The scene starts with more twisting of words by Iago and lots of discussion about how Cassio had the handkerchief Othello gave Desdemona. A play about a handkerchief. Iago continues to imply sexy times between Desdemona and Cassio only he's getting more bold and more graphic as he continues to mess with Othello's head:
IAGO
'Faith, that he did--I know not what he did.
OTHELLO
What? what?
IAGO
Lie--
OTHELLO
With her?
IAGO
With her, on her; what you will.
If you don't get mileage out of the scansion in that shared line there, I'm not sure I can help you with verse work. it's so good and so cheeky and dirty and quintessential Iago. After he works up Othello, Cassio comes in and sees Othello freaking out. Which brings us to this interesting line:
My lord is fall'n into an epilepsy:
This is his second fit; he had one yesterday.
Does Othello really have epilepsy? Or is he just shaking with rage/freaking out? I have seen it played both ways and I think both are interesting choices. The key tends to also be in how Cassio reacts. Is this something he doesn't know about Othello until now? Does he believe Iago? etc.
Then Othello freaks out some more assuming his plight and the plight of all men is that all women are whores
O, 'tis the spite of hell, the fiend's arch-mock,
To lip a wanton in a secure couch,
And to suppose her chaste!
Iago then tells Othello that he will have Cassio talk about his time with Desdemona again and othello can spy on them out of ear shot, but after Othello is further away he tells the audience he will really ask Cassio about his exploits with Bianca.
He, when he hears of her, cannot refrain
From the excess of laughter.
Can I just say that excessive laughter is a goldmine for an actor?! (See also: the virginity test in The Changeling) I mean, laughing like crazy is a great way to get the audience to laugh too. Which, you know, is pretty needed at this point in the play… Iago continues to let us know how he's manipulating everyone:
As he shall smile, Othello shall go mad;
And his unbookish jealousy must construe
Poor Cassio's smiles, gestures and light behavior,
Quite in the wrong.
And then Cassio comes on stage and it falls out just as Iago said it would. Only at this point I feel even less sorry for Cassio since this is the reaction to Iago asking about Cassio marrying Bianca:
This is the monkey's own giving out: she is
persuaded I will marry her, out of her own love and
flattery, not out of my promise.
AHAHAHA I'm not disabusing her of this thought though because I want her to keep doing textile work for me and giving me sexual favors. AHAHAHAHAHA HILARIOUS! Keep going Cassio!
(She) So hangs, and lolls, and weeps upon me; so hales,
and pulls me: ha, ha, ha!
And almost immediately after this Bianca confronts Cassio, is pissed, and his only concern after the fact:
IAGO
After her, after her.
CASSIO
'Faith, I must; she'll rail in the street else.
IAGO
Will you sup there?
CASSIO
'Faith, I intend so.
So… I want to keep seeing you and doing you… just don't make it public because you know i'm really concerned about my reputation. And whores don't look super for one's reputation. But that doesn't mean I'll stop seeing you. it's cool. Hey Iago, in case you need to now where I am tonight, I'll be at Bianca's. Not that YOU would ever use that against me…. #idiot
OTHELLO
Ay, let her rot, and perish, and be damned to-night; for she shall not live: no, my heart is turned to stone; I strike it, and it hurts my hand. O, the world hath not a sweeter creature: she might lie by an emperor's side and command him tasks.
she will sing the savageness out of a bear
Do it not with poison, strangle her in her bed, even
the bed she hath contaminated.
DESDEMONA
Why, sweet Othello,--
OTHELLO
[Striking her] Devil!
DESDEMONA
I have not deserved this.
Goats and monkeys!
IAGO
Alas, alas!
It is not honesty in me to speak
What I have seen and known. You shall observe him,
And his own courses will denote him so
That I may save my speech: do but go after,
And mark how he continues.
LODOVICO
I am sorry that I am deceived in him.
4.2
The scene starts with Othello questioning Emilia about Cassio and Desdemona.
For, if she be not honest, chaste, and true,
There's no man happy; the purest of their wives
Is foul as slander.
She says enough; yet she's a simple bawd
That cannot say as much. This is a subtle whore,
OTHELLO
Why, what art thou?
DESDEMONA
Your wife, my lord; your true
And loyal wife.
If Ron Burgundy were playing Othello, now would be the time when he would shout
But instead he says:
Was this fair paper, this most goodly book,Made to write 'whore' upon?
So close enough…
Othello even involves Emilia in his hatred, treating her like a bawd:
We have done our course; there's money for your pains:
I pray you, turn the key and keep our counsel.
