Discuss the element of chance/fate in Othello.
Othello is a notable literary work by William Shakespeare. A complete discussion of this literary work is given, which will help you enhance your literary skills and prepare for the exam. Read the Main texts, Key info, Summary, Themes, Characters, Literary devices, Quotations, Notes, and various study materials of Othello.
Answer
Discuss the element of chance/fate in Othello.
The role of chance and coincidence in Shakespearean (1564-1616) dramas, particularly in tragedies like “Othello” (1622), is a topic of considerable interest among critics and scholars. Iago’s fine and matchless villainy is considerably assisted by the role of chance or accident. Iago’s intellectual villainy is awesome but chance provides an extra and final boost to manipulate as well as ruin the characters to whom Iago is jealously indifferent, including Cassio, Othello and Desdemona.
Definition of Chance: Before taking a deep dive into the role of chance played in Othello, let us clarify what chance actually is. Cambridge Dictionary defines,
“Chance is an occasion that allows something to be done.”
An English literary scholar, A C Bradley, illustrates the role of Iago’s chance/fate in “Othello” in the following lines:
“The skill of Iago was extraordinary, but so was his good fortune.”
Desdemona’s Dropping her Handkerchief: Chance, for the first time, plays a fatal role when Desdemona drops the handkerchief. She receives the handkerchief as a token of love from Othello. Iago is hunting after the handkerchief to entrap both Desdemona and Cassio. Desdemona keeps the handkerchief in her possession with great care. One day, she drops it by chance when she is offered to bind Othello’s aching head. Hardly, Desdemona leaves the place where she dropped the most precious gift, and Emilia, the wife of Iago, happens to come to the same place and picks it up by chance as well. Such accidental loss and discovery of the handkerchief provide vitality to Iago’s base motives. When Desdemona is unable to have the handkerchief, Othello feels deeply annoyed by the loss of it, and his doubt against Desdemona’s character grows even stronger. Desdemona expresses her grief to Emilia as thus:
“Since there’s some wonder in this handkerchief
I am most unhappy in the loss of it.”
Cassio’s Blunt Confession: The second and the most crucial aspect of chance is highlighted when Cassio appears before Othello, but Iago sends him away and asks him to come later. If Othello had seen Cassio at this time, he would have run into a rage and inquired about the handkerchief and how he attained it. But Cassio again comes into the scene when Othello has hidden himself, and he overhears the conversation between Iago and Cassio. Cassio is ridiculing his Bianca (a courtesan), but Othello misunderstands that he is mocking his Desdemona. The tension grows even grimmer when Bianca hits the scene, and she complains to Cassio that he is cheating on her and in love with someone else. She says that the handkerchief he gave her was a love token from another lady. Thus, Cassio’s blunt confession [before Iago] confirms the burning suspicion in Othello’s mind, and he questions Iago when Cassio departs:
“How shall I murder him, Iago?”
Accentual events dominate Othello’s mind more than reasoning the truth.
It is clear that chance and accident strengthen our feelings of fate. Fate seems to side with the villainy of Iago. The notable characters fail to find any way to escape fate’s unjust grips. The role of chance in Othello illustrates a terrible picture of fate and its association with lightless spirits.