OTHELLO A03

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BIOGRAPHICAL CONTEXT

Shakespeare was born in 1564 to a relatively well-off middle class family in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, whose reign epitomised a Golden Age in English literature and culture.

The Renaissance in the Arts had started in Italy more than a century earlier and Shakespeare’s works are imbued with the spirit of his age.

After leaving school, Shakespeare moved to London, the heart of a rapidly growing theatrical world, and became an actor.

He started writing plays of his own shortly after.

He wrote 37 plays in total, as well as a number of poems.

He remained an active member of the King’s Men theatrical company until shortly before his death.

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HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Shakespeare wrote many of his early plays during the latter years of Elizabeth’s reign, who was succeeded by James I, the former king of Scotland,

Many of Shakespeare’s most celebrated plays, including Othello, were written during the years immediately before and after the change of monarch.

The Venetian Republic and the Turkish threat

While the remainder of Europe was ruled by monarch and feudal lords, the northern part of Italy was unique in being organised into ‘city-states’.

Venice was one of the most celebrated of these; the first Doge (Duke) of Venice was elected in 727 and the Republic of Venice survived for more than 1000 years.

The republican Venetians elected Grand council composed of the most prominent citizens, which in turn elected the Doge.

Shortly before the year 1000AD, Venice began to exploit its position at the head of the Adriatic Sea to found a seaboard empire that would eventually stretch to Levant (the eastern Mediterranean) and the shores of the Black Sea. The Venetian Republic fell into decline from 1570 onwards after the loss of Cyprus to the Turks.

The Christian world – Europe, North Africa, Levant and Asia Minor – began to be threatened by Islam almost immediately after its creation in the seventh century.

Muslims rapidly conquered all the non-European areas, struck deep into Europe before they were defeated in Europe.

The Christians launched a campaign to win back the holy places of Jerusalem from the Muslims in 1097 and achieved temporary successes.

It was these crusades that first brought Europeans to Cyprus, which they colonised.

The Ottoman Turks mounted increasingly powerful operations against the Christians from the fifteenth century, and in 1453 symbolically conquered Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. The remainder of Greece and most of the Balkans fell soon after, leaving Cyprus as a dangerously isolated Christian outpost in the Muslim world.

The Turkish invasion of the island in 1570-1, when Othello is set, consolidated Ottoman control of the region and they henceforth dominated the eastern Mediterranean.

The implications of this conflict are still felt today.

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SOCIAL CONTEXT

The role of women

Women’s parts in plays did not equal men’s in number, size or status because they were written for boy actors with unbroken voices, since it was unthinkable for women to perform on the stage.

Shakespeare was interested in female perspectives and psychology

Women have significant roles in all the major tragedies as wives and daughters, none live at the end of their respective plays.

Ownership

A woman’s place was in the home and she had no role to play in the public arena.

Women were possessions and were dependent on their fathers until handed over to their husbands, who they also had to love, honour and obey.

Considered to be naturally inferior in intellect and morality so their feelings or points of view were not considered; all decisions were taken for them and were expected to accept them and carry out the wishes of men.

They had no or little education

Consequences of not performing these daughterly or wifely duties were serious, involving being disowned and deprived of a home, financial support and a place in society;

Prostitution was often the only way to survive without a dowry or a supportive male relative.

Women could only rise through their association with men and their rank.

Male ownership = being subject to restriction of movement and lack of control over their bodies.

It was a man’s worst nightmare to have a wife or daughter to caused the loss of his honour and status in their community through attracting gossip and besmirching her reputation.

Though they seem to represent three social levels, the women in the tragedy all accept that they are powerless and subject to male decree and patronage

Double standards

Social attitudes to male and female behaviour then, as now, were very different:

Male promiscuity, adultery, pre- or extra-marital sex were not condemned and considered natural.

Fornicating women were considered a threat to the Church and to the fabric of society; they were blamed for leading men astray, destroying men’s honour and bringing shame on the extended family. Women were thought to be easily seduced, being descended from Eve, the betrayer of mankind.

Men wished to marry virgins to have chaste wives for social reasons, but have whores available for their pleasure, creating the dichotomy of two types of women, reputable or not.

Women’s social position was determined by their relationship to men and sexual status.

