READING
Key Ideas and
Details
RL.11-12.1 Cite strong and thorough textual
evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as
inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves
matters uncertain.
Craft and
Structure
RL.11-12.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are
used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the
impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including words with
multiple meanings or language that is particularly fresh, engaging, or
beautiful. (Include Shakespeare as well as other authors.)
Integration of
Knowledge and Ideas
RL.11-12.7 Analyze multiple interpretations of a story, drama, or
poem (e.g., recorded or live production of a play or recorded novel or poetry),
evaluating how each version interprets the source text. (Include at least one
play by Shakespeare and one play by an American dramatist.)
Range of Reading
RL.11-12.10 By the end of grade 11, read and comprehend
literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 11–CCR text
complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the
range.
READING
Key Ideas and
Details
Craft and
Structure
Integration of
Knowledge and Ideas
Range of Reading
1 comment:
Marso 1
RL.11-12.3 Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story or drama (e.g., where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the characters are introduced and developed).
Although the play only has two settings, both Venice and Cyprus carry extreme importance in Othello. When analyzing Shakespeare’s use of setting, it is important to remember the audience he wrote to entertain. In a time with little (and certainly no speedy) transportation, the majority of the English population would never have traveled to the southern parts of Europe where one can find Venice and Cyprus. The only knowledge the English would have of the two locations would have been what they had read in texts or heard from the exclusive group of travelers who had ventured there. Thus, one reason Shakespeare utilizes the foreign lands is the exotic appeal they had to Londoners. In particular, Venice would have held a magical mystique. A city with rivers for road would have been enchanting to his audience. In Venice, we exclusively find order and lawfulness, despite the slight social upheaval caused by Othello’s elopement with Desdemona. No one questions authority and the Duke reigns over a powerful and prosperous city. As the story shifts to Cyprus, the reader can distinguish a shrift in behavior and overall feel. As equally exotic as Venice was in a glorious way, audiences may have assumed Cyprus to be part of the far different Orient, similar to how that part of the world is described in the play by Othello to Brabantio. In Cyprus, one finds a shift away from obedience to all authority and lawlessness ensues—in large part due to Iago. Here, jealousy consumes, lies abound, and murders result. Finally, after all of the deaths have taken place, order is restored and Lodovico informs everyone that he must relay the events back in Venice, again showing the reader the power Venice has in maintaining organization and harmony. In Venice, all will be right again as the execution of Iago will have taken place in Cyprus. When a reader analyzes Shakespeare’s settings, one can certainly find a direct correlation to the settings and the nature of events that will occur in each respective area. Shakespeare does a marvelous job of relating the element setting to the story as a whole, another characteristic that ranks him high in canonized literature.
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