Structure

• Structure

  The division of Shakespeare’s play into acts and scenes is not usually included in the earliest texts, the quartos. Some key things to note about the structure of Othello include the following:
• Writing techniques

  • In the early seventeenth century, when Shakespeare wrote Othello, drama had generally become more violent and tragic compared to the more pastoral works of the Elizabethans.
  • There was a growing fashion for spectacle in plays and on bloodthirsty revenge tragedies in urban settings.
  • However, wit, irony and sophistication of ideas were still paramount in the plots, characterisation and language of the plays.
• Structure

  • In the First Folio of Shakespeare’s works, published in 1623, seven years after his death, act and scene divisions for many of the plays were introduced by the editors.
  • Othello is in fact, unique, in that the quarto version was divided into five acts.
• Acts

  • Audiences at this time generally expected a play to be presented in five acts.
  • A new scene commenced, by convention, when the stage became empty of actors, or there was a substantial change of characters.
• The Importance of Act 3

  • Generally, Act III marks a key turning point in Othello, where scene 3 shows Iago coming in ascendant over Othello.
  • Thereafter, the pace quickens, the pressure builds up and the crisis and climax are revealed as the plot races to its conclusion.
  • In the tragedy the inevitable message of the second half of the play is that time brings defeat, disaster and death.
• Length

  • Although a relatively short play, Othello offers the audience intense and prolonged dramatic tension because of its tensely-wound structure.
  • There are no changes of perspective, sub or parallel plots, or fully memorable comic sections (the Clown sequence barely gets started!) as there are in the other tragedies, and the audience is particularly conscious of the chain of cause and effect that drives the play forward.
• Double Time Scheme

  Othello is often referred to as having a double time scheme.
• Double time

  • Othello is often referred to as having a double time scheme.
  • This means that some events could only realistically take place in ‘long time’ that is, over a period of weeks or even months.
  • Whereas others are placed in the context of ‘short time’, happening within a few hours of each other with specific time references attached.
• Realism

  • Acts 2-5 cover only 33 hours and the whole play seems to be condensed into a matter of days.
  • You may wish to think about the realism of this considering the distance from Venice to Cyprus.
• Communication

  • It may be that the pace of the play is what prevents communication between Othello and Desdemona, a communication which might have offset the tragedy.
• Iago's soliloquies

  • Iago’s soliloquies contribute to the feeling of speed by their content, structure and positioning. His soliloquies are the link and driving force of the plot.