Appearance in “Othello” and “A Raisin in the Sun”

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The purpose of this work is the manifestation of everlasting social problems like racial segregation, envy and jealously in the literary works of different periods namely Othello by W. Shakespeare and A Raisin in the Sun by L. Hansberry. Apart from this, it highlights the solutions of these problems found in different times and epochs. The differences between them is another essential part of this essay.

In general, the writing process was absorbing due to finding some instances of similarities and differences between the social views and moral values of the epochs presented in the plays. The didactic part of the essay presents the cognition of the demerits of the social system which lead to the crisis in the family relations and their final brake. The comparison and juxtaposition of the Modern and Medieval social systems and characters motivations is the most laborious part of the work as it requires additional efforts and sources of information. The comparative analysis of the epochs and the manifestation of the similar social problems typical for both social systems constitute the most valuable part of the work. Nevertheless, it leaves large room for further investigations in regards to deeper analysis of the plays’ characters and drawing parallels between them.

The literature heritage is really gigantic. There is a great number of different literary works that are based on the most scandalous human emotions like love, jealousy, revenge and even racial segregation. The last theme is regarded by some as a newly appeared one typical for the contemporary writing, however, it is everlasting existing in Shakespeare time.

The paper under analysis is based on the comparison of Othello by Shakespeare and A Raisin in the Sun by Hansberry through the manifesting of the theme of the racial segregation and the nature of appearance. The comparative analysis comprises the realization of the racism in the epochs the characters live in, the position the characters take in the society, their mental strength and steadiness, and the symbolic level of problem’s manifestation.

The nature of appearance is one of the basic topics that go through both plays. The protagonist of Shakespeare’s play is Othello The Moor – the word that signified a man with a black skin at that time, meanwhile the African-American family of Younger is in the center of the play by Hansberry. In both plays the protagonists are under certain social press which is, however, differs due to the epochs the characters live in. Othello takes one of the most influential social positions in Venice who is greatly respected by the high assembly of the city. This fact does not deprive him of the humiliating names like “the Moor”, “the thick-lips”, “an old black ram” and “a Barbary horse” by other characters, who envy his success. At the same time, the society appreciates his military gifts and appreciates him properly despite his belonging to another race.

The family of Younger undergoes another challenge during the epoch which is much closer to our time. The action takes place in 1950s. The Youngers, as any other American family, have their own dreams about a big house with the garden, and prosperous business. All their attempts to reach their aims always come across the social barriers like poverty, swindle, betray and finally racial rejection of the white community. Besides, the difficulties are also strengthened by the inner conflict in the family. Despite the fact that the family is separated by different obstacles, they unite and stand out together in the face of the growing risk of racism. The family resist the social non acceptance and fulfill its dream moving to a new house in a white neighborhood. From this point of view the protagonists of A Raisin in the Sun are stronger individuals than those in Othello. The Venetian Moor acts like a blind, completely trusting to Lago’s tricks, though Lago is just a stranger to him. Othello starts to suspect his wife in cheating, paying no attention to her justifications and blindly believing in the facts that he did not even see. One of the competent source provides another prove of this idea: “Othello, though he demands “ocular proof”, is frequently convinced by things he does not see: he strips Cassio of his position as lieutenant based on the story Iago tells; he relies on Iago’s story of seeing Cassio wipe his beard with Desdemona’s handkerchief, and he believes Cassio to be dead simply because he hears him scream”. (An Anthology For Readers And Writers, 750)

Thus, the play by Hansberry discovers the importance of being strong and keep calmness in the situations which threaten the unity of the family, while Shakespeare’s play shows the results of blind following of the rules imposed by the society and its jealously.

The protagonists of plays Othello and Walter Lee Younger are initially placed in the different social and personal positions. While Othello is a prominent lord, Walter is just one man from plenty of other who is trying to change his family’s life for better and get out from the poverty. Othello is weakened by his high position and realization of his loneliness in the Venetian society. “Othello sometimes makes a point of presenting himself as an outsider, whether because he recognizes his exotic appeal or because he is self-conscious of and defensive about his difference from other Venetians”. (Hacker, 98) The loneliness makes him suspicious to his wife and more trustful to the envy strangers. The Othello’s final speech discovers some of the reasons for his despair and justifies him in some way. “It is the tension between Othello’s victimization at the hands of a foreign culture and his own willingness to torment himself that makes him a tragic figure rather than simply Iago’s ridiculous puppet”. (An Anthology For Readers And Writers, 731). This episode evidently shows the early premises for establishing the racial theme in the literature.

In the play of modern period, Walter is another type of character who is trying different ways of self-realization and family prosperity. “Walter provides a perspective of the mid-twentieth-century African-American male. He is the typical man of the family who struggles to support it and who tries to discover new, better schemes to secure its economic prosperity”. (Hacker, 115)

In reaching his aims Walter often goes into argue with his wife and mother but this is the way he differs from Othello who has nobody to share his thoughts and ideas with. His frequent family argues finally result in his realization of refusing from his personal dream in favor of family good. This African American strongly opposes the society aversion of Younger’s move to a new house. The manifestation of the successful fight with the racial discrimination from the higher social classes makes Walter and his whole family more secure and confident about their future and support the idea of upcoming integration and affirmation of the black community to the American society.

Furthermore, Hansberry makes use of the symbolic layer of the play to point out this forecasting idea, too. The most vivid symbol is Beneatha’s hair. Initially it is straightened due to the assimilation with local culture. But when Beneatha starts communicating with representatives of her native culture from Nigeria the hair is getting cut to show her pertaining to the ethic group which differs from the local one. “Beneatha’s cutting of her hair is a very powerful social statement, as she symbolically declares that natural is beautiful, prefiguring the 1960s cultural credo that black is beautiful” (Hacker,250).

The poems manifest and discover similar social problems under the angles of the epochs when the action takes its place. But the deeds, fate and future of the protagonists and social attitude to other races are quite different which is reasoned by the conditions of formatting the society world overlook and characters’ tempers.

Works Cited

An Anthology For Readers And Writers. Making Literature Matter. Chicago: Stream, 2007.

Hacker, Diana. A Pocket Style Manual. New York: Print House, 1997.

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Appearance in “Othello” and “A Raisin in the Sun”

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