What is the importance of setting and geography in William...

Themes such as jealousy, deception and passion interwoven through the text of Othello make the story riveting. But before we can understand why events take place and characters motivations it is important to analyse the geographical arena in which the story of Othello and the moral struggles of the characters are brought to life. By including real locations, which Elizabethans would have herd of, the play appears to be more realistic. Othello is reasonably geographically accurate and this helps to make the play, with its unlikely events, seem more plausible. Othello begins, in Act One, in Venice, the flourishing heart of civilised and refined behaviour but moves from here to the hostile climes of Cyprus where conflict begins to†¦show more content†¦This also helped to increase the scale and sweep of Shakespeares storytelling by including the outside world. This is quite ironic considering Othello is a domestic tragedy and ultimately the only importance is the immediate surroundings of Othello and Desdemonas bedchamber. Choosing to set Othello in Italy also allowed Shakespeare to incorporate the idea of Machiavellian characters. Machiavelli was a 16th century philosopher who wrote a book in 1513 called The Prince. He said ruthless self-interest, ruling by force and unethical methods to gain power should be used by people. These principles obviously link in with Iagos selfish ideas. Setting Othello in Italy obviously meant that some characters could be Italian and therefore more likely to have Machiavellian (which has come to mean villainous) characteristics. Of course, Iago is an Italian and a Machiavellian! Venice was a powerful and wealthy city-state in the early 17th century. The habitants of it were seen as elegant but decadent. Shakespeare uses the setting of Venice as a tool to enhance the characterisation of Othello. Othello is not Venetian and this makes him feel and appear as an outsider. He feels conscious of the fact that he may not be able to understand the subtleties of Venetian culture, this leads to him feeling uncomfortable and defensive. Although Othello is not at ease he is still viewed favourably by the Duke of VeniceShow MoreRelatedElizabethan Era11072 Words   |  45 Pagesconsidered to be a golden age in English history. It was an age considered to be the height of the English Renaissance, and saw the full flowering of English literature and English poetry. In Elizabethan theater, William Shakespeare, among others, composed and staged plays in a variety of settings that broke away from Englands past style of plays. It was an age of expansion and exploration abroad, while at home the Protestant Reformation was established and successfully defended against the Catholic powers