Scene 1

• Montano, the governor of Cyprus, and two men watch a storm
• Montano muses that the Turkish fleet might not have survived the storm and another man approaches them, confirming that the Turks‘ fleet has suffered huge losses from the storm
• a new ship arrives that Iago, his wife Emilia, Desdemona and Roderigo have travelled with
• disembarking, Cassio tells Desdemona that the ship Othello was on has not arrived yet
• in that moment, however, another ship arrives
• while waiting for the passengers of that specific ship, Emilia‘s talkativeness is mocked by Desdemona and Cassio
• Iago communicates his general perception of women: they are hypocritics, dishonest and lazy except for sexual matters
• also, he goes on about downgrading women and Desdemona plays along and laughs about Iago‘s statements
• Cassio and Desdemona talk privately about Othello‘s arrival
• Iago notices Cassio taking Desdemona‘s hand and plans on using that fact on his endeavour to make Cassio loose his position as lieutenant
• Cassio mocks Iago for his lower class status by saying "Let it not gall your patience, good Iago, / That I extend my manners. ’Tis my breeding / That gives me this bold show of courtesy" (Act II, Scene 1, p. 70)
• when Othello arrives, he greets Desdemona by kissing her
• he also thanks the inhabitants of the island for their warm welcome and their hospitality and asks Iago to unload their things
• everyone except Iago and Roderigo head to the castle and celebrate the diminished Turkish fleet
• Roderigo is again discouraged and Iago comforts him by saying that Desdemona will soon wish for a more well-mannered and more handsome man
• however, Iago claims that Desdemona will choose Cassio
• Roderigo believes that the act of taking Desdemona‘s hand was just an act of politeness
• Iago convinces Roderigo that Cassio wants to seduce Desdemona and advises him to start a fight with Cassio
• thus, Cassio will put himself in a bad light and will no longer be in favor with Othello
• Iago is left alone and he declares his intentions in a soliloquy
• he reveals to the audience that he desires Desdemona and that he suspects that Othello has an affair with his own wife Emilia - thus, he wants to get even with Othello
• Iago considers that it might not be possible to get his revenge by sleeping with Desdemona, hence he has a backup-plan with Roderigo accusing Cassio of sleeping with Desdemona which will torture Othello mentally

Scene 2

• a herald announces that Othello invites everyone to a feast in the evening, celebrating both the triumph over the Turkish fleet and his marriage with Desdemona

Scene 3

• while the others celebrate, Cassio is on duty and Othello explains that he should train himself in restraint
• Othello and Desdemona head to their chambers to consummate their marriage
• Iago joins Cassio and gossips that Desdemona is a seductress
• Cassio dismisses that, claiming that she is modest
• although first protesting, Cassio is convinced by Iago to drink something and to invite some of the people attending the celebration
• Cassio leaves and Iago addresses the audience and explains his plan: Roderigo and some other drunk men will join Cassio and Iago on their guard duty
• then, Iago will provoke Cassio into doing something disgracious
• meanwhile, Cassio returns with Montano and some others
• he gets drunk and leaves the stage, claiming that he is not drunk
• Iago then tells Montano that he believes that Cassio has too much responsibility in his position, given the fact that he is drinking too much
• Roderigo approaches and Iago points him towards where Cassio left
• Montano suggests that someone should talk to Othello about Cassio‘s heavy drinking
• in the meantime, Cassio chases Roderigo across the stage and threatens to beat him
• Montano intervenes and Cassio attacks him
• Iago advises Roderigo to leave and to claim that a mutiny is happening
• while some of Montano‘s attendants hold Cassio down, Cassio stabs Montano
• a bell sounds and Othello enters with armed attendants
• Othello seizes control and demands what has happened
• Iago and Cassio seem to have forgotten how it all began
• Montano, being severly injured, asks Iago to tell them how the struggle began
• Iago pretends to be reluctant to blame Cassio, saying that he was chasing some unknown man who did something to anger Cassio
• Othello believes that Iago softened the story in order to protect Cassio and he dismisses Cassio
• Desdemona has woken up due to all the noise outside and Othello tells her to go back to bed and that he will take care of Montano‘s wounds
• Cassio complains that he has lost his position over a fight whose reason he can‘t remember
• Iago suggests that Cassio should talk to Desdemona since she could influence Othello‘s goodwill
• her kindheartedness will make her willing to help out Cassio with regaining his position of lieutenantship
• after Cassio has left, Iago jokes about him being a villain but still helping Cassio to a better position, even though he himself envies Cassio for that position
• Iago also explains to the audience that when he is presumably doing good things, he is actually doing evil
• since Cassio will now spend a lot of time with Desdemona, Othello will be more likely to believe that he has an affair with his wife
• Roderigo approaches, visibly upset about the fact that he has been beaten and that Iago has taken all his money
• Iago convinces him to not going back to Venice and that everything goes as they planned it
• Roderigo leaves again and Iago tells the audience that he will convince Emilia to talk to Desdemona about Cassio and about reinstating him in his position; also he plots on Othello seeing Cassio pursuing Desdemona

Function

• as the threat of the Turks is eliminated, the political tragedy now turns into a domestic tragedy
• Desdemona encouraging Iago‘s belittling ongoings about women creates an uncomfortable atmosphere
  
  • their laughing is inappropriate considering the fact that Othello‘s ship has not yet arrived and a storm has already drowned part of the Turkish fleet
  • Iago rhymes his insults - thus, they create a light and childish feel although the content is anything but (alienating effect)
  • Desdemona encourages Iago which is confusing, given the fact that she established herself as an independent and intelligent woman in front of the court
  • however, she proves her independency from her husband since she acts socially and intellectually without his presence
  • although Iago goes on about women, he actually voices his dislike of the higher social class
  • he hates that Cassio has been promoted (because of his higher class status) and not him
  • later on, Iago makes fun of Roderigo for being more "base" (lower class) although it is not stated whether Roderigo actually belongs to a lower class
• Iago‘s soliloquy tells the audience about his intentions
  
  • it is not clear whether he is motivated by lust for Desdemona, anger towards and envy of Cassio or his irritation over his wife‘s supposed affair with Othello
• Montano being stabbed predicts what will happen later on (Cassio being stabbed and Roderigo being killed)
• Cassio has a tendency of getting himself in trouble as Othello‘s warning at the beginning of the feast emphasizes
• Iago as manipulator
  
  • no one remembers Roderigo being involved in the fight and no one knows who he is
  • Cassio doesn‘t even remember what the brawl was about
• Othello and Desdemona‘s marriage as isolated from everything else
  
  • when Desdemona wakes up because of the quarrel outside, Othello calms her and tells her to go back to bed and that he will take care of everything else
  • the brawl, Cassio losing his position and Othello tending to Montano does not affect their marriage