Context Flashcards
How is race explored in the play?
• Race is explored through different areas of the play such as venice and cyprus. this exploration of setting with link to race and how othello’s story leads to race and otherness.
Why does shakespeare use race as a dramatic device?
• shakespeare uses venice at the beginning of the play as venice had a reputation of being a cosmopolitan and diverse city full of wealth, diversity and political stability. Hence why shakespeare places these characters in venice then the story leads to othello’s tragic downfall in cyprus.
What was venice known for?
• Venice was known for its diverse population both culturally and ethnically. therefore why venice was a place of otherworldliness and exotic excitement. it seems alluring and mystical but also an area ‘on the edge of civilisation’. this attitude is reflected through othello’s character depth.
Why is the place of venice important?
• literacy critic andrew hadfield called venice a ‘critical utopian space’ a seemingly ideal society where tensions are brewing beneath the surface. exactly how the story of ‘othello’ is directed. Cyprus was considered even more dangerous and unknown. the further the play moves away from western europe, the more civilisation and honour break down.
What does the term ‘moor’ stand for?
• the term, in modern society, refers to an arab although ventian societies pinned this down to a person of ethnic background. His precise origins do not matter to other characters however this otherness is enough to fill seperate him.
How is othello’s race important?
• othello, being a black man, is consistently racially abused due to his otherness. The colour ‘black’ refers to potentially morality or colour, even in modern society - white stood for pure and innocence biblically. black was simply the antithesis of this. “when devils with the blackest sins put on”. this explicitly confirms the audiences perception of black men and the dangers they thought to pose.
How is or isn’t othello different to this?
• Although othello is skankly different due to him exposising as a noble and honourable man. he certainly contrasts the stereotype of a ‘moor’. although we do still see echoes of othello portray the classic stereotype like when he quickly succumbs to a jealous rage and irrationally murders his innocent, pure, white desdemona.
- it is up to audiences to argue wether he is a noble man who is led astray by manipulation or is he a stereotypical moor who easily succumbs to a false reality and irrationally acts.
How does this dramatically connote?
• the dramatic convention that moors were destructive forces of evil and when on stage was a threat to moral political and social order. We see this in the character ‘aaron’ in shakespeares titanus andronicus - whom is a force of pure evil who takes pleasure in causing pain. “tut i have done a thousand deadly things as willingly as one would kill a fly. aaron is a caricature of remorseless evil. a typical deception of a moor in venetian societies.
Where did ‘othello’ originate from?
• shakespeare took inspiration for the main story of othello from ‘gil heccatomithi’ by cinthio. the collection of short stories tells the story of disdemona and a moor captain. contextually this shows that shakespeare adds in other aspects to bring a greater range of character depth and finer emotion for audiences.
how is religion presented?
• the great chain of being is a key concept through shakespearean plays and portrays the form of all hierarchy with christianity. This concept allows characters to see othello as less than human (“black ram”). This concept was thought that, if broken, all chaos would occur. which is essentially placed and disobeyed to teach audiences the consequences of defying societal constructs. this can also be linked to how either othello or desdemona are somewhat responsible for their own death.
