Othello'S Analysis
OTHELLO
Contextualization
Othello was first performed for James I on November 1, 1604 at Whitehall Palace in London, then it was performed at Globe Theatre and then at the Blackfriars Theatre. One of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies, Othello is set in the background of the wars between Venice and Turkey that raged in the latter part of the 16th century. Cyprus, which is the setting of most of the action, was a Venetian outpost attacked by the Turks in 1570 and conquered by the Ottomans the following year. Shakespeare's information on the conflict probably derives from “The History of the Turks”, by Richard Knolles, which was published in England in autumn on 1603; so the play was composed at some point between that time and the summer of 1604.
Shakespeare's choice of a black man was original. Othello is called the Moor, which can suggest Arabic descent, but the language of the play insists that he is a black African. Black in Elizabethan England was a colour associated with moral evil, decay, and death, and Moors in the theatre were usually stereotyped villains, like Aaron the Moor in Shakespeare's early play Titus Andronicus. Othello embodies none of the characteristics typical of the "Moor"; instead of being lecherous, cunning, and vicious, he is a noble, towering figure whose fall is therefore very difficult to accept.
Sources
Like many of Shakespeare's plays, Othello is derived from another source, an Italian prose tale written in 1565 by Giambattista Cinzio Giraldi. The original story contains the basic structure of the tale: a Moorish general is deceived by his ensign into believing his wife is unfaithful. The only named character in Cinthio's story is "Desdemona", which means "unfortunate" in Greek; the other characters are identified only as "the standard-bearer", "the captain", and "the Moor". To Giraldi's story Shakespeare added supporting characters like Roderigo and Brabantio; he compressed the time and...
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