Love is this illusion that is constantly trying to set itself free. The concept of finding difficult since love can be elusive, hard to get a grasp on fully, and can be difficult to understand/explain. It could make one person feel euphoria beyond belief and have another feel as if they’ve broken beyond repair. Love is complex since there are many types of love and it can be hard to differentiate each one from the other because of the different ways to express it. Love sets up illusions that can influence a mind to think that they’ve found love despite its elusive nature when in reality they were far from doing so. A love for someone can be found with the right person at the wrong time or circumstances, could have many obstacles in the way such as people or religion/beliefs, and be held back from being fully expressed due to a mutual or one-sided feeling of fear and rejection.

Othello and Desdemona’s love for each other was found with the right person but couldn’t last as long as they wanted because of all the risks that came from loving each other. Their relationship wasn’t approved because of Othello’s race and beliefs along with Brabantio being protective of Desdemona. Iago wired and set up an illusion in Othello’s mind to make him think that Desdemona didn’t love him the way she used to. The “realization” Othello had thinking Desdemona didn’t love him drove him up to the point of wishing to murder Desdemona and, once he did, he felt in that moment, ruined as if he had killed himself instead. Othello finds something with another person that can take another a lifetime to find but because of Iago’s way of deceiving him, he felt as if he hasn’t found the love he had hoped for in Desdemona. 

Conan Gray’s most recent song “Killing Me” which was released earlier this week on October 31, expressed the darker side of love covering toying with or the manipulation of a person. It talks about wanting to get out of the situation they’ve found themselves in with this person since being with them negatively affected them. The repetition of “You’re killing me” in the song shows the emotional torment that started to form after some time spent with this person. Conan alludes to the other person not leaving no matter what when he says, “Now you’re tossin’ a rock at my windowpane/Said, ‘I don’t wanna talk, just go away’/But you claw at the locks ‘til I let you invade” The love described in “Killing Me” is the type of toxic love that could drive someone to points that can result in them doing something that most likely wouldn’t have been done under normal circumstances. 

A love driven by lust, according to Dante, would land a person/people into Circle II (1a) to be blown by stormy winds forever. Roderigo falls into this circle because of what he felt for Desdemona despite her not sharing his sentiment. Othello may fall into either Circle V (1d) or Circle VII: Ring One-Violence. He could land in either of these two circles because of the anger he felt for his wife added with the guilt that came after he killed her and his violent behavior towards his wife before her death. Othello’s fall from grace shows how much his feelings were used and manipulated against him to the point where he wished death on the woman he loved.