Essay On Borderline Personality Disorder In Othello

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From the infamous Shakespearean play, Othello, the titular character reveals multiple signs and symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder. Based on an examination of Othello's thoughts, behaviors, and actions, there are a series of symptoms of the disorder showcased by him throughout the play, such as frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment; identity disturbance; suicidal actions; intense, inappropriate anger; and transient, stress-related paranoid ideation. These symptoms are unveiled through patterns of dramatic outbursts, paranoid behaviors, unstable relationships, self-image insecurities, and suicidal actions, indicating the existence of some form of the disorder. This directly connects Othello to the diagnosis of Borderline According to an article titled “Relationships and Borderline Personality Disorder” by the Elements Behavioral Health, people diagnosed the disorder “may switch quickly from idealizing other people to devaluing them, feeling that the other person does not care enough, does not give enough, is not ‘there’ enough.” This directly relates to Othello’s relationship with Desdemona, for example, after Iago manipulates Othello into thinking his wife isn’t loyal to him by the end of the tragedy. Othello states, “'Tis pitiful; but yet Iago knows / That she with Cassio hath the act of shame / A thousand times committed; Cassio confess'd it.” (Shakespeare 5.2.250-52). This describes Othello releasing his intensifying ideation in which he believes Desdemona has cheated on him with his friend, Cassio, even though she has not. Overall, whether it was between his fake, manipulative relationship with Iago or his mistakenly unloyal and paranoid relationship with Desdemona, Othello’s diagnosis is most likely driven by the thought of losing interpersonal relationships with the characters in the The universal significance of this report is to further discuss and prove Othello’s fatal actions and instability in functioning through his thoughts behaviors and actions in comparison to the symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder and diagnose him with the persistent mental

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