Clarifying a critic

Question

With reference to this critic "Othello both figures monstrosity and at the same time represents the white male norms the play encodes through Iago, Roderigo, Brabantio. Not surprisingly, Othello reveals at last a complicitous self-loathing, for blackness is as loathsome to him as [...] any male character in the play, or ostensibly the audience."

When it says Othello represents the white male norms the play encodes does this mean he is as fair and behaves similarly to these men or he embodies their racism directed at him?

Answer 1

Amelia,

If you ask this question as part of a paper assignment remember that there is no right or wrong answer. There are only opinions based on how you interpret the text. Read the text carefully and then ask yourself, what does Othello represent to me? How does he strike you ? That's the answer. If you are writing a paper, pull script from the text to support your thinking.