banner, and all quality,
Pride, pomp, and circumstance of glorious war!”
(3.2 353-359)
James, stay focused on your thesis: prove that Othello's downfall is his ambition and lust for control. Your first topic sentence seems to contradict this thesis by saying that his diligence helped him achieve social status (not fall). I like TS2, but I am not sure how you can prove it.
DeleteThesis - Although Othello and Cassio share similar military rank, they differ completely in terms of social and personal lives. Cassio is viewed as a pure, and cultured venetian, as opposed to coarse unpolished Othello. Cassio and Othello parallel each other as opposites in many ways throughout the text.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1 - Cassio and Othello differ in the way they are viewed by other characters in the play. Cassio is a white-born venetian, thought of as pure man, whereas Othello, the moor, comes of as a rugged foreigner at times.
Topic 2 - Cassio possesses one ability that eludes Othello, the ability to confront problems with the opposite sex head on. This ability defines the contrast between the two because in completely embodies the fact that Cassio is smooth in his personal life, as a white venetian should be, whereas Othello is uncouth in his personal life, just as most moors are thought to be
I like the idea that Cassio and Othello are opposites in this play. That said, I would limit your arguments to that which you can prove in the text (saying things like "just as most moors are thought to be" are generalities that are tough to prove with the text).
DeleteTHESIS: During the olden times, people were judged based on the color of their skin. People thought that if a person was black racially, his personality was evil and corrupt, whereas if a person was white, he was viewed as pure and innocent. Othello explains a completely different view. Iago is white racially, but his personality and morality is immoral and cruel. Othello, who is black, is perceived as strong, loyal and innocent.
ReplyDeleteTOPIC SENTENCE 1: Iago uses his two faced persona to mislead people into thinking that he is a loyal and a loving person;however, his heart is wicked and merciless.
TOPIC SENTENCE 2: Othello can be seen as a loyal, courageous, and clever person. But as the book progresses, it is evident that due to Othello's naivety, he falls into the trap of Iago's lie, and believes every word Iago says because Othello is a simple man at heart.
Farah, you don't need the first two sentences--they are overly general.
DeleteWhat duality are you focusing on? Black and white? If so, what are you arguing? That a character's race directly contrasts or masks his true personality?
Thesis: Reputation is what others think of you and Iago uses his own false, honest reputation to tarnish the good reputation of others.
ReplyDeletetopic sentence 1: Because of his fake reputation Iago is seen as a voice of trust and reason to the other characters.
topic sentence 2: Iago is able to manipulate people so well because he subtly hides his motives behind his reputation.
topic sentence 3: Iago repeatedly worsens Cassio’s reputation by abusing the false friendship between them
topic sentence 4: Iago tarnishes Othello and Desdemona’s reputations because he manipulates Othello’s insecurities about his reputation.
topic sentence 4: Iago tarnishes Othello and Desdemona's reputations by manipulating Othello's insecurities about his own reputation.
DeleteAnalyzing reputation is a good way to go here. I agree that it is ironic that Iago uses his good reputation to damage others' reputations.
DeleteIn your paper, stay focused on how Iago USES both his reputation and others' reputations to get what he wants. He treats reputation as a tool to achieve his devious ends.
Thesis Statement: Darkness and light are the two opposing forces always fighting for control of a person, yet they are shown in perfect balance in Iago because of his attitude in giving helpful advice to others balancing out with his nefarious plots to crush each character.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence #1: Iago's helpful advice and encouragement is in tune with his evil because while saving Roderigo from killing himself he planned on stealing all of his money and using him in his schemes against Cassio.
Topic Sentence #2: Iago's evil plans for Cassio were equitable to his propositions for Cassio to get his lieutenancy back and stop him from causing further damage to himself or his reputation.
Topic Sentence #3: The symmetry of darkness and light in Iago is best seen with his advice to Othello for dealing with Desdemona's faith by planting seeds of doubt while just asking Othello to watch his woman act.
I like the idea that Iago's intentions for every character are both good and bad. He is helping someone while also hurting that person. Clean up your thesis (you don't need the beginning--focus on Iago specifically helping and hurting people at the same time) and you will be good to go.
