TSR Wiki > Study Help > Subjects and Revision > Revision Notes > English > Othello - Context and Tragedy
Context
- First performed in the Jacobean era (1604), it was written during Shakespeare's tragic era compromising of Hamlet, King Lea and Macbeth, which are all name after the eponymous hero.
- Believed in the hierarchical chain of being; God through angel, king, man, woman, animal, vegetable and mineral. Moral sensibility was believed to be a product of social class e.g. nobility is for the upper class and 'villain' which is used to describe Iago, derives from medieval times and means peasant.
- In Shakespearean time appearance was meant to indicate what lies within e.g. good/evil. A physical deformity was considered to be the mark of the devil! Appearance’s can be deceptive and this torments many tragic heroes. Because Iago looks honest, Othello assumes he is: 'Iago is most honest'.
- The 7 deadly sins were the foundation of morality in Shakespeare's time. They believed to send one's soul to hell.
- Black; traditionally the colour of evil and of the devil according to both biblical and mythological sources. AT the time interracial marriages, would have been shocking and on par with cannibalism.
- Telling lies was considered to be a much worse offence than nowadays. Satan told lies to Eve at the Garden of Eden
- Women were viewed as possessions, financially dependent on their Fathers until they were 'handed over' to the rule of their husband's.
Tragedy
In all Shakespearean Tragedy’s, the initial conflict is caused by mistaken identity. Act III is usually the climax of the conflict, then a sense of impeding doom is created and that time is speeding out of control.
There are similarities between his Great tragedies for example Iago is an inverted version of Hamlet as the amoral instead of the moral philosopher.
Comments
Originally posted by polkadot on TSR Forums.
