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Othello Essay

Othello
‘Othello may have been relevant to the Elizabethans but it has little to say to a contemporary audience'.
I believe Othello is still relevant to a contemporary audience, however modern individuals often view it on a different level to the people in Elizabethan times. Shakespeare wrote the play for an audience who accepted the racist stereotypes rampant in the play, oblivious to their own racism. Othello was a tragic hero, and Iago exploited his ‘tragic flaw', in this case being insecurity and jealousy.   This insecurity allowed Iago to manipulate Othello into believing his lies, and this lead to his downfall.   Today, Othello's ideas resonate strongly, the mistrust of peoples differences is still a highly relevant topic in modern society. Racist stereotypes still exist in many different levels in society, particularly between indigenous and non indigenous peoples in different civilisations. Shakespeare presents a dichotomy between black and white, the black man Othello not fitting in the white Italian society. Iago is perceived by his own community as honourable, and he uses this to his advantage, to eventually promote his deep rooted racist views and in fact be the villain of the play. Brabantio also shows more hidden racial prejudice, which is very common in modern society.

The Elizabethans viewed Othello as the tragic hero, with jealousy bringing about his eventual downfall. Othello, at the beginning of the play, was portrayed as an astute, intelligent, patient and controlled man,   and was able to clearly convey his ideas in a succinct manner. During one of his first confrontations with Iago, he is told that Brabantio is extremely unhappy with Othello's marriage to Desdemona, and will do all in his power to dissolve the marriage and punish Othello. His reply is ‘My parts, my title, and my perfect soul shall manifest me rightly'. His confidence in himself, in his position as a moor and Desdemona's husband is clear, and he is showing no signs of...