Othello's achievement is not so much that he survived this unpromising life, but that he survived it in such a spectacularly successful manner, ending up one of the most powerful men in the Venetian defense forces. The life of early separation from home and family, followed by danger and adventure, is perhaps the life story of thousands of men down the ages who become soldiers of fortune and who end up as corpses in ditches at an early age, unwept, unpaid, and unrecorded. Othello tells his life story to Desdemona, and she sees him through his words. When other characters call him "black," they refer to his face but also to the concept of color symbolism in Elizabethan morality: White is honor, black is wickedness white is innocence, black is guilt.
Whenever they look at his black face, however brilliant a general he is, he knows the others are thinking "Yes, but he is not really one of us." Shakespeare presents this fact in the dialogue and also in the staging of the play: Othello's is a black face among a sea of white faces, and he is constantly referred to as "The Moor," a representative African, while others go by their personal names and are seen as independent individuals. More importantly, he is visibly different due to the color of his skin, so he lives constantly among, but separated from, other people. He is different from those around him, due to his origins and his life history, but he shares their religion, values, and patriotism to Venice. He leads an intense life, swinging between triumph and dread. Othello is an outsider who is intelligent and confident in military matters but socially insecure. Suddenly he sees possibilities for himself to which he had never before aspired. He appoints a student of military knowledge, Cassio, to be his lieutenant.
He is dazzled by the comfortable life, the learned conversation, the civilization. Senator Brabantio has invited him to his home, and this is a revelation to the soldier.
When the colony of Cyprus is threatened by the enemy, the Duke and Senate turn to "valiant" Othello to lead the defense.Īfter many years on campaign, Othello has come to live in Venice, among the sophisticated people of the city. Under pressure, he makes an inspiring speech. He has courage, intelligence, the skill of command, and the respect of his troops. He is a general in the Venetian defense forces, and, although a foreigner from Africa, he has won this post by excellence in the field of war. Othello is a combination of greatness and weakness, in his own words "an honourable murderer" (V.2, 295).
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