Introduction
Besides love, the play contains other themes such as conflict, war and jealousy, among others. Moreover, most characters in the play exhibit disjointed feelings for each other. For instance, Iago hates Othello for promoting Cassio over him. Additionally, Othello demotes Cassio for alleged fighting. On the other hand, Desdemona is portrayed as loving to her husband. In addition, Roderigo is jealous of both Othello and Cassio because of Desdemona. Roderigo and Iago plan to wreck Othello’s marriage. This plan is evidenced when Roderigo and Iago go to Brabantio to accuse Othello of using witchcraft to persuade Desdemona into marriage. In essence, conflict is more pronounced in the play than love. Therefore, Professor Carol’s stance is wrong since there is a stronger evidence of conflict than love in the play.
Evidences in the play
Roderigo is distressed about Desdemona’s marriage; he travels to Cyprus with the hope of winning Desdemona’s love. Roderigo’s obsession with Desdemona is further evidenced when he tries to kill Cassio life over his apparent closeness to her. Therefore, it can be noted that jealousy is dominant throughout the play. In fact, it is through jealousy that characters like Desdemona and Othello die at the end of the play. Additionally, Othello allows Iago to mislead him due to insecurity in marriage. In essence, other themes like jealousy and conflict are central in the play as compared to love. Furthermore, Othello’s love for Desdemona turns into hatred after he is misled, by Iago, to believe that Desdemona is unfaithful.
Interestingly, marriage between Iago and Emilia is sparingly used in the play; this puts further doubt on the central role of love in the play. Nonetheless, it is quite evident that Emilia hates Iago’s behavior. This becomes apparent when she defends Desdemona over her alleged unfaithfulness. Although the play mentions Cassio’s affair with Bianca, this is not emphasized in the play. In fact, it is evident that Cassio only uses her since he teases her with marriage. Therefore, the central theme is not marital love but conflict.
There are various instances of conflict in the play. For instance, war in Cyprus forces Othello to be sent there. The people in Cyprus are afraid of an imminent invasion by the Turks. This evidence shows existence of conflict between different nations or interests. There is conflict between men over various issues. For instance, conflict erupts between Othello and Iago because Iago has misled him to kill Desdemona. There is conflict between Cassio and Roderigo over Cassio’s close interaction with Desdemona.
Additionally, conflict is witnessed between Othello and Cassio over his close interaction with Desdemona. Furthermore, conflict is apparent between Iago and Cassio over the post of lieutenant. In addition, Othello kills Desdemona over her alleged unfaithfulness. Moreover, after Emilia’s revelations to Othello, Iago seeks to kill her. In the end, these conflicts result in multiple deaths that include both the villain and the protagonist.
Conclusion
In essence, there are several instances of conflict. However, the central conflict in the play is not between men and women. In fact, conflict among men is more dominant than conflict between the two genders. Concisely, central conflict is not between men and women. Instead, the central conflict is among men. As evidenced above, the play contains more scenes of conflict than love. In fact, the theme of jealousy is even more pronounced than the theme of love. Therefore, Professor Carol’s stance on the central theme of this play is wrong.