My English teacher wanted me to include more analysis, so I felt like putting in about 7 or 8 techniques to suck up to her. Can someone just read the two paragraphs and tell me what they think?
The objectification of women has been a known issue since Jacobean times; hence, Shakespeare’s Othello is still relevant today. This can be revealed in Othello’s hyperbolic soliloquy, “It is the cause, it is the cause, my soul. Let me not name it to you, you chaste stars, it is the cause. Yet I’ll not shed her blood, nor scar that whiter skin of hers than snow and smooth as monumental alabaster.”
Shakespeare’s use of assonance gives a pleasant sound to Othello’s words, conveying that women are only objects for men’s pleasure. The repetition of, ‘it is the cause’ suggests that Desdamona’s murder is justified because of her supposed adultery. Also, the simile comparing Desdamona’s skin to, ‘snow’ shows that Othello only valued her image. The use of imagery in the phrase, ‘smooth as monumental alabaster’ gives audiences a pleasing image, whilst challenging the idea that women are only useful for their image. The dramatic irony in, ‘it is the cause,’ and the juxtaposition of the words, ‘scar’ and, ‘snow’ has a disturbing undertone that reveals how women are considered inanimate in society. Whilst traditional Jacobean audience wouldn’t have viewed the objectification as an issue, contemporary audiences would oppose the objectification of women.
Thanks in advance
The objectification of women has been a known issue since Jacobean times; hence, Shakespeare’s Othello is still relevant today. This can be revealed in Othello’s hyperbolic soliloquy, “It is the cause, it is the cause, my soul. Let me not name it to you, you chaste stars, it is the cause. Yet I’ll not shed her blood, nor scar that whiter skin of hers than snow and smooth as monumental alabaster.”
Shakespeare’s use of assonance gives a pleasant sound to Othello’s words, conveying that women are only objects for men’s pleasure. The repetition of, ‘it is the cause’ suggests that Desdamona’s murder is justified because of her supposed adultery. Also, the simile comparing Desdamona’s skin to, ‘snow’ shows that Othello only valued her image. The use of imagery in the phrase, ‘smooth as monumental alabaster’ gives audiences a pleasing image, whilst challenging the idea that women are only useful for their image. The dramatic irony in, ‘it is the cause,’ and the juxtaposition of the words, ‘scar’ and, ‘snow’ has a disturbing undertone that reveals how women are considered inanimate in society. Whilst traditional Jacobean audience wouldn’t have viewed the objectification as an issue, contemporary audiences would oppose the objectification of women.
Thanks in advance