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I think that in this scene Desdemona's purity and generosity make themselves manifest. Othello has sufficated her and yet she is able to speak. He closes the bed curtains and making the marriage bed a deathbed which gives us a inner stage in the play and from behind the curtains Desdemona is able to speak from the brink of the grave, as Iago refuses speech. He is dead, even as he lives; she is alive, even as she dies. I hope that makes sense? |
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It seems an odd thing for her to say. But is it? I think one way of looking at it is that she has to be taken literally--that she really did cause her own death, but not because of anything she did. Desdemona is a very beautiful and desired woman, married or not. Just about every man in the play obsesses over her and wants her. Roderigo becomes irrational over her and loses everything, including his life. Iago wants to get even with Othello "wife for wife," but he's attracted to Desdemona nonetheless. Iago also thinks Cassio is attracted to her, and that's probably an accurate assessment, but even if it isn't, it's plausible enough to lure Othello into the trap. Even Brabantio, Desdemona's father, says that she "deceived" him. She just seems to be the fulcrum for tragedy, even in her innocence. |
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Desdemona is loyal to her husband, despite the overwhelming evidence that something's gone wrong, and her husband has been misled into thinking something that is untrue. Her last act is one of loyalty, refusing to accuse Othello of the crime he has just committed. I don't know how we can see it as her blaming herself - she truly had no idea what she had done wrong, and begged for her accusers to face her so she could defend herself. For her to suddenly shift gears and say "Ok, I guess this is my fault" doesn't seem to flow for me. The saddest thing about this scene is that after the whole "have you prayed tonight" thing, where Othello makes sure that her soul is clean? Her last act is a lie - a sin. So not only does she not accuse Othello of the crime, but she gives up her soul to protect him. Now that's some loyalty. |
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Desdemona here shoulders the blame for her own ruthless murder at the hands of her jealous husband. This acceptance of the patriarchal order which Emilia previously rallies against (in her incredible and revolutionary speech - But I do think it is their husbands' faults/ If wives do fall). Despite Emilia's best efforts, the pervasive power of the patriarchy is internalised by Desdemona to the point that even after she is stabbed by her husband for no reason at all she believes she must have done wrong. She therefore not only accepts the punishment for her supposed crimes, but accepts full blame for that punishment and, in doing so, accepts blame for the crimes themselves which of course she has not committed. The beauty of Emilia's speech is that it renders Desdemona's guilt/innocence irrelevant as it removes all justification from men to blame their wives even if their wives do stray. Emilia is the one character who views the society of the play objectively and finds it unbalanced and unequal. Emilia's words fall on deaf ears and Desdemona continues to subject to the patriarchal control of the men around her, internalising her blame and worthlessness, despite recognising that she herself is 'guiltless'. Desdemona's final submission is not a show of loyalty at all, but an admission of the complete control she has relinquished to the dominant sex. The patriarchal ideals which pervade this society have become a part of Desdemona's self and these words express the sad truth of a woman whose society's values have now become inextricable from her own. |
