Othello

I was doing a Tarot reading today and found an interesting parallel- during the reading a Seven of Swords came up, along with a Four of Pentacles and The Chariot. These images come from the Rider-Waite Tarot, generally held to be the standard by which decks are created, although variations do exist.

At any rate, what does this combination mean? First, let's look at the Chariot- one of the most noticeable features is the two sphinxes in the foreground. Why sphinxes? I couldn't tell you, but notice that one is black and the other white. It's to symbolize a union of opposites, although not necessarily a happy or easy one. These two opposites are held in check by the charioteer- it's his force of will and power that keeps the two from going all over the place. Interesting that when these two are combined, they provide an incredible force-the charioteer looks pretty ready to kick some ass. So this card denotes a strong will holding everything together, even when its natural tendency may be towards chaos.

The next card is the Seven of Swords- this is a card indicating deception or trickery, and as the picture implies, you may not be aware of it. Whatever this force is, it's insidious and sneaky, and you probably never even saw it coming. It indicates a need for close vigilance and watching what's going on around you. This isn't always easy, as it'll require thinking ahead and thinking outside the proverbial box. Or tent, as the picture shows.

The last card is the Four of Pentacles, which I've heard two interpretations of- first, that it's a card indicating a miser- he won't let go of the disks he holds, no matter what. But another interpretation is caution- neither waste nor hoard, seems to be the message. Sure, the guy's holding onto something of value, but only until he's certain the decision to use it is the right one. Prudence might be a good name for this card.

Now the next question- what the hell does this have to do with Shakespeare? Well, Othello has always been one of my favorite literary works, and one of my favorite plays of all time. It's a ready-made disaster- here we have Othello, who is one bad mother... (okay, that joke is too bad even for me) but can't seem to get a handle on his emotions. He's ready to believe anything his heart tells him, evidence or no. Then there's Cassio- not the sharpest sword in the kingdom, but basically innocent and wanting to do a good job. Add to this mix Desdemona, the catalyst. I've noticed Shakespeare was occasionally less than generous to his female characters, and Desdemona is a prime example. She's basically a sheltered little kid, and falls for Othello because of all the incredible adventures he has had. There's a telling line that says how Desdemona "wished Heaven had made her such a man". In other words, she's not in love with Othello, she's caught up in her idea of him, and what he represents to her- a life beyond the dreary walls of her father's house.

Then into this already volatile mixture throw in an Iago- the one character in the play who makes no sense whatsoever. He acts against his own self-interest, and seems to delight in making everyone else suffer. This seems to be his sole motivation- destruction for destruction's sake. He brings down Cassio, gets Othello to murder his wife, and in the end winds up dead himself, mainly because he manages to get inside Othello's head, or heart, making him furious and doubting of his wife's intentions.

This play, at least Othello's character, applies to modern life in a similar way as the three Tarot cards. First, Othello can be seen as The Chariot- tough, ready to fight and a hard worker. His iron will and general badass-edness make for a formidable opponent or an indestructible ally. We all have a little bit of Othello in us- our best and most noble natures, our willpower and determination. However, the thing about Othello is that he can be corrupted- he's passionate about everything, and needs a good balance before he goes flying off a hundred directions at once. And we also have an Iago in our lives- for some people, it may even be themselves! Iago is the voice of doubt, that tells us no, you can't do that- what are you thinking? Those heights you dream of are for better men than you, don't do it, you'll fall flat on your face and wind up worse off than before! But the thing about Iago is he never has your best interest in mind- sure, he may say "Oh, I only am concerned about you getting hurt", but don't believe it. Iago is the self-destructive tendencies we don't see, either in ourselves or the world around us. Iago is almost always disguised as a friend, and the advice he gives us sounds good to our ears.

Which brings us to the third card, and an element noticeably absent in the play- common sense or good judgement. We're not Othello, subject to whatever way the wind blows, and though sometimes Iago's advice turns out to be true, the fact is that we have reason and good judgement, and can call our own shots. We should avoid jumping to conclusions, and wait to get all the facts before making a decision- this is what Othello fails to do, and disaster results. So in the end, if we keep our heads on straight and think things through, Iago's advice can be taken with a grain of salt.

I know I'm guilty of jumping to conclusions and acting rashly too- in the long run, it's a lesson learned. Some of these are easy- some a little harder, but all useful.