This scene provides some comic relief for the audience after the violence and tension of the previous scene. The clown’s crude puns and the jokes he makes at the musicians’ expense are unsophisticated but still humorous. Cassio is clearly desperate to be reinstated as Othello’s lieutenant. He hires musicians to play outside Othello’s lodgings and bribes the clown to depart in case he causes offence. Having not slept since the brawl, he attempts to secure a meeting with Desdemona, thus playing into the hands of Iago. Emilia is kind and tries to oblige Cassio. However, without realising it, she too is helping Iago achieve his sinister goal of driving Othello into a jealous rage.
Questions
1. Many productions cut the part of this scene which features the clown. (a) Why do you think this is often done? (b) If you were directing this scene would you do the same? Why / why not?
2. Why is Iago keen for Cassio to meet with Desdemona? 3. Dramatic irony occurs when the audience know something that a character on stage does not. Find an example of dramatic irony in this scene.
4. In Act 1 Scene 1, Iago remarked that Cassio is a ‘Florentine’. What point is Cassio making when he says, ‘I never knew / A Florentinemore kind and honest’?
5. What is your initial impression of Emilia from this scene?