DeleteThesis: In reality, white symbolizes purity, and black symbolizes evil, but in the play, there are many instances when those meanings are flipped.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence: Iago is a white man who has a black spirit.
Topic Sentence: Othello is a black man who has a white spirit, but later, his purity is corrupted by Iago's black spirit.
Topic Sentence: Bianca is a name that means white, which symbolizes purity, but her personality is black and corrupted.
This works for an analytical paper, but it's not original--we talked about this in class. Still, it's an argument that is at the heart of the play--feel free to continue with it.
DeleteAlso, I wouldn't say that Bianca's "personality" is black and corrupted--isn't it more of her reputation and status?
Thesis: Othello cannot separate his instincts as a warrior from his emotions as a husband from his loyalty as a friend.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence #1: Othello abandons his friendship with Cassio because he can't keep his jealousy under control.
Topic Sentence #2: Othello begins to think of Desdemona as an enemy in battle because he can't overcome suspicions he has as a warrior.
Great thesis, but the topic sentences need some work. Really focus on how the boundaries between war and marriage and friendship blur for Othello in this play.
DeleteThesis-Bianca and Roderigo are opposites not only in class, but also in personality. Roderigo is wealthy Venetian man who should be bold and proud, but he is actually self-conscious and naive. Whereas, Bianca is a courtesan from Cyrprus who is thought of as classless and disgusting, but she is actually straightforward and proud. These character’s aspects prove that reputation does not mean everything, and more often than not one’s reputation differs from one’s true nature.
ReplyDeleteTS1- Due to their personality differences, Roderigo and Bianca face adversity in opposite ways.
TS2- Despite his high class Roderigo fails to get the girl of his dreams: Desdemona, but despite her low class, Bianco is able to get the man of her dreams: Cassio. Therefore, character determines who you end up with, not reputation.
Needs revision, but I love the argument at the heart of it: reputation differs from character.
DeleteTS1 is too vague and seemingly unrelated to character, though.
Thesis: The lack of communication between characters is the reason for their downfall.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: If Cassio ‘d communicated with Othello about the fight instead of running to Desdemona there wouldn’t have been suspicion.
Topic 2: If there would’ve been more communication between Othello and Desdemona they wouldn’t of been in the situation they are currently in.
Good thesis--but you two topic sentences are hypotheticals! You can't prove hypotheticals!
DeleteThesis: Iago uses his two-faced personality to move his own agenda forward, which is to bring everyone else down while bringing himself to a higher rank.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Iago tells Roderigo to "Put money in thy purse" and cheer up, but he really wants to use Roderigo's money for his own self gain.
Topic sentence 2: Iago tells Cassio that reputation is an imposition, but then when Iago talks to Othello, he says that a person's reputation is very important.
Topic sentence 3: When Iago talks to Othello, he appears as if he loves Othello, but he is actually planting a seed of jealousy in Othello.
So you are arguing that Iago appears to HELP Roderigo, Cassio, and Othello while in reality he is actually hurting all of them? This will work well for this essay, because you are showing that Iago's tactics (help them) directly contradict his motivations (hurt them).
DeleteThesis: In passionate relationships there is a very thin line that can be crossed by almost anything. That much passion and its ability to alternate between love/hate and loyalty/betrayal is the root of all destruction in Othello.
ReplyDeleteTS1: The line between love and hate is influenced by innuendo, subterfuge, and evil.
TS2: The line between loyalty and betrayal was triggered by one event.
TS3: The handkerchief is the symbol of lost love, false hate, and apparent betrayal.
Great thesis. Just make sure in your topic sentences that you stay focused on how the line between the extremes is very thin.
DeleteThesis: Throughout the play two behaviors that complement each other are observed. Every time a character indirectly hurt tan other character the act was done intentionally, and every time a character directly hurt an other character the act was done unintentionally.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence number 1: Iago uses Roderigo to connect all the bad things he's doing in a plan that no other character have access until the end of the play.
