Although Othello is a tragic play in nature, Shakespeare's subtle use of comedy in the play's various scenes adds effect to its overall tragic downfall. In a standard comic play, one would expect a story of love and courtship with some deceptive twist of plot, all worked out to a happy ending through good fortune and clever thinking. However, in Othello, comedy appears as a precursor to tragedy, used cleverly by Shakespeare in manipulating the perspective of readers and spectators alike. The elements of comedy throughout the play, present the audience with the expected comic conventions gone wrong, all twisted into a deceptive plot which highlights the tragedy. Why would Shakespeare make use of any forms of comedy in a play devoted solely to tragedy? Although one would guess that comic relief lightens the effects of tragedy, it is in fact the opposite. Shakespeare cleverly diverts the reader's attention through his comic scenes by making the play look like a comedy instead of a tragedy. As a result, the reader begins to expect a happy-go-lucky ending, where they are actually stunned by how tragic it is.
             One instance of comedy is played out in Act II, Scene i, where the reunion of Desdemona and Othello in Cyprus is about to take place. Iago and Desdemona enter a heated argument over women and their place in society. The argument is mainly comical in that its point is ridiculous and its logic is lacking. For example, Iago states that women "rise to play, and go to bed to work." Iago perceives women by saying they are lazy in all matters except sex. His nonstop reference to sex adds comic relief to the scene and helps portray Iago's vice. Desdemona plays along, laughing as Iago criticizes women, adding comedy to the scene. Shakespeare mainly uses such an instance of comedy to leave the roots of Iago's evil unexplained, while showing the fruits of his evil in full. Shakespeare utilizes t...