Gender Stereotypes In Shakespeare's Othello

Since the beginning of time women have been viewed as weak and inferior to men. It wasn't until 1839 that women could even own property, before that a father would give the land to his sons and just skip over their daughters (Mcgree and Moore). The reasons a father would skip his daughters' inheritance was because women were thought to be unable to handle the responsibilities of holding land or any job. Shakespeare plays on these stereotypes of women by placing Emilia, Desdemona, and Bianca in Othello. These three women portray the expectations placed upon women during the Elizabethan era. Othello displays different examples of the expectations of the Elizabethan patriarchal society and the suppression of females. Although Shakespeare isn't

known for his feminist view, through Othello he challenges the expectations of women and men during the Elizabethan era.
The stereotypical role for women was that they would listen to what their father or husband would say, Desdemona perfectly displays this. Lisa Gardine argues that good women in Renaissance tragedies are portrayed as long-suffering martyrs. In the beginning of the play Desdemona is not a martyr, however towards the end of the play Desdemona begins to conform to the stereotypical image of a good wife, silent and obedient. Shakespeare shows the different types of wives and which one is "better", this is portrayed when Desdemona says, "We must not now displease him" (IV. ii. 17). Othello tells Desdemona to go to bed and dismisses Emilia. Desdemona reminds Emilia that they mustn't anger Othello and should follow his orders. Shakespeare shows how women were expected to be obedient to men in order to be good wives. There is a large amount of evidence to support the idea that Desdemona is submissive and obedient to men. Desdemona herself declares that "I am obedient" (III.3.89), Desdemona continues to obey Othello's orders from the early phase of their relationship through to the later phases of his jealousy. Desdemona seems to have completely accepted her role as the good and obedient wife and transformed into the "perfect" woman.
There are the perfect women and those who challenge the roles put upon them by not conforming to the roles placed on them.

Emilia challenges these roles and brings light to the unfairness of the expectations. As Penny Gay comments on Carol Thomas Neely in "Emilia Speaks Her Mind", "Within Othello it is Emilia who most explicitly speaks to this theme [of marital love], recognizes this central conflict [between men and women], and inherits from the heroines of comedy the role of potential mediator of it." (qtd. In Gay 1). Thomas and Gay both discuss how Emilia recognizes and challenges the stereotypes of women and men. Shakespeare puts Emilia in Othello to challenge these gender roles, first by having Emilia question why women are blamed for cheating. "But I do think it is their husbands' faults / If wives do fall: say that they slack their duties, / And pour our treasures into foreign laps, / Or else break out in peevish jealousies, / Throwing restraint upon us; or say they strike us, / Or scant our former having in despite;" (IV, iii, 86-91). Emilia explains to the "innocent" Desdemona that yes, women cheat and that they shouldn't be blamed for it because women and men have the same urges. This view is very unconventional of the time and goes against the roles of women, Shakespeare intentionally puts this here to show Emilia doesn't conform to gender roles and has unconventional views about men. Emilia, unlike Desdemona, does not let men walk all over her. Emilia confronts

the fact that Othello has no proof about Desdemona cheating with Cassio. She tells Othello that he can't just slander someone's name like that. Emilia is not afraid to speak her mind and even screams out when she find Desdemona dead. Othello tells her to be quiet but Emilia tells him she will make sure the whole world knows Othello is a murderer; this bravery symbolizes Shakespeare's defiance against gender expectations.
Slander can affect the way people view others, Bianca's name was ruined by rumors that she is a prostitute.

Through this Shakespeare shows the double standards at the time. Cassio cheats on his wife with Bianca and everyone thinks it is normal for Cassio to cheat but they all accuse Bianca of being a prostitute. Vijayaraghavan in "Othello: A Postcolonial-Feminist Reading" describes Bianca's interesting position in Othello "However, despite her unusual qualities, in the play's gender economy Bianca stands for the non-wife, the sexually unchaste whore," (Vijayaraghavan 9). Bianca is accused of being a prostitute even though she has an unswerving love for Cassio. Bianca's extreme love for Cassio is very apparent in the last act when Bianca rushes to Cassio's side and is so distraught. Bianca never lets being called a whore stop her from loving Cassio. Bianca is labeled a whore even though there is no evidence, Iago calls her ‘housewife' (IV i 95) and ‘strumpet' (IV i 97). Shakespeare shows how it was thought to be acceptable to blame women even if they did no wrong, he challenges this by showing that none of the women have done anything

wrong.
People during the Elizabethan era thought women are to be blamed if men cheat or accused of cheating even if they did nothing. Shakespeare portrays the double standards of cheating during the Elizabethan era through all the relationships. If Othello were to cheat, everyone would shrug it off and say it is just what men do, but since Desdemona, a woman, is accused of cheating everyone believes it. Othello displays his displeasure about Desdemona cheating "She's gone. I am abused, and my relief/Must be to loathe her. O curse of marriage, /That we can call these delicate creatures ours/And not their appetites! I had rather be a toad/And live upon the vapor of a dungeon/Than keep a corner in the thing I love/For others' uses. Yet 'tis the plague of great ones;/Prerogatived are they less than the base./Tis destiny unshunnable, like death." (III.iii.267–279). Othello says he would rather kill Desdemona than let her be with anyone else, Shakespeare shows how irrational this view is and how Cassio is not being blamed for the affair just Desdemona. Vijayaraghavan explained how unjust this double standard was "The unjust suffering of Desdemona reveals how easily an early modern woman could lose the title "goodwife" and be vilified as a whore" (Vijayaraghavan 11), Shakespeare questions this idea that only women are in the wrong for cheating. Cassio displays this perfectly because he is cheating on his wife with Bianca, however, Bianca is the one called the whore and shunned. No one questions any of the males who cheat but automatically calls a woman a whore even if there is no actual evidence.
There are three women: "perfect woman", "progressive woman", "unchaste whore", all of these women in one way or another challenge the expectations placed upon them. Shakespeare, himself, challenges the expectations of women in Othello; he places subtle acts of defiance done by women and completely open acts of defiance against gender stereotypes. Emilia, Desdemona, and Bianca all in there own way challenge the expectations by: speaking up, refusing to be stepped on, and standing up for each other. Women today are still subject to damaging social expectations like being viewed as incapable for a job. Shakespeare shows how Emilia is a complete foil to Desdemona; he uses this to point out how gender roles are wrong and cruel. Also, Shakespeare comments on the fact that women like Bianca are being called whores for no particular reason. Virginia Woolf states these expectations place upon women in one simple sentence, "As long as she thinks of a man, nobody objects to a woman thinking." (Woolf). Every day women push to stop gender stereotypes and stop being subject to certain expectations that have been around since the beginning of time. It is time to stop these damaging stereotypes and allow women and men to be and act however they want.