The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1864-04-22

the language OF contumely, certainly sym
bolze strongly with the distinctive traits
Of the negro race. Thus Roderigo, the
Fcuitian gentleman, calls Othello Gle
luck bps" Brabantio lameuted the .ill-as.
sorted match Of his daughter Desdcmona,
deplores that she had run from her guard.
age to the sooty bosom Of such thing as
Otheho; .Desdemona, jnstifyins her pas
sion, says he "saw Othello's visage in his
mind" thus implying that his face made
against him in the eyes Of the world Ia
go, predicting the eventual decline of Des-
demona's affection for "the Moor" sug-
gests to Roderigo that cher eye mist be
fed" and asks "what delight shall she
have to look on the devil p aud again the
same Mcphistopheean Iago invites Cassie
TO join a "brace of Cyprus gallants in a
"stoup of wine to the health Of black
Osbollo;" himself, yielding to the first sug.
gcstlon Of nesdemona' ) Inconsistency, sus-
ponds it on "haply" suggested by the
thought "for am black" and when op-
pressed by the full conviction of her guilt
he exclaims-
--'Hef name, tlat was as freSh
As Dian's visage, is now begrimed and black
As mine owR tcce -
and honest Emilia imports that there was
some sensible ineongruity between BESIDE
mona and Othello when she reproaches
the latter by saying that the former was
"too fond of her most filthy bargain"
Ii is from such limitations as these that
the impression has been derived by many
scholars and artists that Shakespeare
meant to represent the Moor as nothing
else than negro.
In reply to all this it is properao say
that Shakespeare ascribes in other plays
precisely the same characteristics to per-
sonages who incontestibly were "Moors"
without being negroes. So Portia, in the
Merchant of Venice, closes her heart
against the addresses of the Prince of Mo-
rocco-a royal Moor and certainly not
negro-by saying, "If we have the coudi-
tion of "a saint and the complexion of
devil, had rather be should shrivo me
than wive me-" The Prince himself prays
her, "mislike me not for my complexion;'
and she, when he has sealed his rejection
by selecting the wrong casket, rejoins,
"may all Of his complexion choose me So"
And yet he was not '.jetty black, but taw-
NY" for the stage direction in the old
quartos is: "Enter Moroohus, ta,cny
Moor, all in white"
1t is plain that in Shakespeare's day,
as IN our own, there were those who sup
posed some Of the Moors to be so black
that little distinction was made in the
popular mind and parlance between them
and negroes. They were "Jlacks and
Moors," whence the compound word
"black-a-moor" Thus Pandarus, in the
play of Tfoi3us and Cressitla testify says
Of his fair niece, 81 care not an she were
6tach.a.moor It's all one to me-" The
disgusting Aaron in Titus Amdronicus is
such.a back-aud moor. He speaks him
self of his fleece of woolly hair" (act 2,
scene 81 Bassianus calls him the "swarth
Clmm erian )" Lavinia styles him "raven-
colored ); Titus invokes vengeance on him
as one who "comes in likeness of q coal
black Moon" and in the second scene of
the 4th act Shakespeare .lahors to portray
the union of Tamra and Aaron in culors.
designed to represent it as most repusive
and unnatural.
Now, it is plain that Othello is not such
Moor as Aaron, but because he bore in
his vlsage 1.-THE shadowy livery of the bur.
nlshed SUM- be was subject in the die
ton OF poetic exaggeratlon, in the contu-
melous dialect Of his enemies, aud in the
language of selfdepreciation inspired by
his own msgivings on the score of his
swarthy complexion, to all the cpithets
which might have been used to character
ize an African. And, while we must pre-.
sumo that Shakespeare knew enough of
the Moors to be aware that they we're not
negroes, it is quite probable, as Mr.. Rich,
ard Grant White suggests, that "his no,
ton OF their distinctive traits physiclogi,
cally speakiugl was perhaps neither very
true nor very clear
But his notion of Othello was true and
clear enough, we think, to discriminate
between Moor, properly so called, ana
one who was black-a-moor. There is
ullecO eHlucNce tuaG OtuellO was Mau.
ritanian (and therefore not uegro} Of
lofty lineage. When defending his right
and title to love and espouse Desdemona,
he is bold to say (act l, scene - 81 fetch
my life and being from men of royal
SIEGE" and Iago, when speaking of Othel-
los contingent retirement from the active
command of the Venetian army in the
Island Of Cyprus, points in the following
language to Mauritania as the destined
and natural place of his retreat. We
quote from act 4, scene 3:
lAGo-Sir, there is especial commission come
from Venice to depute Cassie in Othelo's place.
RoDERIGo-ls that true? Why, then Othel-
10 and Desdemona return again to Venice.
lAGo-O, no, he goes 10 Mauritania, and takes
away with him the fair Desdemona, unless his
abode be fingered here by some accident; where
in none can be so determinate as the removing
of Cassie. ,..r |.. E.g ?
Mauritania, then, was the home of o.
thello, and the Mauritanians, it is unne
cessary to say, were not negroes Least
Of oil -, Al.