Vocabulary and Dramatic Terms from Othello

Abhor

to deplore, to truly hate, e.g. "I abhor false friendship; I'd rather have an openly hateful enemy than a fake friend."

Knave

an unscrupulous, dishonest person

Doting, to dote on

to joyously cater to others, waiting on them hand and foot, possibly in an over-the-top manner, e.g. "Whenever her daughter came home from college, Mary couldn't help but dote on her, making her daughter's favorite meals, bringing her chicken soup when she was sick, etc. She knew she might not see her daughter again for quite some time." Or "The grandfather doted on his grandson to such a degree that I feared he might spoil him."

Obsequious

characterized by over-the-top kissing-up/flattering, etc.

Visage

facial expression, facial features, e.g. "Even after two millenia, the mummified prince's visage still appeared handsome."

Homage

tribute, honor - to "pay homage to" something is to reference it, imitate it as a way of honoring it, etc. - it is pronounced "oh-MAHJ." "That film is Tarantino's homage to Hollywood" or "By singing Rabbi BK's at the event, the students paid homage to someone who had played an important role during their time at Milken."

Incense (verb), Incensed (adjective)

"When Greg's father learned that Greg hadn't taken his stock market advice, he was so incensed that he hung up the phone."

Vex (verb)

to create difficulty, to cause trouble for, etc., e.g. "This problem has vexed mathematicians for centuries" or "He found organic chemistry so vexing that he switched out of pre-med."

Timorous

timid, uncertain, nervous, etc.

Beseech

to entreat, to plea, to implore, etc., e.g. "I beseech you to study carefully, because I want you to do well."

Lascivious

crudely sensual (with a negative connotation) - pronounced "Lasiveeis."

Iniquity, Iniquitous

injustice, unjust

Promulgate

to proclaim, to declare, to spread the idea of, e.g. "I found the ideology promulgated by the institution offensive." Or "The Declaration of Independence was promulgated on August 2, 1776."

Incur

to receive, to accrue, to be given, e.g. "Since she drove through a red light, she incurred a traffic ticket" or "He incurred a detention because he had too many tardies."

Divine (verb)

to divine is to understand or make a prediction about the future, or to foresee it, e.g. "As much as I tried, I couldn't divine his intentions. I just had to make my best guess" or "My father divined that I was in serious trouble, just from the tone of my voice." To "practice divination" meant to make predictions and/or judgments about the future, often based on superstitions.

Mountebank

a scammer, a low-life, a hustler (in a bad sense), a snake-oil salesman, etc.

Conjure (verb)

to create/produce out of thin air, e.g. "The magician conjured a rabbit out of his hat, to the audience's delight." Or "I wanted to thank you for hosting my son's Bar-Mitzvah. Through candles, music, flowers, delicious food, and impeccable service, you conjured the most amazing environment for his celebration."

Sated

satisfied, e.g. "For once in her life, she felt truly sated. She was content, and needed nothing more."

Plie (verb), Pliant (adjective)

"The detective tried to plie the suspect for information, but the suspect wasn't pliant." Someone who is pliant is flexible, receptive, potentially moved (whether justly or via manipulation,) e.g. "She found her chemistry teacher pliant when it came to her extension requests, but her math teacher definitely was a different story." Or "The weaker party in the negotiation was quite pliant regarding our requests.

Dilatory

tending to be late/tardy, e.g. "His dilatory habits got him in trouble in college; professors would simply not accept his late papers."

Hitherto

up until now, e.g. Desdemona tells her father, "I am hitherto your daughter...But he [Othello] is my husband."

Fortitude

strength, resilience - e.g. "I cannot believe the fortitude you have shown throughout this crisis. I am so proud of you."

Ere

before

Base (adjective), Baseness (noun)

coarse, uncivilized

Fantastical

magical, imaginative, unrealistic (can have good or bad connotations, depending on context)

Wanting (adjective)

lacking - "For want of" (expression) - Due to the lack of - e.g. "When she introduced her boyfriend to her parents, they unfortunately found him wanting."

Voluble

unstable, mercurial, etc., e.g. "His personality was so voluble that his employees never knew which version of their boss would show up. They were terrified of making any errors, but on the other hand, he could be incredibly generous."

Requisite

necessary, e.g. "He just didn't have the requisite skills for the position."

Egregious

really bad, e.g. I realized that I had not just made an error; I had made an egregious error."

Hazard (verb)

to risk, to bet, e.g. "I know you want to make the trip, but in this weather, I wouldn't hazard it."

Infirm (adjective), Infirmity (noun)

to be infirm is to be ill, weak, etc. - an "infirmity" is a sickness, weakness, imperfection, etc.

Warrant (verb)

to merit, to deserve, e.g. "I know you didn't get the job for which you applied, but your resume was so impressive that it warranted a second look. I actually realized you'd be the perfect fit for another position, one we haven't even advertised yet."

