Emilia (Othello) exits and reappears after the brawl which disgraces Cassio. At the end of the scene, Iago is alone and plots to have Emilia "move for Cassio to her mistress". In 3.1, Cassio asks Emilia, "Give me advantage of some brief discourse with Desdemona alone." and Emilia allows him to enter. In 3.3, Emilia is present when Desdemona and Cassio confer, and present again when Desdemona urges Othello to receive the lieutenant. In the same scene, Emilia finds Desdemona's handkerchief, but, she hands it over to Iago as he had been urging her to steal it. He takes it and forbids
Emilia (Othello) comparatively minor character for much of the play; however, she serves to provide a strong contrast to the romantic and obedient Desdemona, demonstrating that she is both intelligent and distinctly cynical, especially on matters relating to men and marriage – her speech to Desdemona listing the faults and flaws of the male sex in 4.3 is a good example of this (though she does admit that women also have "frailty, as men have"). She also states in the same scene that she would be willing to commit adultery for a sufficiently high price – this shows her cynical and worldly