Topic Sentence number 2: Othello dismiss Cassio from his post because he was drunk, but it was a precipitation reaction of Othello while Iago encouraged Cassio to drink
Topic Sentence number 3:Iago is intentionally trying to make Othello and Desdemona brake up but he just plant the idea of a betrayal in the head of Othello, while Emilia, who did not want to hurt anyone, directly hit Desdemona getting physically Desdemonas handkerchief.
Great thesis, Alice: Every time a character indirectly hurt another character, the act was done intentionally, and every time a character directly hurt another character, the act was done unintentionally. Very observant. Good job.
DeleteThesis: Othello maintains a stable role as a leader in the military, but when it comes to his marriage with Desdemona, Othello fails to make their realtionship work out for the better.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Othello becomes dipicted as dumb and lacks his own opinion when it comes to Iago telling him how Desdemona is cheating on him, and Othello is left to believe everything he hears.
Topic 2: Othello continues to disregard Desdemona's thoughts and opinions, and this will only lead to a bump road a head in miscommunication.
So Othello is a great leader but a terrible husband? Can you analyze why these are contradictory roles for him?
DeleteThesis statement: Although Iago’s spoken words manipulate Othello and are the cause of Othello losing trust in Desdemona, it is Iago’s unsaid thoughts that end up destroying Othello more because they make him imagine the worst.
ReplyDeleteTS1:As Iago drops subtle hints, he is also planting a seeds in Othello’s mind which causes Othello to break down on his own.
TS2:Iago’s withdraw of the truth causes Othello to want to know more and keep digging himself in more of Iago’s lies.
Great. You're good to go.
DeleteThesis: Roderigo's simplicity completes the complex character of Iago by exhibiting his various traits that make him the villain that he is.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Roderigo's stupidity and naiveté allow him to fall into Iago's schemes with ease, emphasizing the idea that Iago's tricks have a resounding effect on people.
Topic 2: Roderigo's blatant loyalty towards Iago provides a spotlight on Iago's hidden intentions and unfaithfulness.
Topic 3: The lovesickness in Roderigo brings out the hatred in Iago and shows the empty heart within the soldier.
Is Roderigo Iago's FOIL? Or is he Iago's first test target--Iago tries a trick on him and then uses it for real on Othello?
DeleteThesis: In "Othello," military and domestic issues often clash with each other. One person will be dealing with military/work problems while the other person will be working to fix domestic/love issues. This often causes miscommunication.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Cassio asks Bianca to simply replicate a handkerchief, but Bianca is more concerned about winning over Cassio.
Topic Sentence 2:While Iago is concerned about his position in the military, Othello is more worried about his love for Desdemona.
Topic Sentence 3: A prime example of this pair of opposites is when Desdemona and Othello argue about the handkerchief and Cassio.
Great. You're good to go.
DeleteThesis Statement: Throughout Act 3, Scene 3, a token of Othello and Desdemona's love is often alluded to, sometimes as a handkerchief and sometimes as a napkin, which have opposite meanings.
ReplyDeleteTS1: Othello first refers to the handkerchief as a napkin. Napkins are usually taken for granite and can be tampered with. This represents Othello and Desdemona's love for each other. When Emilia picks up the napkin, she says "I'll give't Iago. What he will do with it Heaven knows, not I" (131).
TS2: When Cassio refers to the handkerchief, he says the work is well done and that he would like it copied (167). This symbolizes everyone thinking, including themselves, that Desdemona and Othello is elegant and pure, like the handkerchief.
Like I said when we discussed this, I think this idea is really smart (handkerchief=elegant, pure; napkin=baseless, worthless)--I just hope you have found some passages that specifically use the language of "napkin" or "handkerchief" to help you prove your point.
DeleteTHESIS: In Othello, truth and falsehood continually progress along the timeline of knowledge until what was once a truth now exists as a lie; therefore, what appears to be commonly known is in fact relative and dynamic.
ReplyDeleteTS 1: The most prevalent and plentiful fact that Othello first believes to be true is that of Iago’s honesty, but this portrayed persona morphs from one of affection to one of deceit, thus inverting the truth into a sinister lie.
TS 2: Toward the beginning of the play, Othello perceives Brabantio as the liar because of his threat regarding Desdemona’s faith and potential betrayal; however, as Iago’s plan progresses, Othello’s perception of the truth regarding his marriage to Desdemona completely flips with Iago's introduction of jealousy into Othello's mind.
