Choose one non-dramatic text offered on the module, (an extract from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's Literary Remains,) and show how it might help us understand Othello. The extract presents a sustained attack by Coleridge on Shakespeare for his lack of realism in the 'monstrous' depiction of a marriage between a 'beautiful Venetian girl,' and a 'veritable negro,' in Othello. He sees Shakespeare's transformation of a 'barbarous negro' into a respected soldier and nobleman of stature as 'ignorant', since at the time, 'negroes were not known except as slaves.' (Appendix) The extract seems to raise two questions - how central is the taboo of miscegeny to the play, and to what extent is Othello's reputation able to counter this prejudice? It is certainly not hard to conclude that it is probably Shakespeare's most controversial play. There is a clear theme of racism throughout, one which was firmly embedded in the Venetian society which rejects the marriage of Othello and Desdemona as erring, 'against all rules of nature,' [1.3.102] Nothing separates Othello from, 'the wealthy curled darlings of our nation,' [1.2.68] except skin-colour - he matches or even exceeds them in reputation. At the start of the play, he appears confident that, OTHELLO: My parts, my title, and my perfect soulShall manifest me rightly.Othello 1.2.31-2 when he is called in front of the court on charges of witchcraft, yet the malevolent Iago is able to call on Othello's deep-rooted insecurities about his race in order to play Othello and Desdemona against one another until their marriage fails. Essentially, Iago is a representative of the white race, a pre-Nazi figure who tries to inform the public of the impurity of Othello and Desdemona's marriage. He demonstrates how this miscegenation is threatening to the existing social order, and ultimately, Othello's lifetime of achievement is not sufficient to pursuade others from prejudice in a moment of crisis (such as Desdemona'...