There were only four categories (with no equivalent male variations): maiden, wife, widow and shore.

A fifth category – witch – was reserved for those not regarded as real women because of masculine characteristics.

Reputation, reputation, reputation

What distinguishes a respectable married woman like Emilia from a ‘strumpet’ like Bianca is her reputation; the label she is given by society.

This made reputation an essential commodity for social survival, yet it was vulnerable to attack by any dissatisfied male.

The fallen woman became the prey of gossips, and was ostracised and excluded from polite society.

Silent victims

The virgin, newly-wed or demure widow was a target for lechers whose conquest of the 'unattainable' was an irresistible challenge to their masculinity,

Brides and betrothed women, being in a state of transition, were particularly vulnerable to assault and slander.

Though the men were rarely punished, the conquered literary female had to die or be killed.

Desdemona seems to be doomed at birth by her name, meaning ‘unfortunate’.

Characters and audiences alike are concerned at the injustice of Desdemona’s death as she was not guilty, not because it would be unacceptable for her to be murdered.

The silence renders women tragic victims.

Women were expected to be seen, but not heard, even especially in their husbands’ or fathers’ presence.

Together, Emilia and Desdemona, have only half as many lines as Iago in the play, showing the subordinate and passive position of women in Venetian society.

Though they may have temper tantrums or be critical of men in private, they have no choice but to conform and comply on pain of rejection, violence or death.

Desdemona learns not to complain and, with the psychology of the victim of domestic violence, begins to blame herself and make excuses for her abuser.

Male fantasies

In medieval and sixteenth-century literature, women tended to be represented as either Christian martyrs or malevolent devils, one extreme to the other.

Characters divide women into virgins and saints, or whores and devils, with nothing in between; the former could become the latter overnight, but not vice versa.

Women, could easily be seen as the enemy and destroyer, pretending to be angels, but really in league with Satan to lure men to their doom through seduction and enchantment.

Dialogues between all the male characters reveal a fear of women deceiving them and gaining supremacy, making them a laughing stock.

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CULTURAL CONTEXT

The England of the early 1600s was involved in ambitious ventures of discovery and colonial expansion.

The new century brought new challenges to the Elizabethan world view and ideology inherited from the Middle Ages, and this conflict is represented in the tragedy here.

The chain of being

The Elizabethans inherited the idea of a hierarchical chain of being on which every creature appeared in its ordained position on a ladder descending from God > angel > king > man and woman > to animal > vegetable > mineral.

This explains the objection to women ruling men.

In Shakespeare, a human who falls below the level of man into bestiality is labelled a monster.

Likewise, any change of reversal in this order is likely to result in tragedy.

Nature

The definition of nature has two contradictory aspects: the benign and harmonious, and the malignant and violent.

Shakespeare’s plays also examine closely the concept of human nature and its relationship to nature as a whole.

Reversals of nature or what is ‘natural’ will inevitably invert the order and result in catastrophe.

Appearance

External appearance was believed by many in Shakespeare’s time to be what lay within; goodness or evil.

If appearances, which are all we have to go on, are deceptive, and therefore character judgment is false, then one cannot be sure of anything.

This torments many of Shakespeare’s tragic heroes.

Because Iago looks honest, Othello assumes him incapable of villainy.

More modern concept of identity, which the Elizabethans were only beginning to grasp.

Black and white

Black was traditionally the colour of evil and of the devil.

‘Fair’, ‘white’ were associated with light, which were part of a semantic field of beauty and goodness, whereas ‘dark’, ‘dusky’ and ‘night’ held the opposite connotations of ugliness and barbarism.

A marriage between a black man and a white woman would have been deeply shocking at the time.

Reason

The failure of reason was considered to be the cause of the Fall of Man and Elizabethans therefore believed it was dangerous to let reason be dominated by passion.

Characters in Shakespeare who became uncontrollably emotional are heading for a fall, as their intellect is what makes them human and keeps them sane.

Othello gives way to his wrath and this is the downward turning point for him (his peripeteia). In a state of heightened passion, mistakes are made, impulses are activated, and one is no longer in control of oneself or the situation.

A lack of reason will always lead to tragic consequences.

