This essay will explore and explain the different views the audiences have on Othello at the end of act 1 scene 3. I will do this by analyzing what each character met says and does, and how it would affect the perceptions of Othello

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Explore and explain the different views of Othello that the audience has at the end of 1sc3

        

        This essay will explore and explain the different views the audiences have on Othello at the end of act 1 scene 3. I will do this by analyzing what each character met says and does, and how it would affect the perceptions of Othello. The information used will be related to both a contemporary and modern audience.

         The majority of an Elizabethan audience would have disliked Othello instantly when they found out he was black. This would have been because people in the Elizabethan era were considered as strong racists. This was too such an extent that Queen Elizabeth tried and succeeded in passing a law sending all black people back to their country of origin.

        Also because of their hatred of black people they began calling them “black”. This term was used due it its extremely bad connotations such as death and dirt. This was just another way of demeaning them.

        However this would not have been the view of all Elizabethans due to everybody being unique and individual. Even though large amounts of people were racist, few weren’t. This meant that finding out Othello was black would not have affected their view of him.

 The majority of an Elizabethan audience would have been racist, but they all displayed their feelings in different ways. This was partially due to their personal feelings, and partially due to where they were sitting in the theatre. Different social status’s sat at different sections of the theatre. Sat at the bottom of the theatre were the viewers known as the groundlings. These were poorer viewers who mainly wanted to see aggression, so acted positively to any violence or insults thrown.

Upper class people sat higher up in the theatre, and were not as bloodthirsty as the groundlings. Often, they shared the same views but they would just portray them in a different manor, most likely shocked and confused.

A modern audience would mainly have an opposite opinion to that of the contemporary. This is because in society nowadays people are considered more equal and all have the same rights. People now not only live amongst black people, but also socialize. This would leave their opinion unchanged by the fact that Othello is black.

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Those who are still racist in today’s society may have had the same views as the majority of Elizabethans would have.  Once again it all depends on the individual because everybody have different views.

In 1sc1 the audience do not meet Othello, instead they hear many biased opinions from white men. The fact that they are white gave them the popularity vote with the Elizabethan audience, so what they said would have been more valid.

The first character to give an opinion of Othello is Iago who immediately shows his blatant dislike for him by saying, “serve my turn upon ...

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