Shakespeare

7 Pages 1812 Words

In this sense, Shakespeare challenges Elizabethan ideologies and presents Othello as humanly equal if not superior to all the white characters. Shakespeare’s presentation of Othello does not marginalise Othello on the basis of his race, rather it is social elements that result in his downfall. Social ideologies and their contribution to Othello’s downfall are evident by examining the ways in which an Elizabethan audience and the play’s characters perceive as a result of his race. Elizabethan ideologies that perceived black races as sub-human species produce a cultural context that forces Othello’s marginilisation. This cultural context results in Othello’s standing in society being marginalised, conspicuous within the text through the Duke’s discourse. The Duke’s discourse serves to propagate Elizabethan values concerning the audiences understanding of race, as black skin colouring is presented as automatically being associated with negativity: ‘Your son-in-law is far more fair than black.’ By seemingly complimenting Othello and saying that his qualities are of a white person, the Duke depersonalizes people of black skin, insinuating that they are not equally human and it is in this way that Othello’s character is severely marginalised.
The plays cultural context breeds the marginilisation of black characters, and consequently Othello feels extremely insecure about his social standing. It becomes apparent that Othello is depersonalized significantly and valued in Venetian society solely as a result of his military importance. While Othello’s military rank would usually associate him with th...