Othello 4

     Throughout Shakespeare's Othello, race has obviously been a prevalent topic. Multiple times people use "black" and "ugly" as synonyms. At one point, Desdemona says, "How if she be black and witty?" (Shakespeare, Act II, Scene i, Line 131). Although by black, she means ugly. This is a horrible thing to say, but what shocks me even more is the fact that her husband, Othello, is black himself. This leads me to another confusing aspect. The play was first performed in 1604, and is set in the late 1400's to early 1500's. During these years, were blacks treated the same as they were in the early years of The United States? I honestly have no idea if these cultural aspects were the same in Venice. But since "black" and "ugly" are used as synonyms. I sense blacks were treated the same way. I don't understand how Othello received such a prominent role in society, if blacks were looked down upon? Also, is it socially acceptable for Desdemona, a white woman, to be married to a black man? These questions have been in the back of my mind this entire time I've been reading the play. Maybe racism was not a big deal in Venice, but it seems, by the diction used, that it was.