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Year 9

Exploring motifs in 'Othello'

I can identify and analyse the motifs in the play 'Othello'.

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Year 9

Exploring motifs in 'Othello'

I can identify and analyse the motifs in the play 'Othello'.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Motif analysis should address both the overall purpose of the motif and the meaning of individual examples.
  2. The motif of plants and gardening surrounds Iago, suggesting that he is in control.
  3. Many of Iago's quotes about plants are focused on poison, suggesting that he taints those around him.
  4. The motif of animals and light and dark allows racist stereotypes to be exposed and subverted, respectively.
  5. The motif of demons, hell and monsters is concerned with characters’ morality.

Keywords

  • Motif - recurring images that help to develop the story’s theme

  • Taint - contaminate or pollute something

  • Primal - relating to an early stage in development

  • Permeate - spread through something and be present in every part of it

Common misconception

Motifs and symbols are the same.

A motif is a recurring image whereas a symbol is one thing that represents something else.


To help you plan your year 9 english lesson on: Exploring motifs in 'Othello', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Have a discussion about what students think the most important motif is in the play and why.
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Teacher tip
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Equipment

You will need a copy of Shakespeare's 'Othello' for this lesson.

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Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
  • Depiction or discussion of mental health issues
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Supervision

Adult supervision required

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Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is a motif?
Correct answer: recurring images that help to develop a story’s themes
an object that represents something else
when a character says something they do not mean
Q2.
Which character is introduced as diabolical in Shakespeare's 'Othello'?
Othello
Correct answer: Iago
Brabantio
Desdemona
Q3.
Which quote from 'Othello' shows Iago to be diabolical?
Correct answer: "Hell and night must bring this monstrous birth to the world's light"
"Our bodies are our gardens to which our wills are gardeners"
"Poison his delights"
Q4.
In 'Othello', what does Othello say at the end of the play that confirms Iago as a diabolical presence?
"...green eyed monster. It is the monster that doth mock the meat it feed on''
"Wash me in gulfs of liquid fire''
Correct answer: "...that demi-devil...hath ensnared my soul and body''
Q5.
In 'Othello', what could Iago be said to have planted metaphorically in Othello's mind?
Correct answer: poisonous seeds
beautiful flowers
exotic fruits
Q6.
How does Iago expose his racism and prejudice against Othello in the play 'Othello'?
plots his downfall
Correct answer: says he is animalistic
helps Roderigo win over his wife
tells him to strangle his wife

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is not a motif in the play 'Othello'?
light and dark
plants and gardening
Correct answer: food and drink
hell, demons, monsters
Q2.
''Not poppy, nor mandragora...shall ever medicine thee to that sweet sleep''. What motif is shown in this quote from 'Othello'?
hell, demons, monsters
light and dark
animals
Correct answer: plants and gardening
Q3.
Which motifs permeate Iago's character in the play 'Othello'?
Correct answer: plants and gardening
animals
Correct answer: hell, demons, monsters
Q4.
Which motif used in Shakespeare's 'Othello' subverts racist stereotypes of the Elizabethan era?
animals
plants and gardening; Iago
Correct answer: light and dark
Q5.
Which motif is used in the play 'Othello' whenever morality is in question?
plants and gardening
sight and appearances
Correct answer: hell, demons and monsters
Q6.
In 'Othello' Iago often operates at night, is duplicitious and delivers soliloquies, what motif is suggested by this?
animals
hell, demons, monsters
Correct answer: sight and appearances