Othello

Statement of Inquiry: To what extent does conflict impact relationships and interactions in Othello?

Unit Description 

With a focus on the effects of society on the self, students analyze Shakespeare‘s play The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice alongside paired essays, films, and infographics (text types for Paper 1). Students will also focus on understanding the implications of the following global issues in the play: Power and privilege, War/conflict, Racialized language, Language/linguistic distortion Racial/political hierarchies , Revenge and power, Mental illness, depression, psychological trauma, Oppression and the human condition, Otherness/xenophobia, Inequality/ Difference/ Inclusion, Manipulation, control Misogyny/womanhood/sexuality, Human nature and human dignity; moral reasoning and ethical judgment; consciousness and mind, Racial inequities (structural, institutional, individual), Violence, Vengeance, Vendettas  Various types of writing allow students to develop their own positions about how social conventions influence perception and how the concepts of culture and identity were conveyed in this play, which was written and performed during an intense time of shifting dynamics in social, cultural, and economic realms.