CONFLICT BETWEEN LOVE AND HONOUR
Othello is perhaps the most romantic figure among Shakespeare’s
heroes. Indeed his early life is wrapped in romance and mystery and he hardly belongs to the
world into which destiny has brought him. In appearance, in behavior and in almost all human traits and attributes, he stands far apart from the rest of the world around him.Othello is introduced to us as the general of the Venetian forces and Shakespeare does not enlighten us as to when and how he came to be appointed as the Othello cannot distinguish between appearances and reality, he takes everything on its face value. This is perhaps the major cause of his tragedy.The lava of passion that erupts not only has signed his senses; it has totally eclipsed all his rational faculties and has reduced him to the level of a beast; from then onwards we see a beast governing his actions which can be explained in no other way.Sexual jealousy, not naturally present; in Othello was aroused from deep slumber by Iago against Desdemona, with great rapidity of brain washing, likelihoods and by circumstantial instances piled one on another .His barbaric passions forced him to do justice by smothering the life of innocent Desdemona-the light he could not resume, except by stabbing himself to death and falling upon her. Perhaps this was the only way to repent-the fatal tryst with his ‘soul’s joy’.The tragic flaw in Othello, he was rash , credulous, hasty led to this end it is a
conflict between love and honor which becomes the chief interest of the play.
Ginni