One of the world's most debated issues is very prominent in Shakespeare's tragic play: Othello. The issue of racism is shown through the words and actions of every single character in the play. The motivating factors and reasons for a character's racist mindset may vary, but this topic still happens to appear in majority of dialogues. Roderigo, Iago, and Brabantio are three characters that portray racist traits throughout the play. No matter the circumstance, in that time period racism was natural, and inevitable to every social class. .
Roderigo is a jealous suitor of Desdemona, and is often portrayed as young, rich, and foolish. He obeys the words of Iago under any circumstance, and is completely oblivious to Iago's ulterior motives. Although Roderigo never thinks for himself, he still manages to spit racial slurs about Othello. Being a minor character that does not have his own opinion, he is clearly persuaded to fall into this racist society. While in conversation with Iago Roderigo says, "What a full fortune does the Thick-lips owe/ If he can't carry't thus!" (1.1. 68-69). Clearly by using the word "Thick-lips", it reveals Roderigo's racist side. In addition, this is very de-humanizing towards Othello. When speaking to Iago, he never once refers to Othello by his actual name. This is completely unjustifiable considering that he treats Othello as sub-human. Roderigo's disregard for Othello's feelings originates in the fact that he has feelings for his wife Desdemona. He is clearly envious, and he shows his envy in the form of hatred/disrespect directed towards Othello. Roderigo is considered middle-class, as he is just a suitor, but still involved in the general army. He has no real reason to dislike Othello, so he goes with the crowd and choses to disrespect Othello. He clearly shows the readers that he too has a racist mindset. .
Perhaps the most racist character of them all, Iago, speaks such horrible things about Othello that it leaves readers questioning if he has a deeper motive than the one he shares.
