Final answer:
Desdemona first heard the 'song of Willow' from Barbary, her mother's maid, in Shakespeare's play 'Othello'.
Step-by-step explanation:
Desdemona first heard the "song of Willow" from an old woman who was her mother's maid. In Shakespeare's play Othello, Desdemona recounts that this woman, named Barbary, was in love, but her lover went mad and abandoned her. Thus, the song is associated with sadness and forsaken love, which foreshadows Desdemona's own fate in the play. In Shakespeare's "Othello," Desdemona first hears the "song of Willow" from her maid, Emilia. The song is a poignant and symbolic moment in the play, as it foreshadows the theme of betrayal and deceit. Desdemona innocently asks Emilia about the origin of the song, and Emilia responds that it is a song her mother used to sing when she was distressed over her husband's unfaithfulness. Little does Desdemona know that this seemingly innocent conversation about a song will later become intertwined with her own tragic fate, highlighting the pervasive themes of jealousy, deception, and tragedy in the play.