Evil spirits

Evil spirits were believed to be within earshot and on the watch for opportunity to be corrupt and snatch a human so from the pathway of righteousness.

Characters in Shakespeare who are foolish, hubristic or tempted enough to invoke spirits from murky hell to help them commit foul deeds are sealing their own damnation .

Othello’s invitation to evil actually takes the form of his giving ear to Iago’s temptations and bonding himself to him.

Damnation

It was a diabolical trick because Satan had told lies to Eve in the Garden of Eden.

Telling the truth was the way to shame the devil, lying meant putting one’s soul at risk as promises and oaths were thought to be witnessed by heaven.

A gentleman’s word was assumed to be the truth unless there was good reason to believe otherwise

It was a grave insult to call someone a liar.

Jealousy

Jealousy was viewed as a sudden infection against which here was no prevention or cure.

It eroded trust and dissolved the bonds holding together marriages, families and the social framework; it could let in evil and chaos.

It guarantees calamity and tragedy.

Chaos

The undoing of God’s creation, a return to nothingness indicating the breakdown of the chain of being, the harmony of the universe.

Shakespeare’s contemporaries had a terror of the return of the anarchy of the civil wars period prior to the Tudor settlement.

Chaos could initiate personal and civic tragedy.

For chaos to come again the world must be de-created through a ‘gross revolt’ against nature – this is what Desdemona is accused of in her choice of husband by Iago, and in her lustfulness by Othello.

The barrier against chaos is reason - Othello asks Iago for a reason, and is refused, the last time he speaks to him.

Without a cause the universe makes no sense and madness and chaos rule.

Courtly love

The ladies’ man with his chivalrous manners and poetic language, devoted to the fair lady, who he worships and is expected to have rival suitors for her hand.

Romance concerned exotic tales of magic, superstition and travel to distant parts, as well as love affairs, and brought together the masculine ideals of the soldier and the lover.

By definition, the courtly lover had to be a member of high society and concerned above all with the notions of honour and reputation. Here however, the ideal of courtly love goes tragically wrong.

Cuckoldry

Cuckoldry, was a prevalent male fear at the time; it meant being an object of ridicule who could not control his wife, having married a woman with unnatural sexual appetite, and was related to the wider issue of primogeniture and succession.

Illegitimate children could not be assimilated comfortably into the family structure and were seen as a threat to the social fabric and the cause of inheritance complications and sibling resentments.

Young and beautiful wives were considered dangerous, as they were likely to both captivate their husbands and to be the target for seduction by other men.

Chastity

The insistence on female chastity is because the security of society and peace of mind of men was dependent on women’s virginity before marriage and chastity after it, meaning faithfulness to their husbands.

In a society that passed inheritance down the male line, men needed to be sure that their son was really their own and not someone else’s, and a man’s reputation would be destroyed by an unfaithful wife.

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VENICE VS CYPRUS

Act 1 is set in Venice but the subsequent four acts take place in Cyprus.

The two locations in the tragedy are mentioned several times, and they are not only an integral part of the plot, they are intrinsic to its characterisation and themes.

As Shakespeare and his audiences would have known, Cyprus was definitely taken by the Turks a few months after the setting of the play in 1570, which adds the extra irony that the Venetian Republic has only temporarily averted the barbarian threat.

In 1600, Venice had many foreign residents and visitors because of trade links with the east and with North Africa.

It was not only powerful and respected, but was a byword for beauty, culture and civilisation.

However, it was also thought of as a pleasure capital and known for its sexual tolerance and courtesans.

The Senate is engaged in a war for profit and territory, and Othello and Cassio are mercenaries, killing for hire.

There is evidence of corruption caused by imperial ambition, wealth and complacency in Brabantio’s imprisonment of his daughter for the purpose of arranging a good marriage, and Roderigo’s ‘unlawful solicitation’ of Desdemona through the use of his money as bribes.

Iago has also made money his replacement for morality, having hired ‘three great ones of the city’ to plead his suit for the lieutenancy - a position obviously not expected to be awarded on merit – and being a confidence trickster and pimp for financial gain.

Venice is therefore a less virtuous place than it appears, which sets the keynote for the play, and the ‘super-subtle’ Venetians do not invite much respect, being obsessed with money and trading in human flesh, including Emilia who thinks that adultery cannot be condoned if the price is right, and the ironically named Bianca , who sells her body for nice clothes.

