Ali Malik

How Does Shakespeare Use Various Nature Imagery in the Tragedy of Othello to Portray the Human

Condition?

The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice, by William Shakespeares is one of the most famous plays ever to have been created. It is a tragedy encompassing the story of Othello, a foreign moor living in the highly xenophobic society of Venice. A noble and revered general, Othello is manipulated by his malevolent ensign, Iago, who eventually brings upon Othello his downfall. This play was one of the first of its time to address the themes of racial and gender inequality which was so prevalent in the society of the time and it is this racial and social status which holds a significant role to the storyline of Othello. Within the play Shakespeare uses a variety of nature imagery to explore the extent to which Othellos fate is sealed within his race as an inevitable result of his skin colour; chiefly the destructive role nature plays not only in the lives of the characters in Othello, but rather in the lives of everyone. One of the themes prevalent in the play is Iagos constant use of plant and herb imagery to demonstrate both his masterful ability to manipulate others and also the predominant role of nature in the lives of the characters and their free will. According to Iago tis in ourselves that we are thus or thus. Our bodies are our gardens, to the which our wills are gardeners. So that if we will plant nettles or sow lettuce, set hyssop and weed up thyme, supply it with one gender of herbs or distract it with manyeither to have it sterile with idleness, or manured with industrywhy, the power and corrigible authority of this lies in our wills. This elaborate analogy draws a strange parallel between gardening and exercising free will. In essence Iago is stating that he, unlike everyone else, is a master gardener who not only possesses the utmost self-control but also has the ability to brilliantly manipulate others by planting different seeds within their fertile minds/wills. This entire speech is recited in

Ali Malik

iambic pentameter giving it the tone of a religious scripture or words of a divine power rather than mere advice from one character to the other; Iago exhibits a certain God complex as if he stands on a higher ground than others and it is due to this very God complex that Iago loves to ensnare people with as little a web, poison their delight, or plague [them] with flies. Moreover this entire section seems strangely evocative of the Garden of Eden and the devil whom, like Iago, is repeatedly described as a villainous snake. In addition to this there is an abundance of references to poison within the play regarding Iagos approach to bring about destruction on Othello; not only are Iagos methods insidious, but rather they work like pour[ing] pestilence into [Othellos] ear to which he changes with [the] poison. Using metaphorical poison as his tool of choice, Iago not only reinforces the previously mentioned notion of him being a master gardener, but also he demonstrates the ease and inexorability of his methods; they are natural and deadly so not even other natural remedies, even those as strong as poppy or mandragora, could reverse the damage. To this end Iago demonstrates natures role in the lives of us as a human species; only the master gardeners who are strong at heart can survive while the foolish lovers, by nature, are mere fertile ground for the master gardeners to toy with. Within the play Shakespeare also explores the idea of love as an animalistic instinct rather its more commonly romanticized idealistic view. The main antagonist of the play, Iago, states that indulgences such as love and sex are nothing more than the baseness of our natures; a mere sect or scion which must be pois[ed] with reason to cool our raging motions, our carnal stings, our unbitted lusts. Here Iago employs distinct vocabulary with strong animal connotations such as raging; poise; unbitted; and stings, reminiscent of animals such as bulls; snakes; horses; and bees, to highlight the synonymy between humans and animals in regards to love: a mere lust of the blood. Moreover he describes love as a scion, a term used to describe a plant used for grafting. This description gives love the same quality as a graft; an extraneous notion or offshoot of lust which is unnaturally attached to us merely for our need to separate ourselves from animals. Furthermore, within

Ali Malik

this speech, Iago reveals his personal views on justice; that the balance of our lives has one scale of reason which should poise another of sensuality. It is clear that to Iago an ideal life is one that should be spent taming the wild beasts within us with pure cold reason; that if we were to disregard reason, the baseness of our natures would conduct us to most preposterous conclusion. Here the use of the word conduct exemplifies how rather than forcing us, our natures would, like a musical conductor, calmly guide us to the animalistic lasciviousness which is so very inherent within us. Furthermore his use of poise denotes not only balance, but the image of a snake waiting to strike which fits in with the previously mentioned imagery of the Garden of Eden and Iagos role as the devil. In addition to this, the animal imagery ubiquitous in the play holds great significance with the idea of humans being barbaric in nature. As the play begins, Othello is introduced as an old black ram which is savagely tupping [the] white ewe that is Desdemona and making the beast with two backs. Here Iago demonstrates obvious racial stereotyping but more importantly he describes Desdemona as an animal too. In actuality almost everyone in the play is described as an animal at one point; Desdemona as a sweet creature, Roderigo as a snipe, Othello as a Barbary horse, and Iago as a viper or a spider who with as little a web would ensnare as great a fly as Cassio. The animal imagery, like the previous garden and plant imagery, portrays a sense that the laws of nature, rather than those of society, are the primary forces governing the characters in the play. Moreover it emphasises that within ourselves we are mere animals and it is only through our wills that we may be anything more. It is important to note that the animal stereotypes assigned to each character are actually very similar to their respective personalities. Desdemona, being innocent throughout the entire play could very well be described as a sweet creature or white ewe; white obviously connoting a sense of purity and innocence. Othello, who although noble at heart, is ultimately led as tenderly by the nose as asses are while Iago is a viper who, avoiding confrontation, strikes from the shadows when the time is right. All these accurate similes depict a simple idea; we are all animals by nature and

Ali Malik

pretending to be anything more is just a superficial beautification of our instinctively base natures. In conclusion, Shakespeare uses an abundance of different imagery from plants to animals to suggest the true composition of human nature; that humans are nothing more than animals at heart and striving to be more requires an iron will that not many possess. He highlights the significant role nature plays in the dictation of our lives and that ultimately it is not societys standards we conform to, but rather the standards of nature which are imposed upon us at birth. Furthermore Shakespeare demonstrates how easy it is for us to fall prey to our instincts with as little a web as dangerous conceits which are in their natures, poisons which at the first are scarce found to distaste, but with a little act upon the blood, burn like the mines of Sulphur. To this end Shakespeares use of nature imagery imparts knowledge to the audience and shares with them the importance of exercising self-control within their lives.