t Othello's breast / And he retires." (V.2.320-322) Giving up is hardly Othello's style, but this is how a noble and true man should react when he has mistakenly killed his wife. However, Othello's words give a deeper insight into how he still misunderstands the situation. "Who can control his fate?" he asks, which gives pause to a theory of pure nobility. Placing responsibility in the stars - he calls Desdemona an "ill-starred wench" - is hardly a gallant course of action. (V.2.316, 323) It is beyond a doubt Othello's fault that all of this wreckage befalls him, and his still has not had a moment of recognition of his failures at reasoning and understanding.Indeed, it is Othello's final soliloquy that ultimately seals his fate as a man who lacks critical thinking skills. This is because these are his final words, and they deal with fact, not emotion. He addresses the reasons behind his downfall, and decides how he wants others to see him, in terms of the story and how he takes responsibility for it. It is a noble speech, and a dubiously noble ending, but still, like Othello, flawed.The setting for Othello's final moments onstage is critical to how it is perceived by Othello, the other players onstage, and the audience. It lends credence to the nobility of the situation, and adds to Othello's misguided self-perception. The experience, in itself, is perfect. The day is slowly breaking as the first strands of light are filtering through the shutters on Othello's bedroom windows. Othello has moved out of the darkness he was sitting in when he began his first speech, and while standing in light, speaks of how he has been enlightened of what occurred. He holds back the company of men who seek to take him to prison or worse with a hand and "Soft, you." With this he also silences the sounds around him, and delivers a noble address, in the light, standing tall. It is an ending suitable for the most dignified of men. And yet, for all the splendo...
