Oppression In Othello

Brabantio shows his racist ways clearly here; he feels that his daughter could never love Othello unless she had been somehow tricked! When one looks deeper into this mindset we understand how loving Othello, the Moor, could be seen as such an issue to her father. Then and even today color is associated with, “sin, damnation, and eventually, sexual promiscuity” (Hall, 182). White on the other hand is associated with, “purity, virginity, and virtue” (Hall, 183). For Desdemona to love Othello she must give up her innocence. For a “pure” and “virtuous” woman to love a man such as Othello she must be a “sinner” and a “whore.” This “realization” of his daughter’s lack of purity causes Brabantio to die due to pure grief as Gratiano explains to us:

It the only thing that makes him estranged from all the other characters. In the opening scene of the play, Shakespeare “exoticizes Othello with [his] references to him not by name but as, "the Moor," and as an "extravagant and wheeling stranger" (1.1.58 and 1.1.37)”(Aubrey 1). During that time black people were slaves which is why the racism in Othello was definitely racism and one of Iago’s forms of control. Othello earned his status despite his physical appearance, so its lowering to use that description of Othello when he is more than that. Furthermore, not only is Othello being outcasted in the play but also to the audience. It is set by Iago that the idea of a black man and a white woman together is inhuman. He constantly uses derogatory terms to describe to Brabantio To corrupt Othello and Desdemona’s relations. Iago claims that Brabantio will “have [his] daughter covered with a Barbary horse. [He’ll] have [his] nephews neigh to [him]. [He'll] have coursers for cousins and jennets for germans” (Act 1 scene 1 line 125-127 )if he does not do anything to stop them. Iago says this to describe to Brabantio what his mixed would look like. Moreover the animals he uses are not pure breeds which is what he want to emphasize to Brabantio that the act itself of Othello and Desdemona being together is bestial nut having his grandkids being mixed is something that Brabantio cannot stand to think about. Iago

This warning from Brabantio is the first look into the possessiveness over his daughter, Desdemona. Not uncommon for the era, Brabantio considers his daughter to be his property; her marriage to be under his control. Consequently, this is why his daughter’s betrayal in eloping with Othello is so devastating towards him.

Set in 16th century Venice, Othello, by William Shakespeare, explores the idea of an outsider from the very beginning of the play. Shakespeare uses Othello, a black army general, to explore the relationship of an outsider in high Venetian society using a variety of approaches. The reader sees characters consistently referring to Othello in derogatory and demeaning terms, as well as frequent implications that Othello is scarcely human. Further exploration of an outsider in society comes from Othello himself, as he outlines a few of the major differences that set him and the community apart.

Brabantio rejects Desdemona’s love towards Othello because during the Elizabethan Era, Venice was largely occupied by white people and therefore black people were unaccepted throughout the society. Iago knew that Brabantio was racist towards the “Moor” and used Brabantio’s attitude towards the idea of an interracial marriage to manipulate Brabantio and rile his men against Othello. “Awake! Brabantio! Thieves, thieves! Look to your house, your daughter and your bags! Thieves, thieves!” (Act 1, Scene 1). Iago refers Othello as a thief and accuses him of stealing Brabantio’s daughter. Brabantio would not accept that his daughter; Desdemona have fallen in love with Othello. Brabantio then falsely accuses Othello of using magic to possess his daughter Desdemona. “Damned as you are, you’ve put a spell on her!” (Act 1, Scene 1) William Shakespeare uses the setting in Venice to emphasize the inequality towards the Moors. Everyone is different but no one deserves to be treated

Othello is a man who is in control of his emotions, and is seen as a strong, respectable man in such whereas Brabantio’s is not.

Othello or The Moor of Venice by William Shakespeare is a tragedy of race. Shakespeare creates a hero who does not fall under a racist stereotype, Othello is a nobleman, a decorated soldier, very well respected by his men (with the exception of Iago). One of the few characteristics that harms, rather than helps him, is that he is dark-skinned in a society utterly dominated by men prejudiced against those with dark skin. At the start of the play, he appears confident that, "My parts, my title, and my perfect soul / Shall manifest me rightly." (Shakespeare, 1, 2, 36-37) But Iago makes sure to use Othello's race against him as much as possible. As a brave soldier from Africa and recently instated supreme commander of the Venetian army, Shakespeare still allows Othello to succumb to the subtle racism that surrounds him. Most of it comes forward through the dialog, and is directed toward Othello. Shakespeare makes no effort to hide this colorful language, nearly every character uses a racial slur to insult Othello at some point in the play. Even Emilia, who doesn’t trust her own husband, sinks to the level of insulting Othello based on the color of his skin. Though the main character to make racist remarks in Othello is Iago, making him a representation of white supremacy. The effect of racism on Othello is quite evident and is one of the main causes of his insecurity about his marriage. These black stereotypes show up in the play and lead to the problem with trying to produce

