#Othello act 5 scene 2 skin#

A 'minister' is a servant, one who carries out the orders of others. He looks at the candle and says to it, 'If I quench thee, thou flaming minister, / I can again thy former light restore, / Should I repent me' (5.2.7-10). All he has to do is blow out the candle, then kill her, but another thought stops him. Othello tries to focus on the steps he must take: 'Put out the light, and then put out the light' (5.2.7). He's not being hypocritical he just can't face the truth.

His self-justification - that if he doesn't kill her 'she'll betray more men' - is extremely feeble, but he would be ashamed of his real reason. Now he doesn't want to shed her blood or scar her skin, and he has to remind himself that what he is doing is just. Now, however, even with her eyes closed, Desdemona's beauty is tempting him to change his mind. He meant that he had stopped loving her, so that her eyes no longer shone in his heart, and therefore he was ready to shed her blood. The last time we saw Othello he was saying to the Desdemona of his imagination, 'Forth of my heart those charms, thine eyes, are blotted / Thy bed, lust-stain'd, shall with lust's blood be spotted' (5.1.35-36). Yet she must die, else she'll betray more men' (5.2.3-6).

#Othello act 5 scene 2 skin#

Othello continues, 'Yet I'll not shed her blood / Nor scar that whiter skin of hers than snow, / And smooth as monumental alabaster. Thus he denies to himself that he is killing her for himself, because he is jealous, because his sense of honor has been wounded. He means that he is going to kill Desdemona because of 'the cause,' the crime that she has committed, a crime so horrible that he can't say its name even to the stars. Othello says, maybe whispers, 'It is the cause, it is the cause, my soul,- / Let me not name it to you, you chaste stars!- / It is the cause (5.2.1-3). At the moment the curtains are open, and we know that Othello has been there for some time because his thoughts are the result of looking at his beautiful wife.) The bed is the four-poster type, with curtains that can be closed, which they will be later in the scene. How can Desdemona enter 'in her bed'? The bed, with Desdemona on it, was probably pushed out by stagehands who were invisible to the imaginations of the audience. (The stage directions may seem strange to us. Othello is hovering over the sleeping Desdemona, and he has been there for some time, trying to prepare himself to kill her. As he is about to be led away, Othello asks for a chance to say 'a word or two.' He speaks of how he wants to be remembered, then stabs himself, kisses Desdemona, and dies.Įnter Othello with a candle and Desdemona in her bed asleep:

Lodovico questions Othello, gives more proof of Iago's guilt, and announces that Othello will be returned to Venice for trial. Lodovico is followed by Montano, Cassio, and Iago, who has been captured.

Enter Lodovico, Montano, Cassio carried in a chair, and Officers with Iago, prisoner.

Othello finds another sword, but can't use it because the sight of dead Desdemona overwhelms him with guilt and grief. Emilia says farewell to Desdemona, tells Othello that Desdemona was chaste and true, then dies. The other men disarm Othello and leave Gratiano to guard him while they pursue Iago. Iago gives Emilia her death-wound and runs away.

Othello attacks Iago Montano and others disarm Othello.

When Othello mentions that he saw the handkerchief in Cassio's hand, Emilia reveals that she found it and gave it to Iago. Emilia declares that Iago is the villain who incited Othello to murder Desdemona.

Emilia demands that Iago deny he ever said that Desdemona was false, but Iago says that he did say so and tries to shut Emilia up. Montano, Gratiano, Iago and others answer Emilia's call. Enter Montano, Gratiano, Iago, and others.Emilia refuses to believe that Desdemona was a whore or that Iago ever said so she cries 'murder' and calls for help. Othello declares that he killed her because she was a whore. Desdemona cries out that she has been murdered, clears Othello of the guilt, and dies. Emilia tells him that Roderigo is dead and Cassio is wounded. Hearing Emilia call at the door, Othello finishes off Desdemona, then lets in Emilia. She awakes and defends herself against his accusations. Looking at the sleeping Desdemona, Othello has a hard time trying to talk himself into killing her. Enter Othello with a candle and Desdemona in her bed asleep.Weller, an Eastern Washington University professor of English and Shakespearean scholar for more than 50 years.ĭetailed Summary of Othello, Act 5, Scene 2 Page Index: Welcome to my web site, now under development for more than twenty years.ĭr.