Othello Part 2 (2)

Speaking in Shakespeare's tragedy Othello, the Moor of Venice, Othello compares Desdemona to a sweet weed. He has finally confronted her about her affair with Cassio, but he rants about her lost honesty and love. Othello declares, "O thou weed, who art so lovely fair and smell'st so sweet that the sense aches at thee, would thou hadst ne'er been born! (IV.ii. 67-69)" In this extended metaphor, Desdemona is a weed that entices a person's mind to love her. Each sense draws a man into her trap. Her beauty and smell drew Othello in. However, he believes that he now knows what she really is. He calls her a weed because a weed is something that is not desired by anyone. A person typically kills weeds to allow flowers to grow. Similarly, he does not wish to have her anymore as a wife and wishes to end her life.