Desdemona’s handkerchief

E786318

Desdemona’s handkerchief is the symbolic token of love in Shakespeare’s *Othello* whose loss and misplacement fuel Othello’s jealousy and the tragedy’s central misunderstanding.

All labels observed (3)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (49)

Predicate Object
instanceOf fictional object
plot device
symbolic object
appearsInWork Othello
linked to: Othello (play)

The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice
linked to: Othello (play)
associatedWithCharacter Cassio
linked to: Cassio (character)

Desdemona
Emilia
Iago
Othello
linked to: Othello (character)
causes Othello’s jealousy to intensify
Othello’s suspicion of Desdemona
centralTo plot of Othello
createdByAuthor William Shakespeare
describedAs spotted with strawberries
white cloth with red spots
firstAppearsInAct Act 3 of Othello
linked to: Othello (play)
functionInNarrative catalyst for the tragedy
physical proof for Othello’s delusion
genreContext Elizabethan tragedy
givenByCharacter Othello
linked to: Othello (character)
givenToCharacter Desdemona
interpretedAs extension of Desdemona’s body and honor
token of marital contract
keyScene Act 3, Scene 3 of Othello
Act 3, Scene 4 of Othello
languageOfWork Early Modern English
lostByCharacter Desdemona
manipulatedByCharacter Iago
materialDetail dyed with mummy and virgins’ blood (as claimed by Othello)
medium stage drama
misunderstoodByCharacter Othello
linked to: Othello (character)
originStory Othello claims it was woven by a sibyl
Othello says it was given to his mother by an Egyptian charmer
ownedByCharacter Desdemona
plantedWithCharacter Cassio
linked to: Cassio (character)
stolenByCharacter Emilia
symbolizes Othello and Desdemona’s love
Othello’s jealousy
chastity
marital fidelity
misinterpretation
the fragility of trust
trust
themeLinkedTo appearance versus reality
gender and power
jealousy
manipulation
usedAs evidence of infidelity

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Bianca (Othello) notablePropAssociated Desdemona’s handkerchief
subject linked to: Bianca
Desdemona’s handkerchief originStory Othello says it was given to his mother by an Egyptian charmer
linked to: Desdemona’s handkerchief
Desdemona’s handkerchief originStory Othello claims it was woven by a sibyl
linked to: Desdemona’s handkerchief