In Shakespeare's Othello, the main obstacle in the relationship between Othello and Desdemona is Othello's race, and therefore his status as a foreigner. This difference becomes an obstacle when Brabantio opposes their marriage, but it plays a much more important role in facilitating Iago's manipulation and amplifying Othello's paranoia. Othello's paranoia changes his perception of his relationship with Desdemona and, by extension, his actions to solidify it. On the other hand, Antonio and Sebastian in Twelfth Night do not have to bear the burden of any social stigma due to being isolated from society. While it could be argued that societal pressure, or lack thereof, is what allows Antonio and Sebastian's relationship to thrive and forces Othello and Desdemona's to fail, the inner workings of relationships and the The forces that unite couples are more powerful than external factors. The imagery used by Shakespeare in the dialogue between Antonio and Sebastian suggests that they had some sort of physical or sexual relationship, whereas each time Othello and Desdemona attempt to consummate their marriage there is some form of interruption comic. Sexual tension functions as a microcosmic representation of the overall tension in these relationships. Shakespeare uses this physical expression of a largely emotional sensation to emphasize the connections between conscious and subconscious processes. Sexual tension is the biggest determining factor in the path of these relationships, leading the audience to wonder why some characters have so much chemistry while others are never able to pursue their relationship. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essay The isolated setting of Antonio and Sebastian's meeting "somewhere off the coast of Illyria" (which probably had place before the play) allows the characters to be completely removed from the rules of society and, by extension, from the stigma surrounding homosexual relationships. At the beginning of the play, Shakespeare portrays Antonio and Sebastian's love as pure and tender. It also gives the characters feminine qualities. For example, Antonio is “close to [his] mother’s ways,” and wishes Sebastian “the gentleness of all the gods” (2.1.32-37). This feminine imagery implies that these two men are not required to adhere to traditional images of masculinity. Anyway, in the final scene, Sebastian marries Olivia without a second glance at Antonio. This suggests that once both men enter mainstream society, Sebastian feels social pressures and quickly conforms to heteronormative ideals. The ease with which societal norms affect Sebastian's desire makes it seem as if his romance with Antonio was not the result of latent homosexuality, but rather a desire for intimacy that could have been fulfilled by a person of both sexes. Shakespeare suggests that sexuality is based on a basic human need and is therefore fluid, adhering to the path that obstacles lay out for it. Societal pressures are ultimately more powerful than Sebastian's feelings toward Antonio, and the nature of his desire changes as a result. Shakespeare never lets the audience know Antonio's reactions to the play's denouement, nor does he share what will happen to him once the play is over. Rather, Antonio becomes the victim of the network of arbitrary heterosexual couples who come together in the play's finale, suggesting that external circumstances take precedence over emotion in determining desire. Similar to the ocean inOn Twelfth Night, Shakespeare uses Cyprus in Othello as an isolated place where the characters are removed from their daily lives and, more importantly in the context of the play, their social position. Cyprus, sacred island of Venus, goddess of love, is removed from civilization and routine, and as a result Othello and Desdemona are forced to explore the emotional aspects of their relationship while the mitigating forces have been removed. Outside his kingdom, Othello can no longer rest on his laurels, because he is now purely a husband and no longer a military officer. This is significant given that Desdemona “loves] him for the dangers [he has] passed through” (1.3.171). In this play, Venice represents society, and therefore rationality, but the absence of social forces suggests the absence of reason and places the characters in an isolated setting where emotions alone dictate their behavior. Othello's hamartia is undoubtedly his jealousy, and the isolated environment of Cyprus this completely uncontrollable spiral of natural human feeling. Sebastian and Antonio's love might blossom on a remote island, but once Othello and Desdemona are away from their lives, they are forced to confront their emotions without hiding behind their social position, leading to the destruction of their relationship. Othello's insecurity and paranoia center on his race and his