Othello Racism Essay - 1909 Words

Othello: Racism Just how serious is the problem of racial prejudice in William Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello? Is it pervasive or incidental? This essay intends to answer questions on this subject. Blanche Coles in Shakespeare’s Four Giants maintains that the racial discrimination in the play may be overstated by critics: In the first scene, Roderigo has referred to Othello as â€Å"thick lips.† No other character in the play attributes any such negroid features to Othello, and it should be remembered that Roderigo has a half-insane prejudice against and hatred for Othello. Brabantio refers to his â€Å"sooty bosom,† but may he not have meant his hairy chest? Some rather fair men have black hair on their chests. The word â€Å"sooty†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦show more content†¦Arise, arise; Awake the snorting citizens with the bell, Or else the devil will make a grandsire of you: Arise, I say. (1.1) The phrase old black ram and the word devil both make reference in an offensive manner to dark skin color. The allusion to white ewe has the effect of putting Othello’s darkness into sharp contrast. A few lines later Iago once again turns his invective fully on Othello with three stinging racial epithets: Zounds, sir, you are one of those that will not serve God, if the devil bid you. Because we come to do you service and you think we are ruffians, youll have your daughter covered with a Barbary horse; youll have your nephews neigh to you; youll have coursers for cousins and gennets for germans. (1.1) The words devil, Barbary horse, and gennet (a dark-colored Spanish horse) all use race at the expense of the hero of the drama. And then Roderigo chimes in, stating that Desdemona has gone â€Å"To the gross clasps of a lascivious Moor† and â€Å"made a gross revolt.† The repeated reference to Othello as â€Å"the Moor† by Iago, Brabantio and Roderigo is essentially a statement of his race since the Moors were, as a people, dark-skinned. When in Act 1, Scene 2, Iago seeks to frighten Othello by telling him of Brabantio’s influence as a senator, the general answers confidently: â€Å"Let him do his spite: / My services which I have done the signiory / ShallShow MoreRelatedRacism in Shakespeares Othello2768 Words   |  12 PagesRacism in Othello Racism seems to be a big concern in Shakespeare’s tragic play, Othello. Because the hero of the play is an outsider, a Moor, we have an idea how blacks were regarded in England, in Elizabethan times. There are many references that bring about the issue of racism from the very beginning to the end. In the tragedy, where Othello is coming from is not mentioned, yet through the descriptions the reader is informed that he belongs to one of the Eastern nationalities such as AfricanRead MoreRacism In Othello Essay1414 Words   |  6 PagesShakespeare’s Othello depicts the downfall of a highly respected war general and explores themes such as jealousy, gender, and deception. 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In Europe, people of white complexion were the majority and all other races were considered to be less important and inferior.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are several characters in this play that portray this mentality. These characters include Brabantio, Roderigo and Emilia. But by far, the face