Throughout Shakespeare's "Othello", one of the most poignant themes is that of race and racial prejudice. Various critics are of the view that "Othello" was written as a social commentary, depicting the discrimination present in formal Venetian society. These ideas of racial prejudice are portrayed through Othello, the protagonist, who is referred to as "the Moor", an African or a black man.
With the benefit of contextual material, it is easier to understand the attitudes towards race at the time that "Othello" was written, as well as this we also gain a deeper understanding of the social situation, and get many different interpretations of certain parts, which help us to see why it may have been written the way it was. A clear example of this is the main theme in "Othello", critics argue that it is race, whereas others disagree, and believe that it is the roles of women. All the way through Shakespeare's "Othello" there are many words and phrases that also have many different possible interpretations.
Othello is held in great regard by the Venetian state because he defends their interests, as the general in the service of Venice, an example of this is in Act 1 Scene 3 when the Duke greets Othello, "Valiant Othello, we must straight employ you", this shows that he is respected in the military, as the Duke; who is the highest in the positions of the hierarchy, says he is "Valiant", in addition to this it also shows that they trust him for his good work in the military. In a cosmopolitan state such as that of Venice a black military leader would not be unusual, but there were very little numbers of blacks in Venice. Many sources agree that Venice...
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...l have personal reasons for their abhorrence. Iago is jealous for not obtaining the promotion, Roderigo is jealous because Othello won Desdemona over, and Brabantio is bitter because his daughter was "robbed". Shakespeare could use Othello's race to mark him as an outsider. Modern perceptions portray race as a more important theme, this is because since the time "Othello" was written, attitudes have greatly changed, and a culturally diverse society is more accepted, although racism still exists, it is to a much smaller scale, and is more striking and offensive now, and so Shakespeare's "Othello" would have very different interpretations now, and issues which were excepted then, have changed, so it is a lot more controversial, and difficult to see it in the perspective of an Elizabethan at the time, without the help of contextual material.
Arthur Shopenhauer once described a racist man as a “…miserable fool who has nothing at all of which he can be proud, adopts as a last resource pride in the nation to which he belongs; he is ready and happy to defend all its faults and follies tooth and nail, thus reimbursing himself for his own inferiority.” Without a doubt, racism is one of the key themes in Othello, which challenges the characters thoughts and actions throughout the play. One specific character, Iago, is driven by such racial distort, especially against Othello, that ultimately motivates his ingenious rampage of revenge and confusion. Hence, the characters racist attitudes, but mainly Iago’s, creates the momentum needed to spur the confusion and tension between the characters, resulting in the popular Shakespearean dramatic ending. Iago’s word choice describes very clearly his racial vision of Othello. He refers to Othello throughout the play by many racial slurs: “the moor”, “an erring barbarian”, and “black ram”. His attitude towards Othello implies certain personal characteristics: it shows that he is, jealous, hateful, and insecure “of his own inferiority.” From the beginning, Iago has been the “playmaker” of the play, always instigating the trouble and trying somehow to damage Othello.
At the beginning of the play, the audience is made aware that Othello is a Moor working in the service of Venice. During the time the play was written, racism was strong. Despite Othello’s carefully built up life in which he managed to rise from being very poor to a powerful general, he still experienced racism from characters such as Roderigo and Brabantio. In Act One Scene One, Brabantio is appalled at the idea of his delicate daughter Desdemona secretly marrying a black man without his consent. He openly insults Othello, oblivious to Othello’s power: “That thou hast practiced on her with foul charms, Abused her delicate youth with drugs or minerals.” Brabantio is accusing Othello of witchcraft and trickery, and suggesting that no one could ever love him without the influence of his evil witchcraft. The audience feels pity for Othello because they know that Othello loves Desdemona and that he is a kind man, and is receiving these insults because of his race. The audience realises that he is already at a ...
