Desdemona and Emilia;compare

A detailed Summary of Desdemona and Emilia;compare


Desdemona, the bride of Othello, and Emilia, the wife of the villain Iago, are the two main characters in Shakespeare's Othello. Although they are both loyal to their husbands, a sharp contrast between these women is realized with regard to their experiences and perceptions of reality.

Desdemona as well as Emilia are loyal wives who want to please their husbands. For that reason, Desdemona affirms:

Offend you in my life; never loved Cassio

But with such general warranty of heaven

As I might love. I never gave him token. (5.2.58-61)

She is veracious in saying that she has not cheated on Othello with Cassio, therefore proving to him that she is loyal. The only reason Desdemona makes that statement is to verbally please her husband. Because Othello believes that she is lewd and unchaste, Desdemona wants to appease his worries concerning her loyalty by reassuring


Faith, he tonight hath boarded a land carack;

My wayward husband hath a hundred times

When Emilia finds Desdemona's handkerchief, she remembers that her husband had asked her to give it to him. For that reason, instead of giving the handkerchief back to her mistress right away, Emilia gave it to Iago, with the goal in mind of pleasing him. Emilia's actions therefore reinforce her loyalty to Iago.

I am glad I have found this napkin: [...]

him, thus pleasing him. Emilia is just as loyal to Iago as Desdemona is to Othello. As Emilia speaks to herself in the next passage, she also demonstrates how she pleases Iago as she says:

'Tis not a year or two shows us a man.



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Approximate Word count = 603
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)

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