Set in 16th century Venice, Shakespeare's "Othello" presents notions of difference that deem it as amorphous, espoused with a resonance that appropriates it to the twenty first century mindset. Difference engendered by character juxtaposition, racism and gender relations kindles the plot of the play, acting as a major gear within the clockwork on which it is built. Othello's North African background distinguishes him from the Caucasian Venetian society, and stark difference can be gleaned off personal differences such as the reverence of Othello with the duplicity of Iago. Desdemona, courteous and intelligent, is an exemplary to the women of her time, challenging the unuttered bounds of her patriarchal society. These anomalies all form part to the theme of difference that is core to this Shakespearian tragedy.
Othello's different racial background displaces him within the societal sphere of his career. His Moorish roots elicit skepticism to his capital position in the Italian military, however it is indubitable that his ethnicity has inculcated a strength within him that cradles his great military prowess. His experiences as a slave Moor redline him from the upper class Venetians, this difference arousing Desdemona's compassion towards him. In the jury scene in Act 3 Scene 1 Othello says "She swore, in faith, twas strange, 'twas passing strange she wish'd ,
That heaven had made her such a man: she bade me, if I had a friend that loved her,
I should but teach him how to tell my story. And that would woo her. Upon this hint I spake:
She loved me for the dangers I had pass'd," This quote demonstrates that the racial difference between Othello and Desdemona is what drew them together. Contrarily, Othello's ethnicity subjects him to the vindictiveness of other characters, particularly Iago, who uses this to fuel the already existing inferno of hatred he feels towards Othello.