The corruption is a precept for tragic events.

Racism in the play is expressed by four Venetian characters: Roderigo, Iago, Brabantio and Emilia.

When faced with something they cannot understand rationally, a leading Venetian senator falls back on the accusation of witchcraft.

This contributes to the play’s theme of appearance versus reality, and to the idea that underneath the visible white surface lies blackness.

It may be significant that the only winner in the play is Cassio, who is specifically distinguished from the others as a Florentine.

The location, history and atmosphere of Cyprus, where the tragic events occur, are significant to the themes of the play.

Cyprus is apparently the antithesis to peaceful Venice.

It is more vulnerable to the traditional Venetian enemy: the Muslim threat.

Having always been a colony, Cyprus has never had autonomy and is therefore a symbol of submission.

Since it was thought to be the birthplace of Aphrodite, goddess of love, it is and island of love dominated by war.

It is isolated, occupied, under threat, and in a state of turbulence, with its people dependent ad frightened. This is the mentality Othello fails into after his arrival there, thanks to the machinations of the ‘Turk’ Iago, who invades, captures and then subjects him to his rule.

Cyprus represents actual war and also the figurative thematic battles between good and evil, light and darkness, heaven and hell.

It hosts two street fights, drunkenness, prostitution, murder, attacks on women, and a loss normality and decorum indicative of chaos, as if the transition from Venice to Cyprus has unlocked the primitive side pf previously restrained characters, including Othello.

Not one of the major characters returns from Cyprus to Venice within the play, as if it is not a journey that can be made in reverse, like the loss of virginity, trust and innocence.

Cyprus is where European meets Turk, and loses the battle of civilisation and humanity.

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RACE AND RELIGION

‘Moor’ and ‘blackmoor’ were used very loosely in Elizabethan England to indicated any person of dark or black skin, including all people of African descent, but correctly referred to Muslims who originated from Morocco.

Parts of Spain remained Muslim and many Moors from North Africa settled there until the ‘Moorish kingdom’ of Granada was finally defeated by the Spanish kings in 1492, all remaining Moors were forcibly converted to Christianity as ‘Moriscos’.

With his Spanish name and the ‘sword of Spain’, it seems probably that Othello was a Morisco expelled from Spain and hence a converted Christian.

There were two distinct ethnic groups involved in the Muslim conquest of Spain and who hence became to know as ‘Moors’.

The Berbers were the original inhabitants of the ‘Barbary coast’,

The Arabs

Moors and Moriscos could be either Arabs or Berbers, the repeated references to blackness would hardly describe a stereotypical Arab.

A contemporary audience would have been familiar with Berbers, and it is therefore likely that Othello is being depicted by Shakespeare as being a dark-skinner Berber.

At this time black people were either represented as savages and monsters, or as mysterious and exotic chieftains.

Whether menacing or repulsive heaths or romantic and heroic warriors, they were considered dangerous and unnatural because they were foreign.

Thomas Rymer’s interpretation of the play in the late seventeenth century as a condemnation of women who run away with blackamoors shows how a black general being permitted to elope with an upper-class white woman ‘upset all contemporary notions of decorum’ and possibly indicates why the tragedy occurs.

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LITERARY CONTEXT

Italy was particularly favoured as a setting to his plays, because it was the origin of the Renaissance and home to many source texts that inspired Shakespeare and his contemporaries.

Foreign settings also have the advantage of allowing comment on home-grown political and social issues to be made circumspectly.

Shakespeare wrote two plays set in Venice, a city of interest to London as a major trading rival, to which English merchants travelled and brought back reports of its luxuries and vices.

Exaggerated travellers’ tales were in vogue at the time Othello was written.

Shakespeare used two sources for 35 of his 37 plays, and it is assumed that the other two must have had sources as yet undiscovered.

In this period, originality of plot or character was not considered necessary or even desirable in literary works

A largely illiterate population and a traditional oral culture created a demand for the familiar.

Audiences expected to know already know the basic storylines, settings and outcomes of the plays they attended

The skill and creativity of the playwright was demonstrated by the quality of improvements made to an existing work, including the adaptation of the genre.

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