Reading Othello by Shakespeare was a challenging but rewarding task. While I did understand the meaning of the words, archaic English significantly slowed down my reading pace. I frequently returned to the beginning of the passage or dialogue to remind myself what the topic of the conversation was. While it got easier with experience, at first, understanding the sentence “Thou toldst me thou didst hold him in thy hate” indeed proved to be challenging (Shakespeare 1.1.7). Furthermore, there are unfamiliar cultural terms and geographical names, so I made many remarks in the notebook. I read the play in the online format, so I documented the significant characters, concepts, and terms on paper to understand the narrative better. I primarily annotated Act 1 since it introduced the major characters, such as Othello and Iago, but I did not document consequent acts in great detail. Ultimately, it was challenging for me to maintain focus and understand the narrative at first, but eventually, Othello grasped my interest, and I finished the play.
Concerning various topics of Othello, I noticed many parallels between the setting of the play and modern reality. While the overarching theme is jealousy, identity crisis is another significant issue. Othello cannot accept the differences in race and religion, compared to Desdemona, and perceives himself as an outsider to society (Johanyak 1). Moreover, it diminishes his self-esteem, eventually leading him to believe that Desdemona is not faithful, specifically due to his race (Johanyak 2). The identity crisis was a relevant issue in the 16th century in the setting of Othello, and it is still relevant today. Overall, I believe that the comparison of social acceptance and identity between the 16th century and the present time would make an interesting paper topic.
Works Cited
Johanyak, Debra. ‘Shifting Religious Identities and Sharia in Othello.’ Religions, vol. 10, no. 10, 2019.
Shakespeare, William. Othello. Shakespeare Folger, n.d., Web.