| Othello | |
|
|
| Creator | William Shakespeare |
| Play | Othello |
| Date | c.1601-1604 |
| Source | "Un Capitano Moro" by Cinthio (1565) |
| Role | Jealous husband Murderer |
| Quote | Put out the light, and then put out the light. |
| Notable Interpreters | Richard Burbage Edwin Booth Ira Aldridge Paul Robeson Orson Welles Laurence Olivier James Earl Jones Art Malik |
Othello is a character in Shakespeare's Othello (c.1601-1604). The character's origin is traced to the tale, "Un Capitano Moro" in Gli Hecatommithi by Giovanni Battista Giraldi Cinthio. There, he is simply referred to as the Moor.
Othello is a brave and competent soldier of advanced years and Moorish background in the service of the Venetian Republic. He elopes with Desdemona, the beautiful daughter of a respected Venetian senator. After being deployed to Cyprus, Othello is manipulated by his ensign, Iago, into believing Desdemona is an adultress. Othello murders her before killing himself.
Othello was first mentioned in a Revels account of 1604 when the play was performed on 1 November at Whitehall Palace with Richard Burbage almost certainly Othello's first interpreter. Modern notable performers of the role include Paul Robeson, Orson Welles, Richard Burton, James Earl Jones, and Laurence Olivier.
Contents |
Source
Othello has its source in the 1565 tale, "Un Capitano Moro" from Gli Hecatommithi by Giovanni Battista Giraldi Cinthio. While no English translation of Cinthio was available in Shakespeare's lifetime, it is probable that Shakespeare knew both the Italian original and Gabriel Chappuy's 1584 French translation. Cinthio's tale may have been based on an actual incident occurring in Venice about 1508.[1] It also resembles an incident described in the earlier tale of "The Three Apples", one of the stories narrated in the One Thousand and One Nights (Arabian Nights).[2] Disdemona is the only named character in Cinthio's tale with his other characters identified as the Moor, the squadron leader, the ensign, and the ensign's wife.
While Shakespeare closely followed Cinthio's tale in composing Othello, he departed from it in some details, particularly in the tale's depiction of Desdemona's death. In Cinthio, the Moor commissions his ensign to bludgeon Disdemona to death with a sand-filled stocking. In gruesome detail, Cinthio follows each blow, and, when the lady is dead, the Moor and his ensign place her lifeless body upon her bed, smash her skull, and then cause the cracked ceiling above the bed to collapse upon her, giving the impression the falling rafters caused her death.
The two murderers escape detection. The Moor then misses his wife greatly, and comes to loathe the sight of his ensign. He demotes him, and refuses to have him in his company. The ensign then seeks revenge by disclosing to the "the squadron leader" (the tale's Cassio counterpart), the Moor's involvement in Desdemona's death. The two men denounce the Moor to the Venetian Seignory. The Moor is arrested, transported from Cyprus to Venice, and tortured, but refuses to admit his guilt. He is condemned to exile; Disdemona's relatives eventually put him to death. The ensign escapes any prosecution in Disdemona's death but engages in other crimes and dies after being tortured.[3]
Role in Othello
He is an African Moor living in Venice, and a general in the Venetian Army. His servant Iago tricks him into believing that his wife Desdemona is having an affair with one of his soldiers, Michael Cassio. He kills his wife out of jealousy, only to realize that his wife was faithful, at which point he commits suicide. Several scholars have taken note of Othello's African race, pointing out the way in which it is portrayed in the play.
Analysis
 |
This section requires expansion. |
Othello is considered the first black character in Western Literature,[4] though the play is not very much concerned with racial difference, instead it adds to Othello's distinction compared to the Venetians.
Othello's race
There exists debate over whether Othello was a Barbary Moor or a Black Moor. Some consider him to be a Barbary Moor rather than a Black Moor, such as E.A.J. Honigmann,[5] and cite various references such as contradictory evidence and an ambassador of the Moors from the Barbary Coast arriving in England some time before Othello was written.[6] It should be noted that the exact date that Othello was written is unknown, though sources indicate that it was written between 1601 and 1610, sometime after the Moorish delegation.
In his Arden edition of the play, Honigmann summarises the contradictory evidence. He argues that the various uses of the word 'black' (for example, "Haply for I am black") do not help, since 'black' could simply mean 'swarthy' for Elizabethans.[7] Iago twice uses the word 'Barbary' or 'Barbarian' to refer to Othello, apparently referring to the Barbary Coast inhabited by the Berbers and Arabs. Yet Roderigo also calls him 'the thicklips', which seems to refer to (perhaps) African physiognomy. Honigmann notes that since these comments are all insults, they need not be taken literally.[5]
In 1911, however, James Welton criticised the notion that Othello was not black, arguing that racial prejudices had turned the character of Othello into "barbary" instead of "black." He argues that despite some evidence that he may have not been black, more evidence points to him being black, though Shakespeare's intention is unknown.[8] He also adds that if Othello were not black, Brabantio would not have used the term "sooty bosom," a racial stereotype for blacks during this time, and would not have been compared to Dian, a famous Ethiopian. He continues that accounts changing Othello from "black to brown" were the cause of racial prejudices during Reconstruction in America and contends that Othello is described using similar language in Titus Andronicus.[9]
Virginia Mason Vaughan added to this criticism by arguing that Othello's racial identity as a Black moor would have made more sense than a Barbary Moor, who were able to be accepted into society much easier than a Black Moor. She states that by 1604, racism against Africans had already blended with Elizabethian culture as they had already visited Europe before the time of the play, and accounts of Othello as Black were not uncommon.[10] She notes Rodrigo's description of Othello having "thick lips" was a racial stereotype used by 16th century explorers for Africans.[11] Social predispositions and/or prejudice among modern-day, typical readers and theatre directors lean towards the "black" interpretation.[12]
Performance history
|
|
References
- ^ Shakespeare, William. Four Tragedies: Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth. Bantam Books, 1988.
- ^ Young, John G., M.D., "Essay: What Is Creativity?", Adventures in Creativity: Multimedia Magazine 1 (2), http://www.adventuresincreativity.net/2mag1.html, retrieved 2008-10-17
- ^ Bevington, David and Kate, translators. "Un Capitano Moro" in Four Tragedies: Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth. Bantam Books, 1988.
- ^ http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/GenerateContent?CONTENT_ITEM_ID=87257&CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE=0&MENU_ID=10272
- ^ a b E.A.J. Honigmann, ed. Othello. London: Thomas Nelson, 1997, p. 15.
- ^ Honigmann, 2-3.
- ^ Oxford English Dictionary, 'Black', 1c.
- ^ James Welton Psychology of Education. University of California: 1911, p. 403.
- ^ James Welton Psycology of Education. University of California: 1911, p. 404.
- ^ Virginia Mason Vaughan Othello: A Contextual History. Cambridge University Press: 1996, p. 51 - 52.
- ^ Leo Africanus, "The inhabitants are extremely black, having great noses and blabber lips." "The History and Description of Africa", Robert Brown, ed., Trans. John Pory, 3 Vols (London: The Hakluyt Society, 1896), p. 830.
- ^ Honigmann, 17.
|
||||||||||||||||
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
