Othello and the Genealogy of Morals
Nietzsche’s Genealogy of Morals investigates the historical process of subordinates agitating against elite control through moral repositioning. In Shakespeare’s Othello, there is an instilled patriarchal system in place – men are seen as strong and noble masters of women while women are perceived as weak and ineffectual people, whose duty is to blindly obey their male counterparts. ... In Othello, men are categorized as noble, virtuous and powerful. This is first seen when Othello describes himself as a man “[of] parts, [of] title and [with a] perfect soul. ... In Act 1, Scene 3, Othello opens his spirited defense with the following lines, “Most potent, grave, and reverend signors,/ My very noble and approved good masters. ... 180) to Othello, “[her] lord. ... 189) Othello’s ownership of Desdemona is blatantly acknowledged and the disparity in power between the sexes is evident. Desdemona’s lack of identity is further demonstrated in the following excerpt from Act 4 Scene 2: Othello: Why, what art thou? ... Desdemona’s existence lacks any form of individuality and is instead defined by being a wife to Othello. It appears that she appears to be impotent and powerless to act against the anger of Othello and has to resign herself to this impotence, as characterized by the “bad” in Nietzsche’s system of master morality. ... 299) From the outset, it would appear that Nietzsche’s system of master morality is firmly entrenched within the play of Othello. ... In Othello, this hostile environment is provided by the imbalance in power between men and women. ... ” (Nietzsche 37) This is reflected with the patronizing attitudes of the men in Othello towards woman and how they trivialize their importance. ... In Othello, the insidious shift in moral systems first begins when Emilia espouses her views on adultery in Act 4 Scene 3. ... Ironically, these labels are exactly the crimes that Iago and Othello accuse women of committing earlier. ... She gradually embraces ascetic ideals of denial even as Othello becomes increasingly unreasonable with his demands and accusations.