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Scene Study prepares you to perform key scenes for your theater class or audition. We've got all the information you need for a great performance.
Excerpt from Act 4, Scene 3 Dialogue: Emilia, Desdemona
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Understanding the Given Circumstances
- This scene takes place in a castle in Cyprus, the temporary lodgings of Desdemona and her husband Othello. Othello is a military leader, stationed here after a victory.
- Emilia is Desdemona’s attendant, a kind of personal servant. She is also Desdemona’s closest companion.
- Emilia is Iago’s wife. Iago has used an unsuspecting Emilia to plant false evidence that Desdemona has been unfaithful to Othello. This is part of a larger plot to destroy Othello.
- Othello’s jealousy and rage toward Desdemona build over the course of the play. He physically assaulted her. In the previous scene, Othello directly accused Desdemona of infidelity. He called her a “whore” and demanded she dismiss Emilia and remain alone in her bedroom.
- Desdemona is convinced that her husband intends to end her life. She has been unable to assure Othello of her fidelity and seeks Emilia’s companionship as the crushing force of fate weighs upon her.
- Emilia tries to convince Desdemona that she can still mend her relationship with Othello.
Blocking and Movement
In theater, blocking is the process of planning the actors’ physical movements and positions. Be sure to show respect and establish trust when working with scene partners. As you prepare to block this scene, ask yourself the following questions:
- Emilia prepares Desdemona for bed. The clothing of upper-class women was very elaborate in the world of the play and required someone like Emilia to “unpin.” How does costuming determine how this part of the scene is staged?
- Emilia refers to having put new sheets on the bed and asks if she should retrieve Desdemona’s nightgown. The two women are not in Desdemona’s bedroom, though. Where is the bedroom located? Does Emilia want Desdemona to go there? Does Desdemona want to go there?
- Othello has demanded that Desdemona dismiss Emilia; however, Emilia seems to want to stay with Desdemona. How does Emilia demonstrate her hesitation, and what does that say about Emilia’s motivations in the scene?
- Desdemona expresses a fear that she might not survive the night. Othello might return at any minute. How might the staging reflect this anxiety?
- Desdemona sings a song she learned from her mother’s maid Barbary, which tells of a woman forsaken in love by a mad husband. According to Desdemona, Barbary died singing the song. Singing on stage presents particular challenges of style and naturalism. How is this song performed? Is it a cappella or accompanied by recorded or live instruments? How loudly does she sing?
Music and Meaning
Song is crucial in many of Shakespeare’s plays. Shakespeare is one of the most powerful writers in the English language, but even he understood that music can be more powerful than words alone. Music can connect to (and connect) many people in subconscious but profound ways. For example, think of a popular song about heartbreak: the associations can be very personal. It is almost as if the songwriter is writing about you.
Music enters at vital moments in both his comedies and tragedies, but perhaps nowhere more effectively than in this scene from Othello. What is commonly known as the “Willow Song” was not a Shakespeare original: the author adapted it from a popular song of the day. Desdemona adds a powerful dramatic context when she describes how she learned the song: her mother’s maid died of heartbreak while singing it. The lyrics now obtain a dark power: will the song be the last Desdemona sings as well?
Shakespeare’s language has rhythm, a musicality that can flow into and out of song lyrics. For example, Desdemona sings, “Sing all a green willow must be my garland. Let nobody blame him, his scorn I approve.” Then she interrupts herself because she got the order of the lyrics wrong: “Nay, that’s not next.” Then, interrupting the song, she remembers the threat of Othello: “Hark! Who is’t that knocks?” Desdemona returns to singing after Emilia tells her it is the wind at the door, drawn to the tragic lyrics as if they embody her own inescapable fate. The “Willow Song” weaves into Desdemona’s speech as if she were singing about herself.
Full Act 4, Scene 3 Dialogue: Emilia, Desdemona
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