Gender Roles In Othello

The famous Shakespearean tragedy Othello is open to many thoughts and ideas about life in the Elizabethan era as well as modern day life with adaptations such as Othello by Andrew Davies. The most apparent notion that occurs in both versions of the drama is racism, which largely drives the plot of the Davies production. However, sexual politics also comes out to play in the texts as it sees the assignation of particular gender roles as well as the way that love is portrayed. Love is also the reason why there is a war between good and evil, mentally and emotionally. With this war is where appearance and reality take a hold and warps the protagonist to become a tragic, fallen hero of the play.

Racism is a theme that heavily drives the modern production of Othello but is also an important idea that is a part of the main focus in Shakespeare’s play. Both show how society
Gender roles are heavily stereotyped where Desdemona and Emilia sacrifice themselves so as to satisfy and fulfill the needs of their spouses. They embodied love and it ultimately brought them to their deaths as jealousy drove Othello to madness and Iago, being focussed only on his needs, to kill his dutiful wife. The love Othello once had was being torn down by the lies that were infiltrating his thoughts. “Look to your wife, observe her well with Cassio… In Venice they do let God see the pranks they dare not show their husbands. Their best conscience is not to leave’t undone, but keep’t unknown.” By planting into Othello’s mind that all Venetian women are promiscuous and disloyal, including Desdemona, it made it all the more easier for Iago to manipulate Othello into believing that his wife was unfaithful. With the clever and sly language as well as the vivid imagery that Jago paints for Othello, he is also made to think that Dessie is unfaithful to him with