status as a "moor" during the Elizabethan period. At the beginning of the play, Brabantio calls him a "bad thief", implying that he must have used unfair means to attract Desdemona, because she would never be naturally attracted to someone of his race. Although Othello succeeds in dispelling this allegation, Iago constantly reminds him of his racial inferiority, creating internal conflict and the belief that he is not worthy of Desdemona's affection. Iago's statement that Desdemona would be better off with someone "of her climate, complexion, and degree" to whom "nature tends in all things" (3.3.236-237) cements this doubt in the mind of Othello, and Othello seems to acquiesce in his opinion. role from this point on. He becomes a victim of society's racist ideologies and brings them to the forefront, using the darkness of his skin as an excuse to darken his morality. Desdemona herself never explicitly addresses her race, but instead focuses on her "honors and valiant roles" (1.3.281-282). She engages in a form of “color-blind racism” by constantly neglecting such an important aspect of her personality. This is an example of silence as a dramatic device, because, paradoxically, Desdemona's refusal to address race makes it an issue more in Othello's mind. He uses his race to hyperbolize all his doubts about their relationship. When her reputation becomes tarnished, he declares that she has become "as filthy and black as [his] own face" (3.3.390-391). The characters' different perceptions of the importance of race pose a barrier to their relationship. Just before Othello kills Desdemona, he contemplates her infidelity and fixates on her skin which is “whiter…than snow and smooth as monumental alabaster” (5.2.4-5). This implies that Othello feels that there is a power imbalance in the relationship due to racial differences, and it is this imbalance that caused Desdemona's supposed infidelity. Shakespeare imbues Othello with the racist ideology of the other characters, and he becomes so agitated by his racial inferiority that he eventually realizes the racist stereotype that black men are "savages" (4.1.52). While the unequal distribution of power fuels Othello's paranoia. and excludes an honest relationship with Desdemona, which is what makes Antonio and Sebastian's love so realistic. Shakespeare clearly statesthat Antonio adores Sebastian, but Sebastian can also be considered a "kept man", which is euphemized by the descriptive phase "purse bearer" (3.3.48). Although Antonio is richer and in a better social position than Sebastian, he still pleads for Sebastian to "let him be [his] servant" (2.1.31). The characters do not struggle for power, like Othello and Desdemona, but at the same time they recognize that they are not equal. Their willingness to compromise, visible through the interchangeability of power roles, suggests that they participate in the true form of love because they understand the particular power dynamics of their relationship. This power dynamic is visible through the way Antonio and Sebastian interact with each other and the audience, and in the way they explore their love. Shakespeare describes Antonio and Sebastian solely through dialogue, which could imply that everything the audience needs to know about their characters is based on their feelings toward each other. However, Shakespeare develops Desdemona and Othello as individuals, and their monologues and soliloquies serve to develop their personalities outside of their relationship. Othello always needs tangible evidence or "ocular evidence" of their connection to "be sure" (3.3.365), and he depends on material objects such as the handkerchief as symbols to attest to their love. The handkerchief has a magical quality because it was given to his mother by a “charmer” to keep his “faithful” father under his spell. At the moment when Desdemona “loses” the handkerchief, Othello feels that she has lost her chastity. That such an insignificant object carries so much weight is a testament to the susceptibility of jealous minds and how a seemingly minor incident can be psychologically amplified into “proof” of love or betrayal. The fact that symbols such as the handkerchief or the sheet become so central to the relationship between Othello and Desdemona is indicative of the shallowness of their love. Originally, Othello's heroic tales and military rank attract Desdemona, but there is not enough substance beyond that to sustain the relationship. Shakespeare uses external objects to symbolize internal problems in the relationship between Othello and Desdemona, as well as to emphasize the lack of deep love between them. Conversely, Antonio and Sebastian's relationship is remarkably self-contained, which is not typical of Shakespearean relationships where letters, handkerchiefs, songs, etc. are involved. often connect love stories to a social context. Unlike Othello's deep reflection on the meaning of each symbol and gesture, the absence of intervening objects in Sebastian and Antonio's relationship allows them to speak to each other more directly, and this is perhaps even more effective in conveying love only long speeches to describe the strength of their duo. Antonio's decisions are so instantaneous that they almost seem dictated by an innate biological force: "But whatever happens, I adore you so much, this danger will be like a sport, and I will go" (2.1. 