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AQA A-level English Literature Paper 1 Section B: Explore the significance of Othello’s background and otherness to the tragedy of the play.
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Explore the significance of Othello’s background and otherness tothe tragedy of the play.
‘Othello’ is a critical play in Renaissance literature which dispenses
different perceptions of race and ‘otherness’, despite Othello
transgressing the stereotypical view of ‘the Moor’ as immoral and lustful.
Shakespeare deliberately exposes a society who are acutely aware of
ethnic distinctions and Othello’s role as ‘the Moor’ certainly places him in
a position of inferiority which makes him more liable to face prejudice and
experience the bigoted mindset engrained in Renaissance Europe.
Perhaps, Othello’s ‘otherness’ seems to refer to his difference to the
societal norm of Venice which places him as a social outcast. Prior to this,
Renaissance literature featured ‘blackamoors’ who were usually sinister
figures. Therefore, Shakespeare deviates from the stereotypical
presentation of the ‘Moor’ as Othello is presented as the eponymous hero.
Arguably, perhaps even the full title of the play, ‘The Tragedy of Othello:
the Moor of Venice’ elucidates that Othello’s downfall occurs as a result of
his position as ‘the Moor’ in an all-white society. New Historicist critics
confirm that the tragedy of Othello is inevitable, as he can never be
viewed as anything but an outsider and this contributes to his tragic
demise.
A post-colonial reading of the text could consider the way in which Othello
is presented as an outsider, despite the fact he is Christian. Furthermore,
this prompts Othello to feel insecure about his identity which contributes
to the tragic denouement of the play. Loomba argues that the central
conflict is exacerbated by the white patriarchy of the age. She suggests
that Othello is an honorary white character at the beginning of the play
until he becomes a ‘total outsider’, when his relationship with Desdemona
is used to dehumanise him. A modern critic could see that Othello is
presented as ‘other’ because of his racial identity and this is used to
dehumanise him and present him as marginalised. Iago, at the outset of
the play, concludes, ‘The Moor is of a free and open nature’. Referring to
him using his racial origins ‘Moor’ and using the definite article ‘the’
implies that Iago targets him specifically because of his race.
Furthermore, it seems that the General Othello, despite his high status, is
an easier target because of his ‘otherness’. Moreover, the tragedy of the
play is propounded through the discrimination of Othello’s ethnicity.
During Iago and Roderigo’s exchange with Desdemona’s father, Iago
proclaims, ‘an old black ram is tupping your white ewe’. Through utilising
sexual imagery and animalistic allusion, we see Brabantio feels
threatened by the ‘power and potency of a different sexuality’. Critics
argued that society in the Elizabethan age feared mixed marriages,
believing that black men had the power to subjugate their partner’s
‘whiteness’. Therefore, Iago exploits the existing fear of ‘otherness’ in the
Renaissance period. The marriage to Desdemona propels Othello into the
limelight and makes him feel even more insecure, which feeds his
jealousy and enables Iago to exploit his hamartia. Therefore, his
‘otherness’ enables the tragic consequences of his belief that Desdemona
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