Languish

to linger, to stall, to stew in, etc., e.g. "His career had been languishing for years; he was stuck in a dead-end job."

Ruminate

to think about deeply and/or repeatedly, to ponder, to turn over in your mind, to try to figure something out, e.g. "Stop ruminating about this and just do it already"

Dissemble (verb), Dissembling (adjective)

to b.s., to clearly evade or try to distract from a subject, e.g. "When he was asked the one question he couldn't answer, his dissembling reply made it obvious that he wasn't up for the job. He would have been better off simply admitting that he didn't know."

Veritable (adjective), Veritably (adverb)

"Veritas" means "truth" in Latin - "veritably" means something like "almost as if it were so", "just about", or "basically", e.g. "Even before entering law school, she had read so comprehensively about her chosen field that she was a veritable expert."

Lethargy

tiredness

Lethargic

adjective form of lethargy

Fiend

a devil

Anon

soon

Impudent

rude, disrespectful, especially in the context of authority

Anagnorisis

moment of recognition (e.g. Othello realizes, too late, that Desdemona was innocent; Emilia realizes, too late, that she played an instrumental role in Desdemona's death by stealing her handkerchief)

Peripeteia

reversal of fortune (similar to anagnorisis, but not the same)

Hamartia

tragic flaw

Dramatis Personae

list of characters in a play

Freytag's Pyramid/Five Act Structure

most Shakespearean plays have been organized into five acts; many shows still follow this structure

Exposition

includes introduction of characters, setting/s, etc.

Rising Action

the buildup of events leading to the climax

Climax

the turning point of the story

Falling Action

events following the climax leading to resolution

Resolution/Denouement

where the chips fall at the end

Blank Verse

unrhymed iambic pentameter, ten syllables total (five metric 'feet' or poetic units, of two syllables each, e.g. 5 x 2 = 10.)

Verisimilitude

believability in terms of similarity to reality

Mimesis

imitation of reality through art (adjective is 'mimetic')

Apostrophe

an address to someone or something that is absent or abstract, e.g. 'Oh, love, why do you keep breaking my heart?'

Epizeuxis

the repetition of one word for effect, e.g. 'Daisy, Daisy, Daisy!' or 'Oh, Desdemona, Desdemona, Gentle Desdemona!'

Theme v. Motif

a motif is a more specific instantiation of a theme; jealousy could be a theme, while 'hands' could be a motif.

Direct Characterization

what we know about a character by what we are directly told

Indirect Characterization

what we infer about a character through their words, actions, other characters' reactions, etc.

Duologue

a piece of dialogue with two characters

Didactic

intended to teach

Round Character

complex, developed

Flat Character

simple, undeveloped

Static Character

does not change much throughout the play

Dynamic Character

changes significantly throughout the play

Internal Conflict

conflict within a character

External Conflict

e.g. conflict with another character

Comedic Relief

self-explanatory

Blocking

the choreography of a performance

Hitting Your Mark

being at the right place, at the right time, so that the lighting, camera focus, etc. will be perfect

Catharsis

emotional release, emotional cleansing - related words are 'purgation' and 'purgative'

Caesura

a pause or break within a poetic line, e.g. 'To be or not to be - that is the question.'

End-Stopped Line

a line that ends clearly, and does not 'spill over' into the next line.

Enjambed Line/Enjambment

a line that 'spills over' into the next line, e.g. Roses are red, violets are blue.

Dramatic Irony

when the audience knows something that a character does not, producing tension

Aside

a remark that other characters do not hear - only the audiences hear it

Foil

a character who brings out the qualities in another character, e.g. Donkey and Shrek are foils, because Donkey's enthusiasm highlights Shrek's grumpiness, and vice versa.

Pun

a play on words, e.g. 'Never trust an atom; they make up everything.'

Double Entendre

a word that carries a double meaning - a double entendre is a type of pun, but not all puns are double entendres.

Soliloquy

a longer speech delivered by one character, which other characters do not hear

Monologue

similar to a soliloquy, but usually directed towards other characters and/or the audience (with other characters able to hear it)

Who is the woman with whom Cassio actually is cheating on his wife?

Desdemona

Emilia

Bianca

Senator Brabantio's wife

answer: bianca

Which flaw does Cassio have, which Iago exploits?

He gambles

He has a short temper/is easily provoked

He is in debt

He is extremely allergic to certain foods

answer: he has a short temper

What is one reason Iago is not jealous of Othello?

There has been a rumor that Othello and Iago's wife, Emilia, have been involved

Iago did not receive a promotion he thought he deserved

Othello is married, whereas Iago is divorced

Othello has chosen Cassio as his lieutenant over Iago.

Othello is married