Examples of Shakepearian Revenge Tragedey in Othello and...

A revenge play or revenge tragedy is a form of tragedy which was extremely popular in the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras. One of the best-known Shakespearean revenge tragedies is Othello and tragic comedy is The Tempest. One of the most prominently occurring and important aspects of human nature that appears in Shakespeare’s work is the concept of revenge. In most of the tragic plays of Shakespeare, the avenger has his thoughts of committing revenge and towards the end causes his own downfall and also death and destruction of several other good and supporting characters. The main focus of this essay is to show how Revenge leads to Destruction in Shakespearean plays – Othello and The Tempest. The main point of this essay is ‘neither the avenger is benefited nor the victim’. In William Shakespeare’s Othello we are taken on a journey with Iago whose thirst for revenge is the main cause for destruction in the play. Iago at one point in time compares himse lf with Cassio which provokes him to take revenge on Cassio. â€Å"If Cassio do remain he hath a daily beauty in his life, that makes me ugly† (V.1.19-20) â€Å"No, he must die† (V.1.23). â€Å"His two alleged wrongs are Cassio being promoted before him, and his own wifes suspected intimacy with Othello contributes to his qualities of being cruel and vengeful’[Canning, Albert Stratford George, 1907]. His demonic qualities can be perceived from the ambiguity of motives for vengeance that he provides and from his frequent references to the