Feminist Criticism

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The Role of Women

William Shakespeare's "Othello” can be read from a feminist

perspective. A feminist analysis of the play Othello allows us

to judge the different social values and status of women in the Elizabethan

society. Othello serves as an example to demonstrate the

expectations of the Elizabethan patriarchal society, the practice of privileges

in patriarchal marriages, and the suppression and restriction of femininity.

According to Elizabethan or Shakespeare's society built upon Renaissance

beliefs, women were meant only to marry. As their single occupation, marriage

held massive responsibilities of house management and child rearing.

Additionally, women were expected to be silent, chaste, and obedient to their

husbands, fathers, brothers, and all men in general. Patriarchal rule justified

women's subordination as the natural order because women were thought to be

physiologically and psychologically inferior to men.

As we go through Othello we find that the women

characters are presented according to this expectation of the Elizabethan

society. There are only three women in ‘Othello’: Desdemona, Emilia

and Bianca. The way that these women behave and conduct themselves is

undeniably linked to the ideological expectations of Shakespeare’s Elizabethan

society and to the patriarchal Venetian society that he creates. These notes

will explore some of the ways in which the female characters are presented in

the play.

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Women as Possessions

Following his hearing of Brabantio’s complaint and Othello’s defence,

the Duke eventually grants permission for Desdemona to accompany Othello to

Cyprus. Othello speaks to his ensign Iago, ironically describing him as a man

of ‘honesty and trust’, informing the Duke that ‘To his conveyance I assign my wife’ (I.3.283). Desdemona, as

Othello’s wife, is treated as his

possession: he implies that she is a commodity to be guarded and transported.

This is, however, by no means peculiar to Othello: the first Senator, wishing

Othello well, concludes by hoping that he will ‘use Desdemona well’ (I.3.288). The word ‘use’ seems to connote the phrase ‘look after’, but also supports

the Venetian expectation of women - that they are to bow to the wills of their husbands who may utilise them as they wish. Moreover, the function of women within marriage is also defined by

Othello’s ‘loving’ words to Desdemona in Act II: ‘Come, my dear love,/The purchase made, the fruits are to ensue’

(II.3.8-9). Marriage is described as an

act of ‘purchase’: a woman is bought by her husband, effectively as a favour,

and is expected to fulfil his sexual desires in return for the privilege.

Iago’s desire for revenge on Othello is, in part, dictated by his view

of women as possessions. He believes that ‘it

is thought abroad that ‘twixt my sheets/He’s done my office’ (I.3.381-2),

suggesting that Othello has slept with his wife Emilia. It could be argued,

however, that Iago exhibits little love

for his wife, insulting her in public and ultimately killing her himself.

It is simply the thought that ‘the lusty

Moor/hath leaped into my seat’ (II.1.286-7) which drives him mad, the thought that Othello has used a

possession that belongs to him. Compounding this theory is the fact that

Iago refers to his wife metaphorically in these two instances: she is his ‘office’ and his ‘seat’; she is objectified and

deprived of her humanity.

Moreover, in revenge for Othello’s supposed act, Iago wishes to be ’evened with him, wife for wife’

(II.1.290). By sleeping with Desdemona, he believes that they will then be

equal. The feelings of Desdemona and

Emilia are completely disregarded in his plotting. The women are merely objects to be used in order to further his own

desires. Although Iago is an extreme example, he nonetheless demonstrates,

through his thinking, the fact that women, in both Elizabethan and Venetian

society, are perceived as possessions, secondary to the lofty plans and desires

of men.

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Women as Submissive

Some modern feminist critics see Desdemona as a hideous embodiment of

the downtrodden woman. Whether this is actually the case will be explored later

in these notes. Suffice it to say, there is a large body of evidence to support

this critical stance. Desdemona herself declares that ‘I am obedient’ (III.3.89), continuing

to obey Othello’s orders from the early ‘happy’ phase of their relationship

through to the later stages of his jealous ravings. Even when he orders

Desdemona to go to her bed towards the end of Act IV, she still replies with the submissive ‘I will, my lord’ (IV.3.9). In her final

breath she still remains true to her

husband, saying ‘Commend me to my

kind lord’ (V.2.125) and providing

Othello with an alibi that he does not use. She appears to have completely

accepted her role as subordinate and obedient wife.

