In the tradition of Shakespeare's vague directive stance, he seems to have left yet another element of a play to the fancy of interpretation. In his tragedy Othello, a distinctive feature of one of the lead characters is not clearly dictated. In the movie, Lawernce Fishborne played Othello and I was left considering an important characteristic of Othello: How dark is Othello's skin? Visually, at least in modern America, a culture that Shakespeare could not have predicted or written for, this choice could be powerful choice. It is made clear that his skin is dark, but by what comparison? .
It is made clear that Othello is a Moor. Many Northern Africans are known for skin that is vividly dark, but I am not visually familiar with the Moors, so any nuances that might be given through that are wasted upon me. Othello is described as "black" rather than "brown" by many of the characters in the play. This could be a symbolic technique employed by Shakespeare rather than a specific trait of Othello's. If a woman's skin is described as white rather than peach or olive, a sense of purity is associated with the description. It is possible that Shakespeare's use of the word black could have simply been a literary tool within the character of Othello. .
Instead of writing specific casting directives about the color of his skin, many of the characters in the play speak about his skin including the Duke of Venice, Iago, and Othello himself. Since there are do directives outside of the dialog to draw on, I will delve into the verse itself in an effort to determine the shade of black originally intended by the author. Consider the passage set by the Duke of Venice where Othello's blackness is described.
Duke of Venice:.
And, noble signior,.
If virtue no delighted beauty lack,.
Your son-in-law is far more fair than black.
(Act 1 SCENE 3).
The choice of the word "fair" in this passage is significant. It could be interpreted to oppose black in color or be a descriptive of his virtue.
