Shakespeare has created the character of Othello to be a ‘hero of the ancient world‘ (Helen Gardner,1995), in spite of this there are certain circumstances beyond his control that contribute to the downfall of Othello. Othello proves to himself and everyone around him that he is a noble warrior that deserves a certain level of respect. Society doesn’t have a problem with Othello leading the Venetian army but does oppose to the marriage of Othello and Desdemona.
Gardner, Helen. “Othello: A Tragedy of Beauty and Fortune.” Readings on The Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Reprint from “The Noble Moor.” British Academy Lectures, no. 9, 1955.
Othello’s ethnic background has set him aside as “the other” to the Venetian society. He does not belong to their the Venetian community society and his sense of belonging towards them has been enhanced because of his adventurous childhood experience. Othello ironically states that he will deliver the “witchcraft” he had used to win his fair lady, Desdemona when ending his soliloquy . In Othello’s romantic soliloquy embedded with rich language he recounts his life experience , “The battles,sieges,fortunes that I have passed, I ran it through even from my boyish days “ “Of being taken by the insolent foe and sold to slavery.” These poetic lines highlight his experience of hardship which won Desdemona. However before Othello elopes with Desdemona he was accepted accepted,loved me oft invited me, still questioned me the story of my life.” This facilitates the audience to understand that he was only marginalised for his differences after he married Desdemona.
William Shakespeare`s Othello is a play set in Venice. The plot is based on a story about two people who love each other dearly and the problems and conflicts they face from the start. The conflicts are, for the most part, tied in with racial issues and questions of loyalty. These conflicts stem from the society around the couple, as well as from the couple themselves as they too are part of this society, but with very different backgrounds: The female protagonist is the daughter of a highly-respected Venetian senator: Brabantio. Othello--also known as the Moor--is a foreigner, black in color, has a past filled with tragic and exotic tales and has proved himself worthy of the title General in the Venetian army.
Introduction
In Venice, Othello and Desdemona secretly get married. Iago says that he “does hate the moor” and plans to get revenge because he wasn’t promoted to Lieutenant. Iago and Roderigo wake Desdemona’s father, Brabantio, to tell him that a “black ram is tupping his white ewe.” Brabantio confronts Othello, who explains that he and Desdemona love each other, Brabantio warns that if she can betray her own father, she will betray Othello. Lots of the characters go to Cyprus, to fight in the war.
Gardner, Helen. “Othello: A Tragedy of Beauty and Fortune.” Readings on The Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Reprint from “The Noble Moor.” British Academy Lectures, no. 9, 1955.
The Venetian Community setting of the play Othello and its multilayered society standards and customs greatly attribute to the actions of the characters. The author of the article goes into to the difference of the military hegemony, in which Othello originates, and the patriarchal hegemony that is the where Brabantio, and his daughter Desdemona are part of, and its effects on the players in Othello. Their lives are intertwined, even though they are from different hegemony groups which lead to misunderstandings intentional and unintentional throughout the play. Henningfed article is enlightening to the novice readers of Shakespeare’s Othello as it gives in-depth perspective into the societal and cultural aspects and understandings of the characters in the play. The tolerances of Othello by the Venetians is explained in the article by the author as they see Othello as this great military warrior who serves them, they own him for the services he provides to them in war against the Turks. The explanations of the interaction of Brabantio and Othello are explained utilizing their different places in society and examples author Henningfed uses;
The character Othello is written to play the part of the outsider in the play Othello, the Moor of Venice. As the title suggest the main character, Othello, was a moor living in Venice. In the 1600s, when this play was written, being a moor carried a certain stigma of being barbaric (CITE). Othello is a warrior and his barbaric characteristics help him in the battlefield. His brutality helped him go up to the rank of general in the Venetian army. Many people find his stories of war, slavery, and exotic locations extremely interesting and a lot like entertainment. Shakespeare used many different underlying themes when writing Othello but one of the biggest ones is otherness. Otherness is defined as the quality or condition of being other or
William Shakespeare’s play, “Othello, the Moor of Venice” depicts many themes including marriage, jealousy, and deception. Throughout the play different characters deceive one another while also deceiving themselves. This domestic tragedy shows how deceiving others can go too far in the end with the murdering of Desdemona and the death of Othello and how jealously can fuel the actions of a man’s heart. Othello grants the lieutenant’s position to young Cassio instead of Iago and because of that he devises a plan to hurt Othello and cause mischief between him and the other characters including his wife Desdemona. Overall, every character within the play is affected by Iago’s deceptive plan in one way or another.
Upon this discovery, Brabantio calls Othello to the Senate to accuse him of tricking his daughter into marrying him, for Brabantio believes there is no way she would willingly marry a Moor like Othello. When the issue of Othello and Desdemona’s marriage is brought before the Senate, Brabantio’s objections all have to do with Othello’s nationality. Brabantio cannot fathom why his daughter would consent to the marriage to a man of Othello’s nationality, unless in some way under a spell. Brabantio explains to the Senate that Othello must have charmed his daughter with witchcraft, in which he cries