Thesis: Throughout the play, Othello is unable to tell the difference between were military heroism ends and were love begins.
ReplyDeleteTP: From the very beginning, Othello's career has affected his marriage life.
TP: Othello thinks that his success in the field will keep his marriage going.
TP: Othello is desperate to cling to his soldier identity, too much so that he can't see what it is doing to his love life.
Thesis: In “Othello,” many of the characters have high military ambition, which ends up causing all of the domestic problems in the story.
ReplyDeleteTS: In order for Iago to attain a higher position in the military, he mercilessly creates domestic problems for Othello and Desdemona.
TS: Desdemona’s generous act of attempting to help Cassio regain his spot as military lieutenant backfires domestically because it adds to Othello’s insecurity of Desdemona’s infidelity.
TS: Because Othello is such an important general, Desdemona is quick to assume that Othello’s worries pertain to the military, which highlights how unaware she is of her serious domestic problem.
THESIS: Those who can be trusted and those who cannot are often very difficult to differentiate.
ReplyDeleteTOPIC: With Iago and Othello in comparison, Othello is the one who has a name containing the significant word, hell, which might symbolize an impurity in Othello's life or honor. While Iago's name and personality suggest that he is very kind and caring, he is actually the one who deceives people.
TOPIC: While Desdemona and Othello' relationship is almost entirely pure with no hardships or scandals, the couple has to make the choice to believe in the gossip going around about their relationship, or to trust each other.
Thesis/Introduction
ReplyDeleteThroughout Othello, all of the characters struggle to decipher what is real and what is not. This struggle is magnified by the fact that many of the characters are gullible or easily controlled. Desdemona, the strong, independent woman and Othello, the powerful, cunning military leader, fall into this trap and begin to question everything they thought they knew about each other. The act of questioning themselves is what turns out to be their destruction. Although Desdemona and Othello seem to be powerful, independent characters madly in love, they easily succumb to questioning all they know in the search to discover who they really married.
Topic 1:
Iago is able to manipulate both Othello and Desdemona, and when he is done, they are completely changed people who their spouse does not recognize.
Topic 2:
Othello and Desdemona don’t really know each other as well as they thought, making it easy for them to jump to false conclusions.
Thesis: In the beginning of the play, Iago and Othello are polar opposites, but by the end of the play, they are mirrors of each other.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Othello begins by trusting Desdemona completely, but by Act 3, he is as jealous as Iago wants him to be.
Topic 2: Othello begins by noticing Iago's manipulations and disregarding them, but by Act 3, he is mimicking every one of them.
Love your thesis, Diana. I agree with TS2, but I don't see Othello as a mirror in TS1. Are you going to argue that he is as jealous as Iago? Or as suspicious and conniving?
DeleteThesis: In Othello, the main characters' personalities change from one extreme to another.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Cassio goes from the sweet, loving friend of Othello to a wild drunkard threatening a man's life.
Topic Sentence 2: Othello starts the play as a wonderful, loving husband, but as the play progresses, he becomes a sinister man full of jealousy and hatred toward his wife.
Topic Sentence 3: Iago is able to morph his personality and become a seemingly honest, trustworthy man rather than the evil, angry, envying man that he actually is.
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ReplyDeleteThesis: Iago easily manipulated people in to becoming more evil and showed no remorse when doing so. Iago showed that it is easier for one to become evil than it is for one to become good.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1:Iago bestows his evil power among good people and forces them believe his lies without them knowing it.
Topic Sentence 2: There are a myriad of naive characters in Othello who easily fall in to Iago's evil plans and like Iago, they show no remorse to what they are doing.
Topic Sentence 3: Iago is capable of the unthinkable. Unfortunately, Iago changes Othello for the worst and once Othello is evil, there is no turning back.
Thesis: In the play, the characters tell so many lies that change what happens in the play because they all should have been truths.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Iago is always trying to talk to Othello to convince him about Desdemona and how she is with Cassio.
Topic Sentence 2: Desdemona never tells Othello that she is cheating on him and making him a cuckhold.