Arguably a much stronger character, Emilia also indicates that she is

aware of her ‘proper’ role in society. When revealing Iago’s plotting at the

end of the play, she states that ‘Tis

proper I obey him, but not now’ (V.2.195). Although going on to betray her husband, she still feels the need to

explain why she is deviating from accepted behaviours. Bianca expresses a similar sentiment, consoling herself when Cassio

spurns her by arguing that ‘I must

be circumstanced’ (III.4.199): she feels compelled by the laws of society to be ‘circumstanced’ - to ‘put up

with it’ - implying that she has no other choice.

Society weighs heavily on the shoulders of these women; they feel that they must support the men and

defer to them, even if the actions of the men are questionable. Brabantio’s

opinions of women appear to represent

Venetian ideology. Speaking of Desdemona before she erred, he describes her

as ‘perfection’, ‘Of spirit still and quiet’ and ‘A maiden never bold’ (I.3.95-97).

By expressing these qualities of women in the masculine domain of the

Venetian senate, Brabantio compounds and develops the traditional expectations

of women in a patriarchal society. Moreover, when she marries Othello, going

against his wishes and therefore the ideal mould of woman, he describes her as

erring ‘Against all rules of nature’

(I.3.100). Venetian society presents its

own social beliefs as immutable laws of nature. It is ‘natural’ for women to be

feminine and to do as their husbands and fathers tell them. It is ‘unnatural’ for

them to do anything else. This Venetian concept was also an Elizabethan and

pre-Elizabethan belief, and was widely understood by Shakespeare’s audiences.

Today, feminists argue that it is not ‘natural’ for women to be

‘feminine’, that history has tried to camouflage its social expectations of

women as part of the laws of nature. The women of Othello, however, are

pre-Feminism, and seem to only compound the ideological expectations of what it

is to be a woman through their own behaviour.

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Women Can Be Powerful

This is not to say, however, that the women of the play fail to question

men at all. As she talks to Desdemona at the end of Act IV, Emilia is fairly

damming in her opinion of men. In a speech reminiscent of Shylock’s ‘Hath not a

Jew eyes?’, Emilia argues that women are physically no different to men:

‘Let husbands know,

Their wives have sense like

them; they see and smell,

And have their palates both for

sweet and sour

As husbands have’ (IV.3.92-5)

She goes on to say that in addition to sharing some identical

physicality’s, they also suffer from the same ‘affections,/Desires for sport, and frailty’(IV.3.100) as men. The

only difference, Emilia implies, is that

men are mentally weaker: it is ‘frailty

that thus errs’ (IV.3.98). This links to her earlier description of the

appetite of mankind, that ‘They eat us

hungerly [men], and when they are full,/They belch us’ (III.4.101-2). Emilia suggests that men are brutish and

simplistic, unable to control their desires with logical thought. It is perhaps

ironic that the actions of Iago and Othello in this play confirm her arguments.

These opinions, however, are given to Desdemona in moments of privacy. Emilia

does not express such opinions in the company of men. Ironically, it is

Desdemona who exhibits some power in public, making powerful use of language

when explaining to her father, in front of other Venetian senators, that her ‘duty’ (I.3.182) is now owed to Othello.

It could be argued, however, that even in this instance, Desdemona still fails

to assert herself: although she disagrees with her father, she couches this in

terms of merely switching her ‘duty’ from father to husband. The issue of the

‘duty’ itself remains unquestioned. This

is because it is so ideologically embedded that women do not seem to consider

any other possibility, other than, as these notes have shown, in private

conversation with one another.

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Women as Temptresses

This is not to say, however, that women in Othello do not exhibit any

signs of wielding power. Othello, when talking of his wife, often seems

pre-occupied with matters of the flesh. Bemoaning the fact that he did not know

earlier of his wife’s supposed infidelity, Othello argues that he would have

been happier ‘if the general

camp,/Pioneers and all, had tasted her sweet body,/So I had nothing known’

(III.3.342-4). He appears to be obsessed

with Desdemona’s sexuality. On his way to murder his wife, he states that ‘Thy bed, lust-stained, shall with lust’s

blood be spotted’ (V.1.36). The

repetition of the word ‘lust’, combined with the sexual associations of

Desdemona’s bed and the violent plosives and sibilants of this line, reflects

and draws attention to Othello’s preoccupation with sensual matters.

