Foils!!

I like that Shakespeare puts the contrasting scene in the end of this act. Emilia speaks of how her and most women of that time are fine with cheating, making Desdemona look like a really nice girl. This causes the audience to grow in sympathy for her. When the audience sees Othello hitting her and Iago plotting against her, they become even more of enemies in the play. The sympathy that is caused will result in the audience rooting for Desdemona. Also, this foil with Emilia brings her out as a sort of enemy figure. All of the abuse she took originally made her look like a victim, but the fact that she cheats on Iago with no conscience makes her less sympathetic. Another effect of this foil is a sort of sympathy for Iago. He becomes a victim of the cheating wife. This makes his anger and actions more understandable. The fact that he is a victim brings out a vulnerability in him that wasn't present before. Iago is much more likeable due to the foil between Desdemona and Emilia.