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I don't know. I thought it was a little problematic. I mean, doesn't his death play into some really harmful stereotypes about Black people?
So, what did you think of Othello's ending?
Maybe. But I like to think that he goes out on his own terms. Remember when he asks Lodovico to Speak of me as I am. Nothing extenuate, / Nor set down aught in malice (5.2.402-3)?
I do remember that. But still, if the Elizabethans thought of Black people as cruel and overemotional before, then seeing a play where a Black man kill a white woman out of jealousy would only intensify those prejudices.
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So, are you saying that the whole play is racist?!?
Maybe. Maybe not. It is four hundred years old, and racism would have been pretty pervasive at the time.
But it's not just about plot, though. Think about little details like when Othello refuses to mark Desdemona's alabaster skin (5.2.4-5). That's why he suffocates her; he doesn't want to damage her whiteness.
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Can two things be true? Because I still think Othello's calm and quiet demeanor (before Iago gets to him, anyway) would have been a pretty revolutionary portrayal at the time.
I think so! After all, I don't think there's a definite answer to this question. There are elements of the play that I think are respectful, and others that are clearly bigoted.
Like you said, I think there are two sides to this debate, and they both have valid points.