ENG 275 Final Study Guide

Exam is 5/1 @ 12:20pm

Will consist of:
Matching Vocab and definition
Short Answer All plays
Essay There will be time constraints, so an outline may be okay
Matching
Psychomatria An allegorical form of literature where virtue and vice battle it out for supremacy.
Othello is a good example of this (Desdemona vs. Iago)
Hamartia The Greek notion of tragedy. It involves an error in judgment which leads to ruin. Aristotle
helped to define this trope and wrote much about it. *Poetics
Claudius Hamlet's uncle and stepfather. The murderer of King Hamlet and the current King of
Denmark at the outset of the play. Seems to feel remorse over his actions. Married to Gertrude
Blood A tragic motif within Shakespeare's works. Especially so in Hamlet and Macbeth.
Soliloquy A form of solo speech within a drama wherein a character reveals his inner thoughts. No
one but the audience can hear a soliloquy. The To be or not to be speech in Hamlet Act 3 is an
example of a soliloquy.
Witches Beings who foretell the future, they are beings of fate. Also known as muses or the weird
sisters
Machiavellian Using intelligence and duplicity to get ahead. The founding philosophy by Niccolo
Machiavelli advocated using whatever methods necessary in service of the state. The initial book was
called The Prince and was written as advice to princes.
Quarto Bad Quartos are unauthorized versions of Hamlet that are floating around. They tend to
differ dramatically because of piracy of the time.
Afterlife Plays a symbolic role in many of his plays. That undiscovered country
Fool A character doubled with Cordelia in King Lear. The fool occupies a special role, he can speak
truth without consequence albeit cryptically, whereas others are punished heavily for it by the events of
the play.
Wheel of Fortune Rota Fortunae A very prominent theme in King Lear where the relationship
between providence and fate is explored.
Will be king ~ Once was king, etc.
Short Answer
How does Iago's narcissism lead to his downfall?

Discuss motiveless malignity

Iago's characterization as being "motive-hunting of a motiveless malignity" helps to explain the fundamental
sense of bitterness and resentment that eats away at Iago.

Tied heavily to othello and iago's motivations.

Also applies to Shylock
Importance of the fool to King Lear
Possible Essays
Hamartia and how it relates to the protagonists of major tragedies
Who deserved death?
Hamlet
Major players:
Hamlet The prince of Denmark and the titular character of the play. Hamlet is the son of Queen
Gertrude and the late prince hamlet. The nephew of the current king, Claudius. Hamlet's story is one of
great sorrow and he is quite melancholy. He bears an intense hatred for his uncle's scheming and
disgust towards his mother's quick remarriage. Indecisive and hesitant, eventually spurred into being
rash.
Claudius Current King o f Denmark. Murdered his brother to ascend to the throne. Married Gertrude
to secure his power. Calculating and ambitious. Seems to feel bad about how things went down
between him and his brother. Love for Gertrude seems genuine.
Ophelia The young lady that Hamlet was courting prior to the events of the play. Ophelia is a sweet
and innocent girl who sweet and innocent young girl, who obeys her father and her brother, Laertes.
Lapses into madness during the play and meets death, pushing hamlet over the edge.
Laertes Polonius's son and Ophelia's brother. Wishes revenge on hamlet. Rash and quick to action. A
foil to hamlet
Fortinbras Prince of Norway. Also seeks vengeance upon Hamlet for the murder of his father during a
war. Another foil for Hamlet.
Important Themes
The Impossibility of Certainty This can be seen through Hamlet's indecisiveness throughout the much
of the play. The action is continually postponed until Hamlet can obtain more knowledge about what he
is about to undertake. Play consistently poses questions about the events involved. How can we be
certain Claudius is guilty? How can we be sure the ghost is even real? It's about uncertaintly and self
doubt.
The Complexity of Action A focus of Hamlet is how is it possible to take reasonable and effective
action in the face of great evil. The question of how to act is affected by ethical qualms as well as
emotional ones. We see this in how hard hamlet struggles with his task. He even distrusts the idea that

it's possible to to act in a controlled and purposeful way.

