Othello

Othello by William Shakespeare

Racism

Othello’s African American ethnicity plays a large role in Othello because it is a source of dislike towards him. Throughout Acts I and II there are remarks about race, which reveal the typical stereotypes that Othello deals with. When Brabantio reacts to finding out that Desdemona married Othello, he says, “Get weapons, ho!” (I, i, 179). This statement reveals the attitude that African Americans were viewed as less than human. Had Desdemona married a white man, Brabantio would not have reacted this way. Another example of a remark about ethnicity is when the Duke speaks highly of Othello to Brabantio. “Your son-in-law is far more fair than black,” (I, iii, 287). This remark not only characterizes Othello as educated and well-mannered, but  it also implies that African Americans were viewed as inferior and ill-behaved. In Act II, Iago talks to Desdemona about women, and even in this setting negative remarks towards ethnicity are made. For example, “If she be black, and thereto have a wit, she’ll find a white that shall her blackness fit,” (II, i, 132-133). In this remark, black means ugly. Othello’s ethnicity early in the play is appearing to be an important factor throughout the whole.