To begin, race is the first and clearest of differences between Othello and other major characters. However race is also the least seen issue in the play. Racism is, as stated by Martin Okin “confined to Iago, Roderigo, and Brabantio” (Orkin, “Othello: and the”). Emilia herself has her moments of racism, going from using Moor as a describer of Othello to using it as an insult. Brabantio shows this racism when he discovers that Othello has wed his daughter stating:
Racism in William Shakespeare's Othello. The play, Othello, is certainly, in part, the tragedy of racism. Examples of racism are common throughout the dialogue. This racism is directed toward Othello, a brave soldier from Africa and currently the supreme commander of the Venetian army.
Have you ever thought about how much Othello’s race and the racism around him affected his life? Othello struggled a lot during the play because of his dark skin color. He was called several racist names like “the Moor,” “old black ram,” “Barbary horse,” and “thick lips” (Shakespeare 1.1.40; 1.1.88; 1.1.111; 1.1.66).The term “racism” has been around for several years; it started in the twentieth century (Bartels 433). By the way the Elizabethan era viewed black people was similar to how racism is today with all of the racial comments, and stereotypes. Being a black person in a mostly white ethnicity area at that time had to be challenging based on Othello’s experience. Othello was the black sheep crowded around a herd of white sheep, he was an outcast. Racist comments were made by many of the characters like Iago, Brabantio, Roderigo, and Emilia. If there was an award for most used racial comment towards Othello, Iago would win. Racism in Othello had a tremendous impact on Othello. He was judged by the color of his skin and not his personality. Othello’s race and the racism around him affected his life by ruining his marriage with Desdemona, alienating him from everybody in Venice, and by making him an easy target to be manipulated by Iago.
In the Sixteenth century, as we see clearly from Othello and other works of both Shakespeare and Cinthio's original version of Othello, race was a topic of great debate and discussion. Today, in the twenty-first century the debate retains its controversy and passion. However, attitudes towards race have taken a dramatic turn during the last century. In the developed world people are now living in an increasingly cosmopolitan society would undoubtedly be more tolerant and would reject or even be offended by racial discrimination to any person or sections of the community. Openly 'racist' people today are seen as outcasts. Taking this into account, the way a modern audience would react to race and racism in Othello is dependent upon the way in which that modern audience would interpret 'Othello'. This prompts the questions of what sort of message Shakespeare wanted to send to his audience and was Othello the moor portrayed as a tragic hero or did his character eventually come to resemble the prejudices of which he was a victim. Shakespeare also discusses the issue of race with other characters such as the hateful Iago and the prejudices hidden deep in Barbantio.
Racism is just one of the many problems that we have here in the United States today. Racism isn’t as bad as it used to be but it’s still here. In Othello, written by the one and only William Shakespeare, racism is the main theme and focus. England became involved in the slave trade during the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries (Slights 377). Racism started in the twentieth century after this was written but the way the Elizabethan era viewed black people was similar to how racism is today (Bartels 433). Othello struggled a lot during the play because of his dark skin color. He was called several racist names like “the Moor,” “Old black ram,” “Barbary horse,” and “Thick lips.”
In the play Othello, Othello is also viewed as a very important general of Venice’s army. Despite the racist remarks that are made towards both characters and the derogatory terms that they are referred to, they are well respected and are needed in order for the success of other minor events occurring in both texts. The First Senate states “Here comes Brabantio and the valiant Moor” (I.3.48). This shows that although they might not accept Othello because of his ethnicity, they still respect and honour him by referring to him as the brave/ valiant
Matters of Race in Shakespeare’s Othello Othello is one of William Shakespeare’s most noteworthy dramas. Othello, who is one of the main characters and can also identify with a few different character roles during the course of the reading, is predominantly described as a loyal, honorable, brave and successful war general. However, one of the most salient features of this play is the numerous references to Othello’s race, not only by Iago, but by other characters as well. At the beginning of the play, in fact, we don’t even know Othello’s name, but we are made aware that he is dark-skinned and different from everyone else in Venice.
The director uses specific language and tone to stress the issue of race in Othello. The controversy of racial relationships is expressed through Brabantio's negative attitudes and words. He refers Othello to a 'foul thief, implying that his daughter could never love a man of a different colour, and that therefore Othello has stolen her from him. Brabantio compares Othello to someone that no one would want and he is disgusted that Desdemona would "run from her guardage to the sooty bosom". Thus implying that Othello is dirty and undesirable. The choice of language from the director highlights the other characters pessimistic and disrespectful attitudes towards Othello due to his skin colour.
