Othello, The Moor of Venice by William Shakespeare

ISBN 10: 0681446595

ISBN 13: 9780681446595

Publisher: HarperCollins

• Roderigo and Iago incite a mob against Othello for marrying a local’s daughter. While the attitude of the mob indicates a particular vindictiveness toward interracial marriage, Othello is able to explain himself to their satisfaction. This contrasts an American attitude, where regardless of his position as a general, the mob would have lynched him at the least. Not even that, but Roderigo and Iago could have killed him without any assistance and faced hardly any consequences. America really bred some built-different racists.
• Desdemona, Othello’s wife, is referred to as a girl. This makes me believe there is a significant age difference. She may not even be eighteen. These customs are predatory and make me uncomfortable.
• Instantly, Iago has become my favorite villain. He prattles on about how his vain hatred of Othello moves him to action. He talks like a little devil on Roderigo’s shoulder, telling him to press on in his revenge game. No one suspects him of villainy.
• There’s a brief discussion about white people fetishizing black people’s bodies. I’m reminded of a white woman at BLM protest, holding up a sign announcing to the effect that she loved black cock. This isn’t love or respect, but racist objectification. Iago insists that this is Desdemona’s angle, and we’re left to wait for evidence.
• Othello is ordered to join the forces against the Turks™ and he trusts Desdemona’s travel to Iago.
• Iago notices that Cassio is infatuated by Desdemona and creates an intricate plan to have him removed from office and dependent on her for reinstatement.
• Roderigo is like, “blud im broke imma head out” and Iago tells him that patience is a virtue when evil is on the line lol
• Niggas out here spying on each other instead of directly getting the facts and this is why Iago can so easily make their lives fall apart.
• I genuinely felt bad for Desdemona, who is the most innocent party here. Even if she’s white, she’s a young girl (age undetermined) in love, trying to help her husband’s friend. What’s she get? Hit and called a whore. And even after that she’s obedient. After all this, it doesn’t seem that she’s fetishized Othello. She really loves him for who he is.
• Desdemona potentially being underage throughout all of this is another argument for why these marriage customs need to die. It’s not that she doesn’t have the life experience to deal with a grown man, it’s that she CAN’T POSSIBLY have it. If she were closer in age to Othello and still ignorant, at least she would have had some opportunity as an adult to deal with him as an adult, but this isn’t the case. She’s ripe for infantilization because she’s still a child.
• Domestic violence for the victim is horrifying and confusing, especially when the abuser has lovable qualities.
• Iago is the worst abuser of all, as he’s willing to get anyone hurt just to see Othello’s downfall. He literally kills his own wife.
• While cheating on a partner/spouse is immoral and disgusting, it doesn’t entitle the wronged party to murder as revenge. Desdemona is a victim of the era’s attitudes towards women. Being accused of whoring is one of the worst accusations of all, and imagine if it’d been true in this case? Some lamenting about Desdemona’s death, but ultimately Othello would be held in the right.