Analysis Paper of Shakespeare's Othello

This text constitutes a series of events which explore how human beings act according to the external influences which structure them. They are governed by desires of a complex and contradictory nature and relationships rather than one ideal structure of harmony. However, Othello's downfall could be justified from an angle other than that arising from the issue of race.

Contrastingly, Welles's production, alluding to the original text of Othello interprets the text in light of power and status. It also takes on the values of a patriarchal society, whereby the protagonist is portrayed as dominating over the women of the text.

The highly significant issue of power is projected within this text by portraying men possessing qualities of greater superiority and significance than women by allowing them to dominate. Juxtaposition between the roles of men and women in this text is evident through the chiaroscuro, which emphasizes the polarity of black and white. The depiction of Desdemona as white and glowing symbolizes her purity and highlights her angelic qualities, while oppositely, Othello and the other male characters are depicted as grey and dark. This magnifies the binary pairing of good, represented by white and evil, signified through dark shades.

Dissimilar to the original play, Welle's production demeans the importance of race by substituting a Caucasian character to represent Othello. In addition, it merely alludes to race as an issue, rather opting to depict Othello as a patriarchal character, whom dominates his wife and ultimately the screen; as portrayed consistently almost in every shot, his massive size and dominance of the entire frame. This interpretation does not make ethnicity the key point to his failure, rather it depicts the fact that its his hubris, jealousy that entirely overtakes his rationale thereby conforming in some ways to the traditional reading. In various shots, Othello towers over Desdemona, and he is depicted as dominating and demanding, whereas she is soft and obedient. Othello's characterization as a monstrous villain is verified through the use of gothic mise en scene in later scenes. As portrayed in shots of ultimate darkness, where the only visible aspect is his eye, this adds claustrophobic traits to the text. In addition, Othello's villain-like character may be justified through his horrific murder upon Desdemona, in which he smothers her by cutting off her air supply through kissing.

This enhances further the fact that through the portrayal of Othello as such a negative character, minimal or no empathy is evoked by the responder. Similarly, this reading concurs with the psychoanalytical view, as demonstrated through the recurring motif of the cells and cages which are a metaphor for Othello's entrapment within his own psychological state of mind. As responders, the composer intentionally positions the response evoked to be of minimal or no empathy due to the protagonist's characterization as evil.