Othello VII: Act 5 Scene 2

Despite Iago's best efforts, Othello is still visibly conflicted after killing Desdemona. This is visible with Othello's almost schizophrenic speech, in which he rapidly switches back and forth between discussing Emilia and Desdemona. This is visible in his many short sentences, none of which other than the last is longer than a line. In particular, he uses "she" three times in lines 18-20, but switches from referring to Emilia to Desdemona and back to Emilia again without clarifying. When this play is performed, the best way to have this make sense to the audience would be to have Othello rapidly shifting his vision between the door behind which lies Emilia and Desdemona's body, which - given his abbreviated speech pattern - would result in a rapid switching of subject matter between the two. In particular, when he says "My wife, my wife! What wife? I have no wife," he switches his mind quickly as if arguing with himself, illustrating how this speech pattern results from his internal conflict about killing Desdemona. That this comes from Othello, who earlier spoke so elegantly before the Venetian Senate, serves to even more strongly illustrate his insanity now. Thus, Othello has been nearly driven to insanity by his deeds; unlike Iago's soliloquies, this speech is not directed at the audience - instead, Othello is visibly speaking to himself, showing the insanity to which Iago's persecution of himself and of Desdemona has driven him.