Introduction
Othello play is a historical framework that was under issues such as geopolitical and social complexes and designing it was at the dawn of the 17th century. The play transcends with time from the period it was written as the greatest tragedy with a creative standpoint. As pressing as today, the play fuels problems that became pressing and ubiquitous for centuries, such as sexual and racial injustice in a nation that few individuals ever had seen a black person. Dawn of the 17th century, critics of injustice were a problem to London people based on the play's idea. Shakespeare transforms the play into a heartbreaking tragedy with the decision of a doomed mixed-race marriage by Cinthio's brief tale. Othello's plot is from Giraldi Cinthio's short narrative, and Shakespeare arrays the play in the setting of Cyprus control by the Ottoman Empire. From the first stage of Shakespeare's play Othello to present; it reaches people across the world to enthusiastic audiences.
Geopolitical and Racial Complexities in Othello
Othello's play is for enthusiastic audiences within Venice's struggle with seizing Cyprus Island by Turkish forces. There was a battle of the famous naval Lepanto that saw the Turk's defeat in an alliance of Christian powers, and James VI celebrated the battle of Scotland (Vaughan 4). As a clash of religions, the conflict was an economic competition between the Islamic Ottoman Empire and Europe's Christian authorities throughout reference to turning of Turk. The play undercuts and draws upon Turkish Christian binary by Shakespeare making its hero an outsider and a Venetian as the evil character. As Othello is in Act 5, Venice’s republican government in fear of vesting military power to the citizens (Shakespeare, 288) contracted foreign mercenaries. Moor remains an alien term even though the Venetian government chooses the army leader to be Othello. He is neither Turk nor European by being in the middle as Cyprus Island yet embodied in both. Othello is a Christian conqueror and highlights this service in his suicide by killing a turbaned Turkish by "beat a Venetian and traduce the state" (5.2.352-53). There is no limitation of Othello's geopolitical impact on the conflict between the Ottoman Empire and Venice. The play identifies colonial subjects with prefigures of postcolonial theorists through foreign mercenary and background of Othello's blackness. The strange narratives of anthropophagi and cannibals by Othello fascinate Desdemona and Brabantio with his first gift from an Egyptian charmer, a handkerchief. Found by a vast number of early readers, the play's plot allows a reader to understand erotic or exotic delight in the new world's travel narratives and unexplored regions in Africa.
Black Race Structure
The black race structure offers new historical reading and understanding of Othello play with whether the factor was present for non-English individuals in early modern representations. Today there is a clear identity of a racial element in Shakespeare's writing of Othello that could not have been seen as directly focused on in the first performance of the play to audiences. As a copyreader, Michael Neill perceives ignorance of race discourse as obliterating something fundamental to tragedy, and Othello talk about race unavoidably falls into some degree of anachronism (Smith 125). Shakespeare plays with the exploration of ethnic and racial tensions result as an appropriate vehicle in the world on the same. Iago refers to Othello as he raises a toast 'the thick-lips' (1.1.66) in the opening scene and later, 'the health of black Othello' (2.2.29). Slave trade was yet formally immersed in England even though privateers had taken on board apprehended slaves; therefore, Shakespeare may have been familiar with African heritage or some of the slaves. Readers learn the origin of Othello is of the Sub-Saharan region and as a black African through these comments. Incipient of Shakespeare's fast and hard racial categories in England influenced 18th-century pseudo-science and history of racial slavery in contemporary conceptions of racism and race. There is an indication in the play of high esteem by Othello through a claim of Montano that 'the man commands/ Like a full soldier' (2.1.36-37) and Duke declaration as 'far more fair than black' while what is today acknowledged as racial discrimination is exuded in Act 1 in the remarks of Brabantio and Iago. In Venetian society, Othello establishes his liminal position with a lack of indulgence on Venetian customs and the reference to him as a Moor and black individual.
Racial Identity and Prejudice in Othello
There is no full explanation of the tragedy's grounds, but a reader can have Othello's view as poison to the Venetian view by pointing out to the deep racism. Visible alien racial identity is an apparent key feature for Othello's downfall, and the color of his skin makes him more susceptible with his pride to Iago machinations than if he was an essential and equally accomplished white male. Iago's prompt grips Othello with doubt and insecurity that predisposes this through the outset of a defensive posture in defiance of Venetian taboo, for instance, marriages. Patriarchal concept of misogynistic and masculinity is inseparable from Othello thralldom as a black outsider with the perception of matrimony in Venetian culture just as endemic as racism that crucially seals his fate and Desdemona's. Consequently, rather than having a rare emotional disorder, the rule shown in Venice is of sexual jealousy that Othello is prone to give in. Obsession of Roderigo with Desdemona marks him with envious toward Cassio and Othello. Bianca flares with similar emotions when a handkerchief is given to her belonging to Desdemona by Cassio as he declares, 'you are jealous now, that this is from some mistress, some remembrance' (3.4.185-6). Iago undertakes a similar disposition for revenge on Cassio when he spontaneously fastens a pretext to provoke Othello through sexual jealousy. Characters in the play fall prey like Othello even though not all are consumed with jealous that with sexual desires stalks any society of one individual as a property of the other.