The fear of interracial marriage in Venetian society is used by Iago in an attempt to alienate Othello. Othello himself acknowledges the fact that interracial marriage is frowned upon and that racism still applies to him despite his position. A common attitude in Venetian society is that black men and women are inhuman and animalistic in nature; Iago capitalizes on this idea in order to aid his plan of antagonizing Othello. Brabantio, Desdemona’s father, is a prime example of the attitude of Venetian society as a whole, in the sense that he “loved” Othello as long as he remained a servant of Venice and would rather Othello not intermingle amongst the Venetian society. Initially Brabantio “oft invited [Othello]” to his home and “queston’d [him] the story of [his] life”, showing an admiration and sincere interest for Othello’s

Haply, for I am black/ And have not those soft parts of conversation/ That chamberers have, or for I am declin’d/ Into the vale of years (yet that’s not much) She’s gone. I am abus’d: and my relief/ Must be to loathe her” (III.III. 304-309). As the emanation of social interaction among various races appear within English literature, the vault of new beginnings and change takes hold. William Shakespeare’s Othello, is most notably recognized for the character, Othello. Through various texts of literature, the idea of racial construct and discrimination was never an easy topic to come by. Since the play was written in Europe during the 1600s, the emergence of slave trades in this area further divided races. The play itself follows the tragedy for Othello, and the transition from a military general to a tragic hero. The limitation of power plays a huge role in Othello’s ability to withstand the manipulation of multiple characters. Although he is Moorish general in the Venetian army, he is still indeed a Moor, a socially lower class, muslim man. From this, cultural collision of ethnicity influences how Othello is treated and the disadvantages he faces because of his color. Through the mere jealousy in which Iago, Othello’s standard-bearer, has for Othello’s life, he proposes the idea to manipulate his life by using the one difference between all men, race. When Iago awakes Brabantio, the father of Desdemona, he hopes to initiate his plan to take down Othello. His description

Brabantio refers to Othello as a “sooty bosom,” following Iago's earlier racial image. He stereotypes Othello, saying that magic must be involved or Desdemona, “a fair” or white woman, never would have chosen a dark man, a “sooty bosom,” to marry. The black and white images placed in Brabantio's mind influence his views on Othello, or he would not have pointed out Othello's “sooty bosom.” These images that emphasize the colors are what keep him from accepting Othello.

Interestingly the same Othello, who was previously a favourite of Brabantio and he along with Desdemona had diner so many times with him, now becomes unacceptable to him when he dares to marry his daughter. Othello is shown that he is not fully acceptable in society. His services as a general is needed and indeed lauded, but still he is not acceptable as a son-in-law. So the matter becomes an issue in the Venetian council chamber where the Duke and the other senators are preparing for war against the Turks. There Othello speaks eloquently of his love for Desdemona and she speaks on his behalf, and the Duke exonerates Othello. But in doing so, the Duke obliquely denigrates Othello because of his race- apparently unintentionally in a Freudian slip- telling Brabantio “Your son-in-law is more fair than black” (ibid 1.3. 291) implying that fairness is indeed superior to

There is great opposition to the announcement of Othello’s marriage to Desdemona. At the heart of racist thinking is opposition to such interracial marriages. An interracial marriage in 17 of the United States could result in a prison sentence until Loving vs Virginia in 1967 which set love free of racism by statute. The first suggestion that Desdemona has been compromised and stolen from Brabantio by a clandestine marriage to Othello is met with similar thoughts of crime and punishment. However, Shakespeare confuses the crime by explicitly characterizing it as witchcraft. Brabantio says, “That with some mixtures powerful o'er the blood, / Or with some dram conjured to this effect, / He wrought upon her”(1.3.123-24). Witchcraft to us is not a credible accusation, but at the end of the 16th century, it most assuredly was life-threatening. The audience must interpret if Brabantio’s fury stems from the loss of his daughter to an unacceptable marriage with a black man or from the betrayal of his position by the fact that his loving daughter kept the knowledge of the courtship from him. Shakespeare is clear that opposition to the marriage falls away once the process Othello used to win her heart is made clear. Othello himself

Seeing his racist mindset, the Duke tells Brabantio that if Othello is married to his daughter that there

world; and that much ‘new knowledge’ lay follow or was treated in a merely superficial manner because of this.” (Hunter 50) Even though Othello fulfills his duty as a general and he is appreciated by the authorities in Venice and earns a respected position, he is not embraced by the society enough to marry a Venetian girl.

Othello’s race does not prominently impact his demise, although Shakespeare touches upon the issue of race, the reason for Othello’s demise lies somewhere else. However, the allegations of race directly lead to its tragic ending. Feelings of inadequacy and distrust without question aid in the tragedy. The fact that Othello’s skin color is important alters the interpretation of the tragedy within the play. The racism represented in Othello is not just about an instance of prejudices and prejudgments made by a crowd of people against another, but in fact has much more subtle and devastating consequences, specifically, that it is proliferated not only by the discriminatory section of society, but also by the target of this discrimination.