This preoccupation is partly driven by the fact that Desdemona wields so

much sexual power over him. Even Cassio refers, jokingly, to Desdemona as ‘our great Captain’s Captain’ (II.1.75),

implying that she is the only individual

capable of controlling and taming Othello. Desdemona uses this when

attempting to persuade Othello to reinstate Cassio: she tells the latter that ‘My lord shall never rest’ (III.3.22) until she has changed his mind, an

indication of the tenacity of the woman. Attempting to change his mind,

Desdemona is not frightened to use her position and sexuality:

‘Tell me, Othello. I wonder in my

soul

What you would ask me that I

should deny,

Or stand so mammering on?’ (III.3.68-70)

In this instance, she refers to her own unquestioning desire to please

Othello, implying that he cannot love her as she loves him if he is able to

refuse her what she wants. Othello responds with the interestingly oxymoronic

term of endearment ‘Excellent wretch’

(III.3.90), suggesting that he is aware that her manipulation of him is fairly

‘wretched’, yet finds it ‘excellently’ compelling.

Later in the play, however, Othello ceases to find Desdemona’s sexual

power so entertaining. Speaking to Iago about his planned murder of Desdemona,

Othello is adamant that he will ‘not

expostulate with her, lest her body and beauty unprovide my mind again’

(IV.1.203-5). As far as Othello is concerned, if he is tempted into

conversation and interaction with his wife, then her overpowering sexuality

will deter him from the right and inevitable course of action. He considers her to be a sexual hazard, a strumpet

intent on using her body to blind and deceive him. Male society, in

addition to constructing women as second-rate citizens, also constructs their

sexual allure as evil.

Women as ‘whores’ Othello’s fear

of Desdemona’s sexuality erupts into slanderous abuse on a number of

occasions. He refers to her as ‘whore’

(III.3.356), a ‘subtle whore’

(IV.2.20) and a ‘cunning whore’

(IV.2.88), in addition to multiple references to her as a ‘strumpet’. Bianca is

described by Iago as a ‘housewife’

(IV.1.95) and ‘strumpet’ (IV.1.97),

although there is no evidence to suggest that she actually is a prostitute.

When she reveals his part in the horrific events of Act V, Iago vents his fury

upon Emilia, labelling her a ‘villainous

whore’ (V.2.227).

Admonishing his wife for being a nag in Act II, Iago goes on to compound

this stereotype by suggesting that all women are not as they appear. He seems

to believe that all women are, essentially, ‘wild-cats’ (II.1.109) and ‘housewives’

(II.1.111). All three women of the play

are accused of prostitution and inappropriate sexual conduct, yet it appears

that none of them are guilty. As male society falls apart in Cyprus, its

constituent members seen to vent their spleen and anger by labelling all of the

female characters ‘whore’. When things go wrong, it appears to be acceptable

for men to blame the women.

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What Is The Role of Women?

The patriarchal Venetian society presented in Othello,

moulded on the ideology of Elizabethan England, seems to put women firmly in

their place. Men consider women to be possessions, who ought to remain

submissive and meek at all times. The only power that women do seem to be able

to wield – their sexual power - is considered to be an ‘evil’ which must be

resisted by the men in society. Men seem free to be able to refer to women as

‘whores’ and get away with it. The language that Shakespeare gives to his

female characters suggests that they have internalised society’s expectations

of them, and apart from in moments of private conversation, behave as men expect, believing this to be ‘natural’.

There is a suggestion, however, that women are beginning to question the

validity of unchecked male authority. These notes have considered Emilia’s

seemingly feminist opinions, but it is Desdemona, who in conversation with

Emilia, indicates that the tide may be finally turning:

‘Nay, we must think men are not

gods’ (III.4.144) By definition, this suggests that Desdemona has certainly perceived men to be god-like figures in the

past, but indicates that her experiences with Othello have taught her a lesson.

It is a clear that the actions and language of Shakespeare’s three female

characters, although seemingly subservient, signify a tentative step towards an

egalitarian society.