One of the major issues in Shakespeare's Othello is the impact of the race of the main character, Othello. His skin color is non-white, usually portrayed as African although some productions portray him as an Arabian. Othello is referred to by his name only seventeen times in the play. He is referred to as "The Moor" fifty-eight times. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) states that a Moor is "Any individual of the swarthy races of Africa or Asia which have adopted the Mohammedan religion. In Spanish history the terms Moo, Saracens, and Arabs are synonymous." This indicates that Othello is constantly being degraded and set up as an evil person throughout the play. What this really means is that Othello is being judged by his skin color rather than the person under the skin. The view that whites and non-whites are equal is a relatively new concept in our society. In institutionalized racism, such as American slavery, those of a different color were often viewed as inferior. As Shakespeare wrote Othello, this idea was becoming quite prominent as England entered the African slave trade. One can look at the racial issues from the perspective of color, slavery, and society.
In the tragedy Othello, Shakespeare creates a mood that challenges the way a person sees his or her self and the world. Subjects like racism, sexism, love, hate, jealously, pride, and trickery are thoroughly developed in the play of Othello to enable the audience to view the characters and also themselves. The Shakespearean tragedy of Othello was written in a time of great racial tensions in England. According to Eldred Jones, in 1600 just three years before Othello was written, Queen Elizabeth proclaimed an Edict for the Transportation of all "negars and blackmoores" out of the country ("Othello- An Interpretation" Critical Essays 39). It is in this atmosphere that Shakespeare began the masterpiece of Othello, a drama about a noble black Arab general, Othello, who falls in love with and marries, Desdemona, a young white daughter of a senator. From the above knowledge one may conclude that Shakespeare wrote Othello to express that all people, of all ethnicity, are basically the same in human nature. Shakespeare borrowed the idea of Othello from an Italian love story by Giraldi Cinthio. However, Shakespeare focuses more on the differences in color and age between Othello and Desdemona than Cinthio. Shakespeare does this to escalate Othello’s isolation from the rest of Venetian society and to display Othello’s vulnerability due to his color. In the tragedy not only is Othello susceptible to weaknesses but so is every major character . The tragedy reminds humans that even one’s good nature can be taken advantage of for the worse. The drama Othello expresses, through relationships and emotional attitudes, a theme that all humans are vulnerable to destruction even if they are in positions of power and glory.
Tragedy of Othello, The Moor of Venice , one of the many plays written by William Shakespeare, explores a variety topics that were uncommon for pieces of literature in the 1600’s. These subjects include the effects of prejudice and racism in society. This play opens up a dialogue for motivations behind actions to be discussed. Centuries later, in modern times, the relevance of these issues remain at large.
Due to the political climate in Europe concerning colonialism, Shakespeare has first-hand knowledge on the widely disputed issue of racism in his time. This provides him the grounds to scrutinize the nature of racism and otherness. In his play, the protagonist, Othello, is a Moor – an individual of African descent who dwells in Venice and serves the Venetian army as the lieutenant. The Venetians refer to Othello as “the other” or “the foreigner” by calling him “The Moor.” “Moor,” refers to an outsider; therefore, it is best suited for a stranger who possesses unlike-qualities with the dominant group or individual; however, this discriminatory remark is inappropriate to someone whom you share a relationship or who is of a higher status.
Shakespeare's tragic play, Othello, is an amalgam of diverse antecedents, including the generic influences of the ancient Greek and Roman tragedies, Italian fiction, as well as Renaissance history such as the progression of Christian humanism. Additionally, although Shakespeare incorporates some elements of the medieval morality play into Othello, the fact that his play is a tragedy shows how he modifies it from the typical ending found in a morality play. Furthermore, not only does Shakespeare include the stereotypical Englishman's view of the black race during the Elizabethan era, he also modifies it to convey the importance of looking beyond the skin color, showing the progression of a racially prejudice society to one in which people are treated judicially based upon their character.