Nothing as classy as throwing money at women and assuming they are all whores… oh wait…
Desdemona has perhaps a strange reaction to all this:
Prithee, tonight
Lay on my bed my wedding sheets:
the general consensus on this seems to be that either Desdemona knows she's going to die or this is a desperate attempt to remind Othello of their love. (I happen to think it's much more interesting if it's the latter. Who wants to watch someone resigned to death? I also think that very few Shakespearean characters go gently into that good night… I mean, aside from the ones that off themselves and even then… they seem pretty bold when they go about it…)
Then we have Emilia unknowingly curse her husband. (If you think this is interesting wait till we get to all the cursing in Richard III!!)
EMILIA
I will be hang'd, if some eternal villain,
Some busy and insinuating rogue,
Some cogging, cozening slave, to get some office,
Have not devised this slander; I'll be hang'd else.
IAGO
Fie, there is no such man; it is impossible.
DESDEMONA
If any such there be, heaven pardon him!
EMILIA
A halter pardon him! and hell gnaw his bones!
I love that this is said in front of Iago. I think in some ways that makes this better than the RIII scene. We also get a little more of a hint about the marital strife between Iago and Emilia and reminded of some of Iago's potential motivation for unleashing all this havoc:
EMILIA
O, fie upon them! Some such squire he was
That turn'd your wit the seamy side without,
And made you to suspect me with the Moor.
IAGO
You are a fool; go to.
Then Iago tries to make excuses for Othello's behavior.
IAGO
I pray you, be content; 'tis but his humor:
The business of the state does him offense,
And he does chide with you.
If your partner is stressed from work and takes it out on you? RED FLAG. Just felt I needed to reiterate that…
After the women leave, Roderigo comes to confront Iago and it seems that Iago no longer has the verbal sway he used to as Roderigo turns Iago's own language back on him:
IAGO
Well; go to; very well.
RODERIGO
Very well! go to! I cannot go to, man; nor 'tis not very well: nay, I think it is scurvy, and begin to find myself fobbed in it.
I just have to say that "find myself fobbed in it" should give us a MUCH NEEDED laugh at this point. Then Iago takes Roderigo's contributions to his plans a step further:
IAGO
the removing of Cassio.
RODERIGO
How do you mean, removing of him?
IAGO
Why, by making him uncapable of Othello's place; knocking out his brains.
Knocking out his brains… for when subtle is no longer an option…
Moving on...
4.3
This is the scene with the willow song. It's also chilling and has one of my favorite speeches in the play. You can hear one rendition of the willow song here:
DESDEMONA
Wouldst thou do such a deed for all the world?
EMILIA
Why, would not you?
DESDEMONA
No, by this heavenly light!
EMILIA
Nor I neither by this heavenly light;
I might do't as well i' the dark.
ZING! Emilia rocks some bawdy humor. I love her. I want to play her. Just throwing that out there.
DESDEMONA
Wouldst thou do such a deed for all the world?
EMILIA
The world's a huge thing: it is a great price.
For a small vice.
Funny AND practical. Why would Iago want anyone else for a wife? Why is he so mean to her? Oh, right, misogyny-why, who would not make her husband a cuckold to make him a monarch?
I can't do justice to Stephen Booth's amazing Blackfriars presentation on this line, so I'm just going to have to reference it and move on and maybe some of you who were there will remember it fondly and others can try and ask me in person…w here I will still fail to communicate the brilliance.
And then Emilia launches into on of my favorite monologues
But I do think it is their husbands' faults
If wives do fall: say that they slack their duties,
And pour our treasures into foreign laps,
Or else break out in peevish jealousies,
Throwing restraint upon us; or say they strike us,
It's taking all I have not to post the entire monologue so I will just skip to this:
and though we have some grace,
Yet have we some revenge.
Vengeance. reminds me of Constance. Or Evadne. Should it trouble me that I am more drawn to the vengeful characters than the merciful ones? I guess I like them too but… the vengeful ones seem so much more interesting… I guess at least I have no interest in playing Tamara? Speaking of merciful, Desdemona ends the scene with a counterpoint to Emilia
Good night, good night: heaven me such uses send,
Not to pick bad from bad, but by bad mend!
That's act 4. (Sorry the end was a bit rushed but my allotted blogging/childfree time runs out so fast these days! Seriously though there's not much I can say about Emilia's monologue aside from saying that I could dwell on every line and break down how much I love it!!)
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