The play also focused on Hamlet's obession with death. (His father's, Ophelia's and even his own
eventual death)
Motifs
Incest
Misogyny
Ears and Hearing
Othello
Major Players:
Othello A man of North African decent highly praised for his military prowess. His many deeds and
accomplishments have earned him a seat of high authority in Venice, the general of their army. Despite
his status race has made him an outsider being the only black man in a predominately white country.
He holds these doubts close to his heart and proof of them can be seen in the ways people speak of him,
namely Iago and Brabanito who choose to use slurs when talking about him and make character
judgments based upon his skin color.
Ex) Thick Lips. Saying he could never get Desdemona to fall in love with him without some
sort of deceit like kidnapping or black magic.
Othello is a virtuous man who believes in things like honor and honesty, often taking people at their
word and seeing the inherent good in them. It is this disposition that allowed Iago to so deftly
manipulate him. Up until the moment the truth came out he believed that Iago was a good person and a
good friend. What little doubts he did have about the situation were assuaged by excellent timing and
lies on Iago's part.
His tragic flaws are combination of jealousy and poor decision making. Evidenced by how quickly
Othello falls prey to jealousies brought about by his insecurities and the rash manor in which he
escalates the situation with Iago at his side. Quickly moving from doubt to jealous rage, eventually
culminating in the death of his wife.
Desdemona A young Venetian girl, recently married to Othello. Ever since his first visits with her
father Desdemona was enamored with Othello. The stories of his exploits captured her imagination and
invoked an empathy within her that she had never felt before. This admiration quickly turned to love as
their relationship developed away from the watchful eyes of her father. The depth of that love is an
absolute during the play, even when Othello's behavior begins to change she maintains faith in the love
between them, never once doubting the purity of those affections. It is this love that emboldens her,
making her comfortable enough to behave in ways that Othello deems suspicious.
Cassio A handsome Venetian youth. He is Othello's first lieutenant for most of the play, until he
disgraces himself in a street fight set in motion by the machinations of Iago. Possesses somewhat of a
rivalry with Iago. Good with theory but light on actual battle experience. Cassio is a gentleman,
consistently putting manners at the forefront of his thoughts. This is evidenced by his interactions with
Othello, Desdemona and even Iago in which he maintains manners and politeness throughout. He even
abstains from alcohol, lamenting that it is such an ubiquitous social pursuit. This weakness with alcohol
is exploited by Iago who uses the fact that he is not good with alcohol to incite a fight and ruin his
reputation.

Iago Othello's Ensign or Standard Bearer. Iago is the villain of this work, scheming to bring down
Othello every step of the way. Being a veteran in many wars of his day, Iago is furious about being
passed over for a promotion that would have made him second in command for the entire army. He has
always held a distaste for the moor but it is this slight which prompts him to begin actively plotting
against Othello. He begins by attempting to get Othello in trouble with Desdemona's father and the
Duke himself, but after realizing the depth of affection between the two he seeks to destroy Othello
through more sinister means. Through corrupting elaborate schemes and timing he manages to
convince Othello that Desdemona was cheating on him. He is eventually caught and taken to the torture
chambers for his misdeeds but not before directly and indirectly causing the deaths of much of the main
cast.
Iago is a sinister individual who takes an almost sadistic glee in using Machiavellian schemes to inflict
harm upon those he deems worthy of his ire. Throughout the play Othello places the highest trust in
Iago which he promptly betrays while upholding his sterling reputation as Honest Iago. He is such an
adept liar that most characters in the play take what he says at face value immediately, expecting that
he will always tell the truth and do his utmost to help.
He only reveals his true nature through soliloquies and asides. When addressed by other characters in
the play he is both charismatic and dependable. This visage only enhances his deceit, as the advice he
gives is superficially soundyet poisoned to the detriment of the other characters. Like when he
advices Cassio to seek retribution with Othello through Desdemona.
Important Themes
The Incompatibility of Military Heroism and Love
No matter the events in the play Othello was always a soldier first and foremost. It is the foundation of
desdemona's attraction to him and is the foothold he used to garner acceptance in venetian society.
Although there is some fear present in regards to his race in Venice he is still respected and honored as
a solider above all else. His promotion to general evidences this as well as the outpouring of respect we
see from the majority of characters, such as Cassio. Soldier is the identiry he is secure in.
Isolation
Isolation can be dangerous and enables many of the plays more shady dealings. Cyprus is where the
bulk of the action goes down and isolation allows characters to prey on one another. Iago's frequent
soliloquies attest to this fact. This also applies to Othello's physical isolation from the rest of venetian
society.
Motifs
Sight and Blindness
Plants
Animals
Demons
King Lear
Major Players
King Lear Aging king of Britain and the titular character of this work. Lear enjoyed absolute power
during his reign and enjoys flattery. Responds poorly to opposition of any kind. Gullible and values the

appearance of love over actual love. Wishes to retain the benefits of being king without the work that
accompanies it. Is divested of everything he holds dear.
Cordelia Lear's most devoted daughter. Was exiled by her father by refusing to flatter him. Held in
high regard by all of the good characters in the play. Virtuous and remains loyal to Lear despite the
slight. Passes away at the end of the play.
Regan and Goneril Lear's evil daughters who use Lear's retirement as an opportunity to oust him
completely and grab power for himself. Vain, conceited and aggressive.
Gloucester Nobleman who is loyal to lear till the end. Is punished greatly for attempting to help lear
by losing his eyes. Sent to smell his way to dover.
Edgar and Edmund Gloucester sons. Edgar is the older son, a virtuous man who doesn't really want
the trappings of power. He uses a variety of disguises throughout the play. Edmund is Gloucester's
bastard. He lusts for power to the point of treachery purpotrated on his father and brother. Succeeds in
almost all of his plots and wreaks utter havoc on the other characters.
Themes
Justice
Authority vs Chaos
Reconcilliation
Motifs
Madness
Betrayal
Macbeth
Macbeth is a play of contradiction and ambition. Driven to becoming King, Macbeth will kill all and any that
get in his way. He puts his faith in the words and prophesies of three witches, after their first one (that he will
become Thane of Cawdor) comes through. Macbeth's wife, Lady Macbeth, is instrumental is Macbeth's
ambition, egging him on when he fears he has gone to far, and scheming of greatness.