Desdemona in Act 1 of Othello (2) – Desdemona’s love

This series of posts is about the character of Desdemona in Shakespeare’s play Othello, often studied at A Level.  You can read the first post in the series here.

Today’s post looks at Act 1 Scene 3, when more characters express their views about Desdemona:

a)     BRABANTIO:  A maiden never bold of spirit  (1.3.94)

b)     BRABANTIO: To fall in love with what she fear’d to look on (1.3.98)

Can you see the irony in Example a) - how Desdemona is “never bold of spirit”, showing Brabantio’s cultural, and perhaps personal, prejudice, as her father?

Shakespeare uses alliteration in Example b) – what is Brabantio trying to emphasise through his alliteration?

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