654). Shakespeare's use of the passive voice makes it seem like Antonio's decisions are not always well thought out because he does not spend enough time in his speech thinking about alternatives or considering consequences. Ironically, Othello's conscious and deliberate analysis of love makes his feelings for Desdemona appear more superficial and symbolic while the lack of signs in Antonio and Sebastian's relationship creates a more realistic depiction of love. Sexual imagery in Twelfth Night is abundant, which may be taken to mean that there was some sort of physical relationship between Antonio and Sebastianbefore the start of the piece. Meanwhile, in Othello, Shakespeare projects sexual imagery onto symbols such as the sheet, while he uses imagery in Twelfth Night to depict the affectation itself. Sebastian describes his desire as "sharper than polished steel" (3.3.2), which is consistent with the imagery of sexual penetration seen throughout the play. Sebastian justifies his pursuit of erotic fantasies by telling Antonio that "danger will seem a sport" (2.1.35), suggesting that he derives satisfaction from the riskiness of the situation, both literally (since he is wanted at the court of Orsino) and figuratively. , because he leaves the transitive environment and enters society in pursuit of a forbidden adventure. This sexual desire in Antonio and Sebastian's relationship constitutes enough arousal to keep the relationship lively, and since it causes Antonio to break down the barrier between the transitive environment and the social world, the internal forces within the relationship are stronger than all external threats. Additionally, Antonio and Sebastian appear to engage in a servant-master relationship as Antonio "[takes] Sebastian from the breach of the sea" (2.2.15), essentially giving him a new life and leaving him in debt to Antonio . Shakespeare extends this insinuation of a sadomasochistic relationship through Sebastian's statement that Antonio takes "pleasure in [his] pains" (3.3.14) and receives gratification from the "danger" of his "desire." The powerful sexuality that Shakespeare expresses through his use of language (keeping in mind that in his day insinuations of homoeroticism had to remain implicit because homosexuality was an offense punishable by death) affirms the strength of the relationship between Antonio and Sebastian. Their lack of tension and this internal strength is the most important force governing the relationship. Othello's perception of sex changes throughout the play as the sexual tension increases. Shakespeare uses interruptions effectively whenever Othello and Desdemona are about to consummate their marriage. As a result, the sexual tension between them continues to escalate, alongside the tension in their relationship, and eventually, the audience is led to believe that the couple never made love. At the beginning of the play, Othello says to Desdemona: "The purchase made, the fruits must follow, the profit is yet to come 'between me and you'" (2.2.8-10). He speaks of sex in positive terms, describing it as a “fruit” to be enjoyed and as a mutually beneficial and “profitable” action for both men and women. His tone here is patient as he realizes that he must wait for events to take their natural course before the figurative fruit blooms. As Iago continues to sow suspicion in Othello's mind and Othello increasingly doubts Desdemona's fidelity, he moves away from the connection between images of sex and the blossoming of a new life and begins to connect sex with death. The inner problems of Othello's relationship begin to affect his outward personality, tarnishing his reputation and making him "a fixed figure for the time of contempt towards which to point his slow motionless finger" (4.2.59-60). When he kills Desdemona, he tells her that "your bed, stained with desire, will be stained with the blood of lust." Shakespeare's use of the word "lust" connotes unfulfilled desire, suggesting that Othello and Desdemona did not consummate their marriage and that the resulting anxiety caused him to kill her. Othello finds it more appropriate to kill Desdemona on the bed they share as a married couple, suggesting that the actions supposedly taking place on the bed are the cause of the murder. After strangling Desdemona, he said: “Behold,.