Othello's Downfall: Influence of Social Hierarchies
The social system's influence on early modern England hierarchical is by psychological and economic impact as a concern for Marxist critics. Shakespeare was made a king servant when his acting company was taken under the patronage of James I in 1604 (Gurr 177). The expectation is from the house helps the lords and women services for individuals of higher ranks, and the lowest coming from the kitchen to the king court as the most senior. The play has clear pecking order where Othello commands Lieutenant Cassio as he receives requests from the Venetian Senate aristocratic members and the Duke, subservient to both is Ensign Iago. All of them serve their military position status out of loyalty. The three at preference of their seniors can get dismissals. Iago feels bitter about Cassio and yearns for advancement as he dislikes being tangled to Othello's services by claiming a man with 'a daily beauty in his life' (5.1.19). Military terms present the text with an embedded status of distinct gradations with a non-commissioned rough-speaking officer as Iago, who is bitter of the courtly manners and Cassio's rank. The play is also beyond militarism with the exploration of class and status. A new economic model replaces feudal responsibilities when Iago's repeated advice is to put cash in the purse based on the bond master and servant with duty and loyalty. Implication models by Shakespeare are as a king servant who, to be named as a 'gentleman' applies for a coat of arms and is additionally a businessperson who invested and loaned money in rents and lands.
The Role of Iago: Manipulation and Morality
Iago is part of the lower working class while other members are of the uppers class, such as Roderigo, Cassio, Desdemona, and Othello. Educated class traditionally lacks understanding of struggle in terms of good and evil for spiritual and moral battle with upholding right against wrong. The deprived economically share as they fight to gain and survive to interpret struggle. Iago lacks money and education that Othello utilizes to promote people, thus becomes bitter by thinking that he deserves the elevation and enrichment of the upper class. Iago, in terms of mercenary, robs the wealth of Roderigo betraying Othello, the expression is partly in the play. Since ends justify means, the moral relativist Iago utilizes any ways to alter the social order. Iago destroys Othello's certainties with a philosophy that is amoral and because of personal advancement by telling outrageous lies. Othello likes truth and goodness with belief in moral standards, therefore, adopts the Christian faith of his peers. Iago suggests self-aggrandizement in Othello and uses this favor to convince himself to ignore his generosity and conscience of spirit; therefore, he attacks morality. The play expresses moral deserved retribution through Othello, who kills himself when he regains human nature faith to realize his jealousy. In reaffirmation of the moral world, this consents Othello play to end, whereby this is the case ruling of classes within societies (Olson 24). Elevation of the upper level for Iago would be promoted to lieutenant and make him permanently better off, but he fails to grasp the essentials of morality before materialism.
Iago's alarming issue is that he is theatrically irresistible and pathologically healthy. He is not the exclusive source of the tragedy, although he engineers and initiates it. Even without his intervention, this would have erupted in the same form with similar explanations. Iago takes the reader into his confidence through admiration of his ingenuity and understanding of his reasoning. Shakespeare, in marked contrast, distances the audiences with Othello through the rapport profound tragic death. Shakespeare makes viewers complicit his adventures in seductive intimacy and devilish charisma of Iago to implicate Othello entrapment with hatred, whether the reader likes it or not, and women were easy victims for accusation during the period. Male characters ridicule women within the play as Bianca, who particularly inspires to grow with respectability. Readers could create sympathy for her with evident truth of her emotions that Cassio would not marry her if she were Cypru's new governor. There is no dramatic resolution for her in the story as she only briefly appear in Othello.
Tragic Flaw and Fate in Othello: A Greek Tragedy Connection
Othello's mythical motifs have made the play meaningful to audiences, including honor, jealousy, evil, love, and prejudice. Since its first performance, the play has been adapted for opera, ballet television, and film performances in many times. The mythical motif of the play falls similar to the protagonist of Greek tragedies. The tragic hero and title character of Othello retains a fatal flaw. The downfall of their hero in the play is the combined tragic flaw and forces of fate. Determination of the hero's outcome in Greek traditional tragedy mythologies bases deeply on forces of destiny. The tragedy of Shakespeare within the play is more on the character's undoing as a helpless victim of fate.
As a military leader, Othello serves well without emotions to administer justice, a sense of honor, and high ideals. Iago manipulates these similar features of Othello and causes less regard on his wife pleas for the handkerchief and Iago's word. Othello learns that he loved too well and not wise by basing on his insecurities and supposition, thus condemns Desdemona. The play, rather than a single event, is a multifaceted pattern description of family violence with escalating conduct. Othello repeatedly uses sexual terms on Desdemona as verbal abuse with the mistake of an affair with Cassio (Stein 1417). Desdemona receives increasing threats that are violent to harm and kill as Othello strikes her publicly and directs her to pray in the final murder scene. Using a pillow, Othello smothers...
