Othello Feminist Analysis

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SUMMARY:
William Shakespeare’s play, Othello, it describes the repercussions of unwarranted jealousy, manipulation, and greed. These themes exhibit themselves through the main characters: Othello, Iago, Rodrigo, Desdemona. The premise of each of the characters’ motives were driven by either of these themes, with the exception of Desdemona as she did not appear to have an ulterior motive. Although the play is centered around the patriarchal crises, it draws attention to the importance of the role of gender and the portrayal of women in the play. Within Jeanne Gerlach, Rudolph Alamasy, and Rebecca Daniel’s article, “Revisiting Shakespeare and Gender”, it proposes an underlying feminist critique of Shakespearian literature. Moreover, it describes …show more content…

Upon the reading this week, I was quickly re-acquainted with the matter as I explored the classic character tropes expressed and the overwhelming reiteration of tragedy throughout Shakespeare’s work. Additionally, upon reading of “Revisiting Shakespeare and Gender”, it provided insight on the Feminism critique lens that I had not been familiar with as well. With the combination of both pieces, I have a better understanding of not only Othello but Shakespearian literature as a whole. In response to the play, initially I felt anger towards the characters and their reasoning behind their motive, yet after contemplation I grew to understand them. Although I initially viewed Iago’s character with disgust, I realized that people have no limitations on power and greed. I grew to accept his character as a lesson or rather an unfortunate truth about human nature. Moreover, Rodrigo’s desire to be loved by Desdemona is typical of human nature, yet he did not accomplish his goal of attaining Desdemona. Although the degree of Othello’s jealousy and rage were unwarranted, the reasoning behind his actions were somewhat sensible and noble. He believed that the love of his life committed adultery and reacted in an aggressive matter, yet he did not approach the problem productively. Nevertheless, I grew to understand the characters’ motives instead of categorizing them to either good or

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