Truth is Not What it is
Truth is the reality of what has happened, however, the road to understanding truth is not always straightforward and smooth. This is because one person may perceive the truth one way, while another perceives the truth differently, so, their truths are different. In Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, the steps towards discovering the real truth are discussed, and these concepts are present in William Shakespeare’s Othello. The characters created by Shakespeare in Othello struggle to understand the real truth while Iago manipulates their perception the truth with relative ease. Thus, the roles of truth in Othello are as a tool that is manipulated and distorted, with false truths also manifesting themselves in stereotypes, …show more content…
Prejudices against individuals of African descent, in this case Othello, help Iago convince Roderigo that he indeed has a chance with Desdemona. Using the stereotype that people with darker skin are more likely to change their mind than people with lighter skin, as demonstrated when Iago says “These Moors are changeable in their wills,” (I.iii.389-390) suggesting that Othello could quickly have a change of heart about being with Desdemona. Roderigo readily accepts this stereotypical perception of Othello because, as Robert L. Heilbroner said, “We begin to typecast people in our childhood years.” (Heilbroner 7) therefore they are frequently accepted as the truth. Another stereotype that is crucial in Iago’s plan is a stereotype against women. While convincing Othello that Desdemona is cheating on him, Iago uses the stereotype that Venetian women are whores to subtly suggest to Othello that Desdemona is not being loyal. While this may not necessarily be true about Desdemona, Othello “lives the life that [Iago] defines for him,” (Heilbroner 13) by believing the stereotypical image of Desdemona that Iago planted in his mind. Othello believes this because it is easier to put people into a “convenient handful of ‘types,’” (Heilbroner 10) than to find the real truth, which is difficult to find when one has been taught to believe stereotypes for their entire lives, the …show more content…
This is demonstrated at the end of Othello when Emilia pieces together the truth from what she knows and tries to enlighten everyone, but they don’t really accept the truth until Cassio verifies it. Othello finally realizes what has occurred over the course of the play and asks for Iago’s motivation when he says “Demand that demi-devil why he hath thus ensnared my soul and body,” (Shakespeare V.ii.353-354) and later takes his own life because the real truth was too much to bear, showing the power of real truth. This is similar to how it happens in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, with the people who remained in the cave thinking that the one who left and saw the light was out of his mind, leading them to “catch the offender,” and “put him to death,” (Plato) which can also be modeled by how Iago killed Emilia after she revealed his lies. The events that occur in both Othello and Plato’s Allegory of the Cave show that the real truth is not as easy to accept after you’ve been fed false truths because it is different from what you initially perceived about
Truth is the reality of what has happened, however, the road to understanding truth is not always straightforward and smooth. This is because one person may perceive the truth one way, while another perceives the truth differently, so, their truths are different. In Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, the steps towards discovering the real truth are discussed, and these concepts are present in William Shakespeare’s Othello. The characters created by Shakespeare in Othello struggle to understand the real truth while Iago manipulates their perception the truth with relative ease. Thus, the roles of truth in Othello are as a tool that is manipulated and distorted, with false truths also manifesting themselves in stereotypes, …show more content…
Prejudices against individuals of African descent, in this case Othello, help Iago convince Roderigo that he indeed has a chance with Desdemona. Using the stereotype that people with darker skin are more likely to change their mind than people with lighter skin, as demonstrated when Iago says “These Moors are changeable in their wills,” (I.iii.389-390) suggesting that Othello could quickly have a change of heart about being with Desdemona. Roderigo readily accepts this stereotypical perception of Othello because, as Robert L. Heilbroner said, “We begin to typecast people in our childhood years.” (Heilbroner 7) therefore they are frequently accepted as the truth. Another stereotype that is crucial in Iago’s plan is a stereotype against women. While convincing Othello that Desdemona is cheating on him, Iago uses the stereotype that Venetian women are whores to subtly suggest to Othello that Desdemona is not being loyal. While this may not necessarily be true about Desdemona, Othello “lives the life that [Iago] defines for him,” (Heilbroner 13) by believing the stereotypical image of Desdemona that Iago planted in his mind. Othello believes this because it is easier to put people into a “convenient handful of ‘types,’” (Heilbroner 10) than to find the real truth, which is difficult to find when one has been taught to believe stereotypes for their entire lives, the …show more content…
This is demonstrated at the end of Othello when Emilia pieces together the truth from what she knows and tries to enlighten everyone, but they don’t really accept the truth until Cassio verifies it. Othello finally realizes what has occurred over the course of the play and asks for Iago’s motivation when he says “Demand that demi-devil why he hath thus ensnared my soul and body,” (Shakespeare V.ii.353-354) and later takes his own life because the real truth was too much to bear, showing the power of real truth. This is similar to how it happens in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, with the people who remained in the cave thinking that the one who left and saw the light was out of his mind, leading them to “catch the offender,” and “put him to death,” (Plato) which can also be modeled by how Iago killed Emilia after she revealed his lies. The events that occur in both Othello and Plato’s Allegory of the Cave show that the real truth is not as easy to accept after you’ve been fed false truths because it is different from what you initially perceived about