Topic Sentence 3: From the beginning of the play, Iago is lying too much.
thesis: Othello comes across as an excellent military leader who leads his country to success, however; Othello fails to be as accomplished in his domestic lifestyle as a husband as he is in the work force.
ReplyDeletetopic 1: Othello’s eminence grants him a spot in Cyprus to further continue his military success.
topic 2: Othello is weak in his domestic customs and is unable to speak up for himself.
Thesis: Iago constantly surrounds himself in a nebulous of contradictions, that prove to put him in a bad place with other people.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Iago swears to Othello that he loves him and that he is loyal where in reality, he is most certainly not.
Topic 2: Iago lies to his wife, Emilia, and confiscates their relationship together.
Thesis: The line between public, private, and work is often blurred by the characters in Othello.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Othello cannot distinguish the difference between private and public information and how it effects him.
Topic 2: Othello combines his private life and his work life and believes what happens in one, will directly effect the other.
Thesis: Othello relies on the trust of the bad guys when it comes to important thing like his marriage instead of the trust of the good people.
ReplyDeletetopic 1: Othello trusts Iago because he always says he loves you and that he is honest when he is just lying
topic 2: Othello allows Iago to change is outlook on Cassio, when Cassio only wants the best for him.
Thesis: Iago lies to everyone manipulating them to do things that he wants to happen. He plays with their minds and makes a chess match out of their lives.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Iago goes behind people back and makes them believe something that isnt true.
Topic 2: Iago is two faced just because of the fact he likes to see drama unfold.
Thesis: Othello's personality changes based on who he is around.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Othello constantly talks behind others backs even when he claims to love them.
Topic 2: Othello's opinions are extremely based off of what others tell him/think
Thesis: In "Othello," the characters show different behaviors depending on whether they are dealing with domestic or military problems.
ReplyDeleteTopic: Othello is confident when going into battle, but as soon as he finds out there won't be a battle, his state of mind switches to his less-secure domestic one.
Topic: Iago's personality changes as he becomes less of a dormant, domestic soldier to a metaphorical "soldier" against Othello.
Thesis: Othello slept with Iago's wife while they were married.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1: Iago thinks of his wife as less than other women and often insults her because he suspects her of cheating.
Topic 2: Othello and Emilia rarely or do not speak to each other directly throughout the play.
Thesis: Dark and light are two important factors that run threw the Characters names and who they are as a person.
ReplyDeleteTopic 1:The CHacters names symbolize light and darkness in the play.
Topic 2: The charactrs names are oppsite from who they are as people in the play.
Thesis: Othello’s war standards and his love standards differ greatly when it comes to trust.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Othello being a general has to play it safe by going to war in Cyprus.
Topic Sentence 2: Othello doesn’t live up to the same standards when referring to Desdemona; he lets the enemy get too close.
Thesis: In Othello, the location change from Venice to Cyprus brings out an entirely new side of each of the characters.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Iago, who helps to incite the change in the other characters, seemingly transforms from a loyal servant to a deceitful liar, which perhaps he was all along.
Topic Sentence 2: Desdemona goes from a strong, independent wife who is sure about her relationship with Othello, to a woman who is questioning how real their love is.
Topic Sentence 3: Othello transforms from a noble military leader who is in love with Desdemona to an insecure, soon to be murderer.
from Daniel:
ReplyDeleteThesis; Othello is a well-respected and reputable man who leads armies into battle with total authority, but he is unable to control minor situations with ease.
Topic Sentence; Othello not only commands the respect of his troops, but also that of the high officials in Venice.
Topic sentence; Othello's inability to handle mundane inconveniences is his underlying character flaw that forces his downfall.
Thesis: Othello and Desdemona, like Romeo and Juliet have great love and passion in their marriage in their relationship; however, when it comes to their friends of the same sex, the passion is aimed down the wrong path.
ReplyDeleteTopic Sentence 1: Desdemona and Juliet were both loving partners who were almost persuaded to go down the path of unrequited love by their "girlfriends."
Topic Sentence 2: Othello and Romeo, two tragic heroes whose passion went from love to murder by their so called friends and brothers-in-arms.