The Issue of Race in Othello
In his production of Othello for BBC television (1981), Jonathan Miller asserted that Othello's race does not greatly impact his downfall in the play. He maintains that while Shakespeare touches upon the issue of race, the cause of Othello's demise lies elsewhere.1 However, the implications of race in the play directly lead to its tragic ending; it is this issue that impels the characters to set the tragedy in motion. Brabantio would never revolt against the union of Othello and Desdemona if it were not for Othello's blackness. Roderigo could never be motivated to pursue Desdemona were it not for his belief that their relationship is unnatural. By far the most significant racism is Othello's own, racism that Iago brings to the surface by playing upon Othello's racial insecurities. Finally, it is racism that serves as Iago's primary cause in his destruction of Othello.
Brabantio is very selective about suitors for Desdemona, as is evident from his vocal condemnation of Roderigo. After learning it is Roderigo lurking about his window, Brabantio tells him, "The worser welcome! / ... In honest plainness thou hast heard me say / My daughter is not for thee" (1.1.92-95).2 Although Roderigo is a wealthy native Venetian, in Brabantio's eyes he is not worthy of Desdemona. Despite these strict standards, it would seem that Othello could win Brabantio's approval; he holds a lucrative and prestigious position as the general of the army, he is born of a noble background, and he has the respect of the State. In addition, Brabantio has an affinity for Othello, as he explains, "[he] loved [Othello]; oft invited [him]; / Still questioned [him] the story of [his] life" (1.3.128-29). There is no ...
... middle of paper ...
...his possibility and fights it. Through resisting the stereotypes, as opposed to acknowledging and accepting that they exist, Othello increases his internal conflict. Had he the necessary strength and faith in himself, the conflict could not have arisen; for when there is no resistance, the struggle ceases. Rather than label Othello as a racist or anti-racist play, it is more significant to see how, from a racial standpoint, the tragedy demonstrates the explosive effects that racial dissonance can produce when combined with other personal insecurities.
Notes
1. Jonathan Miller, television interview, BBC, 1981. Quoted by Sylvan Barnet, "Othello on Stage and Screen," in Alvin Kernan, ed., Othello, Signet Classic Edition (New York: Penguin, 1998): 230.
2. All references to Othello are from the Signet Classic Edition (New York: Penguin, 1998).
Abott's description of the father adds credibility to the story. The fact that the father was a pastor and was being adulterous, "Me in the pulpit sermonizing about parables and Jesus...." and "I am an adulterer...." made the reader feel that any person can have a big name and responsibility, but even then a person can't believe everything he sees. Then the father tries to cover up where he has been when the wife asks and he also tries to have his son cover up for him. When his wife asks him where he was at he says, "I was at the golf course watching Pudge (his son)." Then to make his story credible he tells his son to agree with the story,"Tell her.
"You" leaves dirty dishes in the sink and dirty clothes to be washed. "You" finally decides to end the relationship by taking him out to dinner and telling him that night while lying in bed that she is going to leave him and does not love him anymore.
Orkin, Martin. “Othello and the “plain face” Of Racism.” 2nd ed. Vol. 38. N.p.: n.p., n.d. 166-88. Shakespeare Quarterly. Folger Shakespeare Library in Association with George Washington University, Summer 1987. Web. 12 Mar. 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.
William Shakespeare’s “The Tragedy of Othello” shows how a manipulative villain can create chaos within a society. The play was written around the year 1603 and takes place in Venice Italy before it is repositioned to Cyprus. This Shakespearean tragedy shows the effects of jealousy, love, desire, betrayal and passion in a society with an imbalance of power in a race, gender, and social position.
Othello: The Moor of Venice is probably Shakespeare's most controversial play. Throughout this work, there is a clear theme of racism, a racism that has become commonplace in Venetian society which rejects the marriage of Othello and Desdemona as anathema. The text expresses racism throughout the play within the language transaction of the dialogue to question the societal ethos established by Othello, thereby making him nothing less than a cultural "other." Furthermore, the character of Desdemona is displayed as mad, or out of her wits, for marrying such an "other," and the audience sees her slip from an angelic state of purity to that of a tainted character. Also, the menacing Iago, a mastermind of deviant rhetoric, is able to play Othello and Desdemona against one another until their marriage fails, while at the same time destroying his adversary and friend, Cassio. Thus Iago has a specific agenda, not only to get back at Othello for choosing Cassio instead of him, but also to make Cassio the victim of his plan to destroy the forbidden marriage referred to by Brabantio as a "treason of the blood" (1.2.166-167). Essentially, Iago is a representative of the white race, a pre-Nazi figure who tries to inform the public of the impurity of Othello and Desdemona's marriage. He demonstrates how this miscegenation is threatening to the existing social order. Thus, through analysis of racism, the play represents the hatred possessed by mankind -- a hate so strong that society sees the mixing with an "other" to be a curse to humanity and a terrible threat to Aryan culture.
