Kesnija Bilbija once said: “Some rumors are entirely true. Others contain grains of truth; still others contain none at all. Plausible or implausible, truthful or false, rumors circulate because people are trying to get to the bottom of a matter. The acceptance or rejection of a given rumor in a given time or place depends on its ability to satisfy this need to understand” (Rumor Quotes). This is the entire truth as to why people feed off gossip so much. Just by hearing one rumor about another person or thing, one’s view of that person or thing can change significantly. Rumors can cause the destruction of relationships as in Othello, or the song “Rumor has it” by Adele, or they can cause an entire stock market to crash within a week. Rumors have been around since the beginning of man, and they will always be here, therefore, rumors are one of the many timeless themes in Othello.

When the stock market crashed in 2008, many at first did not completely understand why. Some assumed that we had put too much money into risky investments, particularly the housing market.  Others thought that we had just finally reached a breaking point in our banking system, especially with loans. In fact, both of these given reasons were true. However, neither of those reasons would have been found or given unless the rumor had begun. In the summer of 2008, a rumor started out of the blue that Bear Stearns, a very profitable and wealthy bank, was losing money rapidly. When confronted, the CEO said that everything was fine, and that they still had plenty of money. However, no one with stocks in Bear Stearns believed them, so they began taking out their money anyway. That was when they actually began losing money, and then the risky loans and banking were found (Inside the Meltdown). This is very similar to how Iago told Othello that Desdemona was cheating on him without actually knowing, and therefore destroying a relationship (III.iii.199).

In the song, “Rumor has it” by Adele, it talks about a girl hearing rumors that her significant other is cheating, but nothing is  ever confirmed. One of the lines says: “Haven’t you heard the rumors?” (Adele). This line is very similar to Othello because he believed something that was never confirmed, as did the girl in the song believe something that was never fully confirmed. The song is also similar to Othello when it says: “All of these words whispered in my ear/ Tell a story that I cannot bear to hear” (Adele). It is similar to when he says: “No, Iago,/I’ll see before I doubt, when I doubt, prove,/ And on the proof, there is no more but this-/Away at once with love or jealousy!” (III.iii.189-192). This means that he doesn’t want to believe what Iago is telling him until it is completely proven true, and even then, he doesn’t want to believe it.

Both of these examples given show that rumors are something that we will always have in life, and they may or may not be true. Regardless, however, people will believe them and act on them as well. It also shows how rumors can effect and change lives forever. With Othello killing his wife then himself, and with the market crash, they both had long term effects even though they had started with a false rumor. Rumors will always be around, and it is up to oneself to determine if they are worth listening to.