Othellos Landing and Act II and Othello

I argued in another mini-essay that Shakespeare's use of or allusion to the New Testament added a Christlike authority to Othello when Brabantio's crowd came out to arrest him (1.2.59). In this essay, I will argue that by delaying Othello's entry and words for more than 180 lines in 2.1, Shakespeare adds to Othello's authority. Thus, by these two methods, one verbal and one in scene arrangement, the hearer is encouraged to share the reverence in which the Venetians hold their military leader.

Descrying a Boat?

When 2.1 opens, the Venetian Cypriots are restlessly scanning the horizon for any sign of Othello's boat. Salvation for the people will come from outside the community, but the ravaging forces of nature, which will claim the Turkish fleet, threaten the very source of life which comes. Twice in the first 40 lines the scene stresses their concentration on the horizon. "I cannot, 'twixt the heaven and the main,/ Descry a sail (2.1.4)," and "...throw out our eyes for brave Othello,/ Even till we make the main and th' aerial blue/ An indistinct regard (2.1.38-40)."

The uncertainty of Othello's appearance makes the citizens not only pray for his health but ruminate on his sense of authority. Even the current governor of the island says, in response to the news that he will be displaced as governor by Othello, "I am glad on't; 'tis a worthy governor (2.1.30)." Another man says, "For I have serv'd him, and the man commands/ Like a full soldier (2.1.35-36)." Thus, even before ships are sighted, the yearning intensity and offhand comments of support/submission to Othello show that he is a man whose fame stretches far beyond the confines of the Senate chamber in Venice.

The Ships Begin to Arrive

Even though the Moor's ship is the one desired by all, and even though he was the first one to leave Venice after the Senate commissioned him (1.3), he is not the first to arrive. There is talk among the crowd and one declares, "The ship is here put in,/ A Veronesa; Michael Cassio (2.1.25-26)." Cassio prays that the heavens "give him (Othello) defense against the elements (2.1.45)," because they lost connection at sea. Then, the crowd cries, "A sail, a sail, a sail (2.1.51)!" Another ship arrives, but in fact it is not Othello's ship either, for it bears Desdemona and Iago, among others. Concern is elevated, because Desdemona's ship left Venice after Othello's. Then, after Cassio's sexually-charged lines, a cry is raised, "'A sail, a sail!' But hark, a sail (2.1.93-94)." The third time is the charm, and it will be Othello's boat.

But still we do not see the great man. For almost 90 lines there is small talk between Iago and Desdemona. Though we know Othello is safe, we still do not see him, and our breath is bated as the we impatiently wait for the small talk to end and someone to shout, "The Moor (2.1.178)!"

When Othello Appears

Then, when Othello comes on the scene, he does so with such a sense of contentment and joy, such measured satisfaction, that we the hearers smile inwardly with our own satisfaction. "If it were not to die,/ 'Twere now to be most happy; for I fear/ My soul hath her content so absolute/ That not another comfort like to this/ Succeeds in unknown fate (2.1.189-193). And, again, "I cannot speak enough of this content,/ It stops me here; it is too much of joy (2.1.196-197)." The tide has come in and brought with it the conquering hero Othello.

In a famous image from a previous (1599) work, Brutus tells Cassius that it is a ripe time to march to Philippi in order to meet the combined forces of Antony and Octavian. "We, at the height, are ready to decline./ There is a tide in the affairs of men,/ Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;/ Omitted, all the voyage of their life/ Is bound in shallows and in miseries (Julius Caesar 4.3.217-221)." We have the impression that upon landing in Cyprus, Othello has taken the tide "at the flood." His star, which already had risen high, is higher still. And, to top it off, the Turkish fleet was broken up in the storm, and the whole purpose of Othello's commission has been fulfilled. But, as we study the play, we will discover that Brutus's sober assessment about a "tide" in the affairs of men proves too true. Othello may have ridden the tide successfully to Cyprus but he is "at the height, ready to decline."

Conclusion

The technique of drawing out Othello's landing and then having him speak words of serene contentment gives the people a chance to express their admiration for Othello and gives the reader an opportunity to recognize his unquestioned authority. Dignity and authority are not only predicated of Othello in Act I; they are ascribed to him in Act II.*

[*In this regard it is interesting to note the role of another literary device in 1.3 that enhances the mystery of Othello. Beginning in 1.3.127 Othello narrates to the Senate the way his and Desdemona's love grew. We recall he told the romantic, alluring and mysterious tales of "antres vast and deserts idle (1.3.140)." Yet, the narrative is at least three steps removed from the actual reality it describes. First there were the events themselves. Then there was the telling of the tales to Desdemona and Brabantio. Third was the telling of the account of the tale-telling to Desdemona and Brabantio before the Senate. This threefold stretching out of the story makes it appear to be not simply a mystery but, in Churchill's felicitous phrase regarding the Soviet Union, a "riddle, wrapped in an enigma within a mystery." By these devices Shakespeare stresses the mysterious and authoritative nature of Othello the Moor.]