love or power

 

The conflict between love and power in Othello reminds me of the new Hunger Games movie, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, where Coriolanus is thrown into the difficult position of choosing whether to protect those he loves (Lucy Grey and his best friend Sejanus) or gaining power and financial freedom in the Capitol. Initially, Coriolanus turns a blind eye to Sejanus's acts of treason against the totalitarian regime, but he eventually becomes envious of Sejanus's wealthy background that allows him to take risks Coriolanus cannot take. Yet, Coriolanus chooses to rat out Sejanus in a roundabout way instead of directly reporting him to the authorities, which seems to me like a half-hearted attempt to choose power over love. He also agrees to run away with Lucy Grey, but changes his mind a few hours in.

Despite his hesitation and the remorse he exhibits later on, Coriolanus accepts his invitation back to the capitol for exposing his friend; in the end, his hunger for power prevailed. Ultimately, Coriolanus's love for Lucy Grey is characterized not by pure affection, but also by an element of exploitation. She was an asset who could provide him with the opportunity to achieve power and financial gain by winning the Games.

Like Coriolanus, Othello's desire for power taints his ability to love Desdemona; his definition of "love" is inevitably connected to how it will benefit his power. In Act One, Othello said, "She loved me for the dangers I had passed, And I loved her that she did pity them," and although he believes he loves Desdemona, he loves that she understands his difficult ascent to power rather than Desdemona herself. The cheating accusations imposed by Iago, true or not, are a direct attack on Othello's reputation and standing in society; therefore, Othello feels that murdering Desdemona is justified. 

I don't think there can be a simple answer to whether Othello loves Desdemona or not. Othello high values power, but different people have different perspectives on the importance of it. According to Othello's definition of love, he might really love her -- I don't think it's fair to one-sidedly declare that he doesn't without fully understanding his story.