Walcott’s “Goats and Monkeys” as a reflection of Shakespeare’s “Othello” “Goats and Monkeys” by Derek Walcott from “The Castaway and other Poems (1965)”, is a dark poem that justifies a black man in a world where everyone loos down on him. This poem portrays many notions of racism, sex, savagery and jealousy. However, these notions could not have been portrayed the best they have been if Walcott did not build its foundation upon Shakespeare’s “Othello”. Therefore, this paper attempts to provide evidences which will prove that “Goats and Monkeys” is a strong reflection of Shakespeare’s “Othello” and also show sympathetic sentiments towards Othello by Walcott. Walcott has wonderfully devised his plot for this poem to inject a strong impression to his readers. Shakespeare’s “Othello” gave him the firm foundation on which his poem could reach great heights in diction and imagination, which otherwise might not have been good as it is now. The innocence of Desdemona, the sexual jealousy of Othello and the racial, blood thirsty revenge of Lago towards Othello were the perfect symbols for Walcott to show his readers what exactly was in his mind. Therefore with the help of “Animal imagery”, he makes a perfect combo to deliver a powerful poem. Walcott came from a mixed family background, with two white grandfathers and two black grandmothers. Although “he grew up familiar with English, his problem is one faced by most post-colonial writes; he does not fit in the British tradition, and he is troubled both by his ease with the English language and his alienation from English experience.” (Nagarayan, 2003). Thus Walcott, to represent his own dilemma in being “Black in skin and white in mind”, finds Othello as the perfect medium, since Othe... ... middle of paper ... ...ssion of Cassio. Walcott felt that Othello’s judgment was based on flimsy grounds, which furthers his contemptuousness toward the couple (Palavic, 2006). To sum up, Walcott’s “Goats and Monkeys” is truly based on Shakespeare’s “Othello” because the poem begins with an epigraph from the original play and ends with the grievance of Othello for killing whom he loved the most. “Goats and Monkeys” reflect Shakespeare’s “Othello” on the terms that it is all about the dilemma of a black man in a white world, like Walcott’s own dilemma of “black in skin and white in mind”. Therefore, I believe Walcott could not have possibly found any other person more suitable than Othello to represent him in his poem. Moreover, the title of the poem “Goats and Monkeys” is itself an extract from the play where Othello says to Lodovico “You are welcome sir, to Cyprus- Goats and Monkeys!”
The vulgar imagery of Othello’s ancient dominates the opening of the play. Standing outside the senator’s home late at night, Iago uses imagery within a lie to arouse the occupant: “ Awake! what, ho, Brabantio! thieves! thieves! thieves! / Look to your house, your daughter and your bags!” When the senator appears at the window, the ancient continues with coarse imagery of animal lust: “...
"Othello." The English Review 15.3 (2005): 15. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 8 May 2014. .
Othello is one of Shakespeare’s four pillars of great tragedies. Othello is unique in comparison to the others in that it focuses on the private lives of its primary characters. When researching the subject of Othello being an Aristotelian tragedy, there is debate among some critics and readers. Some claim that Shakespeare did not hold true to Aristotle’s model of tragedy, according to his definition in “Poetics,” which categorized Othello as a classic tragedy as opposed to traditional tragedy. Readers in the twenty-first century would regard Othello a psychological thriller; it definitely keeps you on the edge of your seat creating the emotions of terror, heart break, and sympathy. This paper will focus on what Shakespeare actually intended regarding “Othello” and its Aristotelian influences.
Picture this- William Harold Shakespeare, the most coveted playwriter in the history of the world, sitting at his desk, perspicaciously pondering over what shall become his most prominant and delicated tragedy of yet. Of course, given what little is known about Shakespeere displays, such deepseated imagery cannot simply be accomplished without first the propriety of haste and vinction.And yet, his very own rhetorical vibe displays allows such a vague pictoration to be concieved. Throughout the whole of Othello, the great Shakespeare remarks through an astounding displays show of pronouns, allitteration, and cacophonous diction his own resentment of both the King of Italy and the poor conditions of the said novelist.
Mowat, Barbara A. and Paul Werstine, ed. Introduction. Shakespeare: Othello. New York: Washington Square Press, 1993.
11 Dec. 2011. The "Othello". Shakespeare for Students: Critical Interpretations of Shakespeare's Plays and Poetry. Ed. Anne Marie Hacht.
Texts and their appropriations reflect the context and values of their times. Within Shakespeare’s Othello and Geoffrey Sax’s appropriation of Othello, the evolution of the attitudes held by Elizabethan audiences and those held by contemporary audiences can be seen through the context of the female coupled with the context of racism. The role of the female has developed from being submissive and “obedient” in the Elizabethan era to being independent and liberated within the contemporary setting. The racism of the first text is overtly xenophobic and natural, whilst the “moor” is unnatural whereas the updated context portrays Othello’s race as natural and racism as unnatural. Therefore these examples show how Shakespeare’s Othello, and it’s appropriation, Geoffrey sax’s Othello, reflect the context and values of their times.
...ide of the Moor: A View of Othello's Mind." Shakespeare Survey: An Animal Survey of Shakespearean Study and Production. Vol 10. 1957. 98-106. Novels for Students. 20 November 2004. http://www.enotes.com/othello/17321/print
They are the best. In this paper I hope to give examples of animals imagery used in “Othello” that assist in explaining the story. play. I will be there. The specific examples I present will describe a character either as seen by himself or by a fellow.
Othello, from the onset, is shown to us a play of love and jealousy. There is however more to this play than just love and jealousy; there is underlying racism, hate, deception, pride, and even sexism between these pages. Othello is a transcendent play, one that will survive the perils of time simply because it is still relevant. Even today, over 400 years later, there are still issues of racism and sexism. Hate is as natural as love in humans and Othello gets right to the root of that. We witness this from the very first scene, “…you’ll have your daughter covered with a Barbary horse/ you’ll have your nephews neigh to you” (I.i.112-14); to the very last, “Moor she was chaste. She loved thee, cruel Moor” (V.ii.258). Moor however is used as an insult all throughout the play; not so much the word itself but the feel of the word. Between these pages we see many different ways as to how the cultural differences between Othello and the other characters.
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.
Little, Arthur L. “’An Essence that's Not Seen’: The Primal Scene of Racism in Othello.” Shakespeare Quarterly 44.3 (1993): 304-24. JSTOR. Web. 17 Feb. 2014.
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.
Those who have written on the imagery of the play have shown how the hold Iago has over Othello is illustrated by the language Shakespeare puts into their mouths. Both characters use a great deal of animal imagery, and it is interesting to note its distribution. Iago’s occurs mostly in the first three Acts of the play: he mentions, for example, ass, daws, flies, ram, jennet, guinea-hen, baboon, wild-cat, snipe, goats, monkeys, monster and wolves. Othello, on the other hand, who makes no use of animal imagery in the first two Acts of the play, catches the trick from Iago in Acts III and IV. The fondness of both characters for mentioning repulsive animals and insects is one way by which Shakespeare shows the corruption of the Moor’s mind by his subordinate. (21-22)
Jones, Eldred. "Othello- An Interpretation" Critical Essays on Shakespeare's Othello. Ed. Anthony G. Barthelemy Pub. Macmillan New York, NY 1994.