Introduction
Othello, a General in the Venetian army, has promoted Cassio to Lieutenant instead of Iago; in revenge, Iago has hinted at an intrigue between Cassio and Desdemona, Othello’s wife. Othello is beside himself to hear more, but Iago teasingly clams up, as if worried about Cassio’s reputation.
IAGO: It were not for your
quiet nor your good,
Nor for my manhood, honesty, or wisdom,
To let you know my thoughts.
Othello: What dost thou mean?
Iago: Good name in man and woman, dear my lord,
Is the immediate jewel of their souls:
Who steals my purse steals trash; ’tis something, nothing;
’Twas mine, ’tis his, and has been slave to thousands:
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him
And makes me poor indeed.*
Othello: By heaven, I’ll know thy thoughts.
Iago: You cannot, if my heart were in your hand;
Nor shall not, whilst ’tis in my custody.
Othello: Ha!
Iago: O, beware, my lord, of jealousy;
It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock
The meat it feeds on; that cuckold lives in bliss
Who, certain of his fate, loves not his wronger;
But, O, what damned minutes tells he o’er
Who dotes, yet doubts, suspects, yet strongly loves!
Fine words, but the exact opposite of what he said moments earlier to Cassio. “Reputation is an idle and most false imposition: oft got without merit, and lost without deserving: you have lost no reputation at all, unless you repute yourself such a loser.”
Précis
In Shakespeare’s play ‘Othello’, the scheming Iago lets Othello believe that his junior officer Cassio has been carrying on an affair with Othello’s wife, Desdemona. Pretending to care for Cassio’s reputation, Iago refuses to provide details, yet also warns eloquently against jealousy, all to increase the poor man’s agony of doubt. (51 / 60 words)
In Shakespeare’s play ‘Othello’, the scheming Iago lets Othello believe that his junior officer Cassio has been carrying on an affair with Othello’s wife, Desdemona. Pretending to care for Cassio’s reputation, Iago refuses to provide details, yet also warns eloquently against jealousy, all to increase the poor man’s agony of doubt.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 55 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 45 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: about, although, just, must, not, or, whereas, whether.
Archive
Word Games
Sevens Based on this passage
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Variations: 1.expand your answer to exactly fourteen words. 2.expand your answer further, to exactly twenty-one words. 3.include one of the following words in your answer: if, but, despite, because, (al)though, unless.
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Lord. Monster. Something.
2 Filch. Hand. If.
3 Heart. Jewel. Mock.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
Subject and Object Find in Think and Speak
Use each word below in two sentences, first as the subject of a verb, and then as the object of a verb. It doesn’t have to be the same verb: some verbs can’t be paired with an object (e.g. arrive, happen), so watch out for these.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1. Hand. 2. Love. 3. Make. 4. Good. 5. Doubt. 6. Feed. 7. Eye. 8. Minute. 9. Thought.
Variations: 1.use your noun in the plural (e.g. cat → cats), if possible. 2.give one of your sentences a future aspect (e.g. will, going to). 3.write sentences using negatives such as not, neither, nobody and never.
High Tiles Find in Think and Speak
Make words (three letters or more) from the seven letters showing below, using any letter once only. Each letter carries a score. What is the highest-scoring word you can make?
Your Words ()
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