Handkerchief

Handkerchief

1. Symbolism

2. Othello gifted Desmona handkerchief declaring his love.

3. represents her loyalty to marriage, that she wants to be with him.

4. Iago’s scheme, making Emilia steal handkerchief, making Desdemona believe she lost it, enough to convince Othello, she's fooling around with Cassio, and that she is unfaithful.

5. White

   • Represents purity marriage had, meaning she was once the faithful girl that he married.

6. Red

   • Red strawberries symbolic of dyed from virgin. When lost, she had lost her pureness.
   • Colours make handkerchief resemble white wedding sheet, that’s been stained with virgin’s blood. According to Othello, when Desdemona has the handkerchief in her possession, she’s chaste, but when she “loses it”, she loses her chastity.

7. Iago knows handkerchief symbolises Desdemona’s fidelity.

8. handkerchief was Othello’s mothers, from exotic past - tells Desmona that Egyptian “charmer” gave it his mother, that it'd keep his father under her spell in Act 3, scene 4.