William Shakespeare’s Othello- The 3 Women

Desdemona- Upper Class Desdemona is portrayed as an innocent and heavenly creature throughout the play in comparison to the other women, however she is also very naïve in her view of the world, fidelity and marriage an example of this is marrying Othello as during this time it was frowned upon to marry outside your own race. This naivety may be a result of Desdemona's wealth and class which may have shielded her from the outside world and may have caused her downfall. Contrasting Desdemona and Emilia's view on fidelity also reinforces Desdemona's naivety. examples are in act 4? ‘I do not think there is any such woman” and“Beshrew me, if I would do such a wrong, For the whole world.”, Emilia due to her class (middle class) is more world weary and unlike Desdemona knows that there are women who would cheat on their husbands. Desdemona's naivety in her actions through her loyalty to her friends is inevitably also partially responsible in her death, through her pursuit to regain Cassio's position as Othello's lieutenant, she inevitably increases the doubt in Othello's mind and provides him ‘proof’ that she is having an affair, even though she is nothing but loyal to Othello.

Emilia – Middle Class Emilia is older and more cynical than other women in this play. Emilia has a bitter take over her married life with Iago, which contrasts at the beginning with both Desdemona’s idealistic marriage with Othello and Bianca’s affair with Cassio. She gets caught between the demands of her husband and her mistress, Desdemona, and is forced to lie. Emilia goes as far as to betray Desdemona for her love Iago. The handkerchief, “that the Moor first gave to Desdemona: that which so often you bid me steal” is used then by Iago to bring about the downfall of the other characters During a monologue in act 4 scene 3, Emilia and Desdemona contrast again on their thoughts on infidelity and loyalty towards their husbands. Emilia believes “the world’s a huge thing, it’s a great price for a small vice. she also is portrayed as quite resentful towards men in terms of punishment , that they are able to cheat on their wives with fewer consequences than if a wife cheated on her husband. Her marriage to Iago has left Emilia cynical in terms of relationships and believes that women are “ ” 'Tis not a year or two shows us a man:They are all but stomachs, and we all but food; To eat us hungerly, and when they are full,They belch us. Look you, Cassio and my husband

Bianca – Lower Class Bianca is a prostitute and with this decision she can never expect to marry or be believed because her sexual status It is also debatable that Bianca is in this profession because she has no other option . Bianca as Cassio’s mistress plays significant role in the play Othello. As Cassio's neglected lover , she is given Desdemona's handkerchief, in which Iago has planted in Cassio’s chamber, to copy for him, only later she returned it angrily back to Cassio, which a hiding Othello takes as proof that Cassio has Desdemona's handkerchief proving that Desdemona was unfaithful to him. Bianca is more confrontational than the other two women, this is shown by her public outbursts when she believes Cassio is cheating on her with someone in her same profession. She is also implicated in taking a role in Cassio's wounding by Iago. (Act 5 scene 1)“gentlemen all, I do suspect this trash to be a part to this injury”.

The importance of the 3 women Desdemona, Emilia, and Bianca are all rejected by their respective partners, and all three love their men unselfishly and unreservedly, even when confronted with despicable behavior from their spouses. Each women represents a different type of relationship with their spouses : Desdemona and Othello in the beginning of the play is a open and equal relationship in which both members have open communication with each other, however when this communication between Desdemona and Othello is lost due to Othello's doubts about Desdemona's fidelity the relationship quickly becomes similar to Iago's and Emilia's ,in which Emilia is treated as a lower being than Iago and this destructive relationship ultimately leads to the death of Desdemona. Emilia and Iago's relationship could be seen as typical of those in Shakespeare’s era although it may be an extreme exaggeration, as women were seen as lower class citizens and treated with less respect than women of today. Iago uses Emilia to retrieve the handkerchief that Desdemona was given by Othello, suggesting that Iago sees Emilia as more of a tool to help with his plan to bring down the other characters and a convenience than actually having true feelings for her Cassio and Bianca's affair is also representing another relationship between men and women in this time, although it is believed that Bianca has true feelings for Cassio, it is clear to see that Cassio does not feel the same. She is seen as an object of pleasure to Cassio and he has no intentions of reliving her by her position of occupation by marring her “quote”