Othello: context Flashcards
What time period was Othello written in?
Jacobean period (1603/4)
Why is the setting of Venice significant?
Venice was the centre of trade in Europe, including trade with North Africa - creates the link between white society and black people
Why is the setting of Cyprus significant?
The expanding Ottoman empire had conquered Cyprus in 1571, a year after the play’s events, which was once ruled by Venice.
Acts as a liminal space - a space that acts as a transition from one place to the next - in Othello Cyprus can be interpreted as the conflict between Othello being a former Muslim North African black man and living in a white Christian society - reaffirms his outsider status.
How did the role of the woman in society shift in the late Elizabethan period?
Elizabeth I being presented as a strong and independent female figure who subverted the expectations of a woman at the time (not completely) by being in a dominant position of power and not having children - reflected in upper-class women like Desdemona
Virgin Queen - Ideal of purity since she was a virgin - formed ideas about purity as reflected in Othello
How did the religious reformation cause religious conflict in England?
Different monarchs in Tudor England = different religions - caused a lot of confusion, chaos and uncertainty about which religion was dominant.
Was England a racist society in the Jacobean period?
Yes - transatlantic slave trade led to the integration of black people into different countries.
Dehumanised - over-sexualised, seen as very aggressive and intellectually inferior to white people - reflected in Act 1 sc 1 with Brabantio, Iago and Roderigo