Throughout Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the reader is lead to sympathize with the monstrous creature, which was created by Victor Frankenstein. Despite any internal contradictions, the creature has the indisputable outward appearance of a monster, one repulsive to even his own creator. Inevitably, the appearance becomes the creature’s most significant quality, which eliminates any recognition of other, more human, qualities. As a result, any possibility of acceptance within human society are completely destroyed. The creature himself even recognizes this fact. Expressing many human qualities, such rejection and the consequential loneliness has a tremendous impact on the creature, especially in the impressionable years after his initial animation. With the psychological effects caused by these factors, the creature is sent on a rampage, causing tragedy throughout the course of the novel. Many may question Victor’s culpability and lack of responsibility over his creation; however, the ultimate blame for the events must be placed while considering the situation on a larger scale. Without a structured beginning to life, the creature is subjected to the harsh society around him, whose reactions only lead the creature to exile and psychological torment, justifying his wrongful actions.
Like in the poem, illiteracy leaves a person vulnerable to be taken advantage of. This poor soul unknowingly signed away the rights to his own freedom by leaving his mark.
Although humans have the tendency to set idealistic goals to better future generations, often the results can prove disastrous, even deadly. The tale of Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, focuses on the outcome of one man's idealistic motives and desires of dabbling with nature, which result in the creation of horrific creature. Victor Frankenstein was not doomed to failure from his initial desire to overstep the natural bounds of human knowledge. Rather, it was his poor parenting of his progeny that lead to his creation's thirst for the vindication of his unjust life. In his idealism, Victor is blinded, and so the creation accuses him for delivering him into a world where he could not ever be entirely received by the people who inhabit it. Not only failing to foresee his faulty idealism, nearing the end of the tale, he embarks upon a final journey, consciously choosing to pursue his creation in vengeance, while admitting he himself that it may result in his own doom. The creation of an unloved being and the quest for the elixir of life holds Victor Frankenstein more accountable for his own death than the creation himself.
Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein centers around a creator who rejects his own creation. The plot thickens as Victor Frankenstein turns his back on his creation out of fear and regret. The monster is cast out alone to figure out the world and as a result of a life with no love, he turns evil. Shelley seems to urge the reader to try a relate with this monster and avoid just seeing him as an evil being beyond repentance. There is no doubt that the monster is in fact evil; however, the monster’s evilness stems from rejection from his creator.
The play, Othello, is certainly, in part, the tragedy of racism. Examples of racism are common throughout the dialog. This racism is directed toward Othello, a brave soldier from Africa and currently supreme commander of the Venetian army. Nearly every character uses a racial slur to insult Othello at one point in the play. Even Emilia sinks to the level of insulting Othello based on the color of his skin. The character that most commonly makes racist remarks in Othello is Iago. It is very apparent that Iago uses racism as a scapegoat to hate and blame Othello. Societal racism takes its toll on its victims. The effect of racism on Othello is quite evident and is one of the main causes for his insecurity about his marriage. However, Othello is not wholly the tragedy of racism. The theme of jealousy is also extremely important in Othello. Racism may play a large part in the tragedy, Othello, but it certainly does not adequately explain the entire play.
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.
Woman in the 1800s was seen as a wife, mother and care taker of the house. It can be seen that a woman was and still have rule over the house. They are seen as being more domestic out of anything. Their true domain is there house. In England around the 1800s women believed that the house couldn’t be there domain anymore. They wanted to go out into the workforce like their husband or any other man. They felt as if their work was child play or even not important. In Ruskin work “ Of Queens’ Gardens” it is seen that he is trying to let women know that the job that they do is not child play, but is very important to not only men and children, it is important to everyone in the world.
During the seventeenth century, the art of writing was like uncharted waters for women, in which most who ventured were rendered pathetically unsuccessful. No matter the quality, publications written by women were typically ridiculed by their male contenders. However, a handful of women defied the common standards and were prosperous; one of these was Aprha Behn. Virgina Wolf says of Behn, "All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn, for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds." Although she was a woman of outstanding accomplishments, one of her publications truly glistens. Oroonoko (1688), the epic tale of a heroic black slave, has often been dubbed the first modern novel in that it displays qualities utterly matchless for the seventeenth century.
Defoe, Daniel. Robinson Crusoe. Ed. Thomas Keymer. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2008. Print. Oxford World's Classics.