Suggestions
Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select.Please wait while we process your payment
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
Please wait while we process your payment
By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy.
Don’t have an account? Subscribe now
Create Your Account
Sign up for your FREE 7-day trial
Already have an account? Log in
Your Email
Choose Your Plan
Save over 50% with a SparkNotes PLUS Annual Plan!
Purchasing SparkNotes PLUS for a group?
Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more!
Price
$24.99 $18.74 /subscription + tax
Subtotal $37.48 + tax
Save 25% on 2-49 accounts
Save 30% on 50-99 accounts
Want 100 or more? Contact us for a customized plan.
Your Plan
Payment Details
Payment Summary
SparkNotes Plus
You'll be billed after your free trial ends.
7-Day Free Trial
Not Applicable
Renews June 6, 2023 May 30, 2023
Discounts (applied to next billing)
DUE NOW
US $0.00
SNPLUSROCKS20 | 20% Discount
This is not a valid promo code.
Discount Code (one code per order)
SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. You may cancel your subscription on your Subscription and Billing page or contact Customer Support at custserv@bn.com. Your subscription will continue automatically once the free trial period is over. Free trial is available to new customers only.
Choose Your Plan
For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more!
You’ve successfully purchased a group discount. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. You'll also receive an email with the link.
Members will be prompted to log in or create an account to redeem their group membership.
Thanks for creating a SparkNotes account! Continue to start your free trial.
Please wait while we process your payment
Your PLUS subscription has expired
Please wait while we process your payment
Please wait while we process your payment
Cal’s grandmother and the keeper of the Stephanides family’s Greek heritage, Desdemona’s character introduces the idea that fate controls a person’s destiny. As a girl, Desdemona’s mother teaches her that her own purity will affect the silk she produces, which she takes to heart. When she learns about children of incest inheriting birth defects, Desdemona hears an echo of her mother’s words because she doesn’t understand the defects in terms of genes but in terms of her children inheriting her sin and shame. Similar to the idea of genetic destiny, Desdemona believes her actions have doomed her offspring to suffering ill fates. Desdemona’s fatalistic view of the world resurfaces in her understanding of her body. In Chapter 2, Cal explains that Desdemona interprets her heart skipping a beat as a sign that she has no control over it. Metaphorically, her heart refers to one whom she loves, meaning that she cannot control her attraction to Lefty. This idea collapses Desdemona’s inability to control her emotions with her physical body and associates love with illness. Therefore, we can read Desdemona’s later infirmities as a physical manifestation of her belief in her own moral sickness, which she cannot control.
Please wait while we process your payment