Othello

George Washington University The Christianness of Othello Author(s): Robert H. West Reviewed work(s): Source: Shakespeare Quarterly, Vol. 15, No. 4 (Autumn, 1964), pp. 333-343 Published by: Folger Shakespeare Library in association with George Washington University Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2868089 . Accessed: 16/11/2011 19:58 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. Folger Shakespeare Library and George Washington University are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Shakespeare Quarterly. http://www.jstor.org of Othello The Christianness ROBERT H. WEST I ofit,and theChristianness ANY criticsofOthellohavestressed for much wrote have ground. Shakespeare certainlythey a Christianaudience,was himselfChristianby rearing,and gave his play a Christiansetting.Many of its speechesare as whenOthellotellsDesChristianin ringand signification, demona to pray, since "I would not kill thy unprepared spirit"(V. ii. 31). Biblical echoes appear too; Iago's "I am not what I am" seemsa parodyof "I am thatI am", and Othello'stellinghimselfas he stands overthe sleepingDesdemona thathis "sorrow'sheavenly./ It strikeswhereit dothlove" (V. ii. 20) suggests"Whom the Lord lovethhe chasteneth." is "importantas signaling Such biblicalallusion,saysRoy W. Battenhouse, a dimensionby whichto read the play."Even so it is, he thinks,"less significant than biblical analogue",which he and othersfind in profusion.Thus . . . the office JosephA. Bryant,Jr.,explainsthat"Othelloin thisplay reflects of God and ... Cassio . . . is Shakespeare'sfigureof Adam." Desdemonais the spotlessvictim(Christ) thatIago (Satan, of course) causes Othelloto slay in consequenceof Cassio's fall. Irving Ribner holds a similarposition: "Desdemona, the audience knows, stands for mercyand forgiveness.. . . She is a reflection of Christ,who mustdie at the hands of man,but out of whose death may springman's redemption."JohnVyvyanthinksit importantfor Othellothat". . . thelifeof Judas... mighthave been Shakeunderstanding speare'sparadigmof tragedy.... '" sinceOthellois Christianin a sense. Plainlytheseviewsmayhave substance, thatsomecriticsmake will bearthefullstatement But whetheritsChristianness of it seemsopen to much question.Especiallywe mustask how Battenhouse's Christian"dimensionby whichto read theplay"relatesto theimitation.What by the Christian actionis Othelloan imitationof accordingto interpretation "dimension"?Adam's? Judas'? Everyman's?Does readingby the Christian "dimension"ratifyfortheworldof theplaytheChristianrevelation?A crucial to theaudiencea particularkind of ultipointhereis thata play may confirm' ,ozr R 1 Roy W. Battenhouse, The TragicVision Tragedy:A ChristianInterpretation", "Shakespearean and the ChristianFaith,ed. NathanA. Scott,Jr.(New York,1957), p. 94; JosephA. Bryant,Jr., of KentuckyPress, Hippolyta'sView: Some ChristianAspectsof Shakespeare'sPlays (University pp. 140-141; IrvingRibner,Patternsin ShakespearianTragedy(London, 1960), p. ha2; i96i), to theseworks Ethic (London, 1959), p. 102. Furtherreferences JohnVyvyan,The Shakespearean will be in the text.Paul N. Siegel,withsome of whoseworkI shall be especiallyconcernedhere, M. D. H. Parker,Kenneth0. Myrick,JohnF. Danby,S. L. Bethell,G. WilsonKnight,Harold S. They Wilson,VirgilWhitaker,and G. R. Elliottare amongotherswho considerOthelloChristian. are by no means all alike in eithermethodor pointof view, and theyexhibitamongthemboth Othello'sChristianness. thevirtuesand thedangersof stressing 334 SHAKESPEARE QUARTERLY matereality fortheplay'sworldand do it withan explicitness and authority thatnothing duplicates fortheactualworld.Whatin theactualworldis, at its mostsecure,revelation in a acceptedon faithmaybe a givencertainty fictional world.Dante'smeetingin hell withFarinataand Cavalcantedoes notsettleanything aboutthemortality in sinof historical persons;buthellis givenpastquestioning in thefiction oftheDivineComedy. Othello, however, no morethanhintsat a Christian foritself.Othello'ssolicitude eschatology in theplayof forDesdemona'ssoul surelydoes not establish theexistence theChristian hell.Then doesOthello'sspeakingof jealousmurderin words in theplayof thatechotheBibleon divinejusticesomehow theexistence verify thatjustice?"Thissorrow's heavenly. / It strikes whereitdothlove",is a speech witha religious turnthatintensifies thedramatic ironyofitsscene.Beyondthis doesthebiblicalallusionindeedsignala "dimension" effect, in whichthemoironicparalleling mentary ofOthellowithGod turnsintoa play-wide analogue thatis somehow a thematic partofthefableitself ? Battenhouse For givesillustrations ofreadingbytheChristian "dimension". whenOthellotellsBrabantio's instance, for party:"Putup yourbright swords, thedewwillrustthem", he is significantly bothlikeandunlikeChristat Gethsemane:"Putup yourswordintothesheath;thecup whichtheFatherhath givenme,shallI notdrinkit?" Battenhouse saysthatthe"twosceneshavea strangeaffinity, as if Othellowererevealing of the to us a grotesque version biblicalChrist:master ofthenightbyscornandrebukeinsteadofbyhumility andcounsel"(p. 87). Again:". . . whenDesdemona, likeVeronica ofChristian legend,wouldsootheherlord'sanguished facewitha handkerchief" Othello "brushes heroff.... The episodeis bothlikeandunliketheChristian a legend, kindof-antitype ofit" (p. 88). Othellois alsolikeandunlikeJobandverylike Judasand "thePhariseepraying to himself in Luke i8" (p. 88). Our senseof thesethings, Battenhouse seemsto say,is concurrent withourawareness ofthe fable,so thatbytheirlightwe canplacea Shakespeare in "relation tragedy to Christian story, finding therea center forthemeaning ofthelocatedsegment" (p. 83). "I wouldsuggest", he says,"thatin generalShakespeare's tragedies rehearsevarious oftheOld Adamanalogue"(p. 84). segments To establish analoguesBattenhouse dependsnotonlyon thebiblicalallusionsandtheirsignalofa "dimension", butalsoon somerather specialinterpretationofincident andcharacter, suchas reading"Putup yourbright swords" to be un-Christian "scornand rebuke".Othellois likethePharisee, saysBattenhouse,becausetoward"flesh and bloodhe hasno pitywhenan idealofmoral is to be served"-nopityforBrabantio, deserving Cassio,Desdemona, or himself.Whether or notthesereadings arejustified (surelyOthello'seasyconsent thatDesdemonabringCassioin againtempers thePharisaical pitilessness), they do comefromthefaceofthestory, and,onceaccepted, mustmodify thewhole of it. In a situation superficially like Christ'sand in wordssomewhat like Othellois un-Christlike; in a stateof affliction Christ's, he is un-Joblike; for likeChristandJobhe hada chancetotestify, andunlikethemhe did nottake it.Is thisenough"relation totheChristian tojustify us in "finding story" there a centerforthemeaning. . .'? AreOthello's"scornand rebuke"in thenight and his impatience withaffliction patently as suchscornand imirreligious, patiencewouldhavebeenin Christand Jobaccording "to Christian story"? CHRISTIANNESS OF OTHELLO 335 Does theplay,in fact,estaDoes Othelloturnas Judasdid intohell-mouth? bythemthe Does it ratify meaning? itstrue blishbythesetypesandantitypes foritsworld? revelation Christian intheChristianness bald,andmanybelievers areadmittedly Thesequestions implicit. however sweepingly them, about notto be explicit of Othelloprefer to say than further no goes in thearticleI am considering EvenBattenhouse in his "ends protagonists of Shakespeare's passion"ofeach thatthe"destructive primarily is death"(p. 84), and BryantcautionsthatOthello own spiritual thingon earth at theliterallevelofa Moorwhokilledthedearest ". . . a story (p. I52). But time" long a for andonlythat tohim.... We shouldseethatfirst, do we and analogues, allusions then,whenat lastwe do lookat theChristian readingofthe outofa compliant detectable findnotonlythattheyarelargely bias forour pietistic a large theyauthorize but thatbeingdetected incidents ofthework? understanding further thatwhenthe analoguesand otherevidencesare Some criticssay flatly foritsworldsuchthingsas theChristian theplaysponsors grasped, properly all thatthatimpliesabout and,one supposes, of sin and punishment system relocation groundfortheactionand a consequent bothan assuredreligious nor forthright more is none claims such Among point-of-view. of ourcritical Bethell L. S. by first forward put that than detail in moreconsidered presented They forin detailbyPaulN. Siegel.2 andthencontended as almostself-evident undermust audience the that and to hell insistthatOthellowhenhe diesgoes as an extenstandas much.Mypurposehereis to examineSiegel'sargument with a Has preoccupation criticism. "Christian" of specimen siveand explicit derives that in a action way the interpret ledhimto literature perhaps Christian or does thanfromtheplayitself, and teaching thought fromChristian rather imitathe upon impose outofthetext?Does he himself justify he sufficiently showing in bear,or doeshe succeed thatit willnotrightly tiona construction play? thatOthellois reallya kindofmystery aboutthe is thatOthellodoesnotprovidedecisiveevidence Myconclusion The acerror. and thatto supposethatit mayis in facta critical damnation, as interpreted Genesis of is notthatoftheearlychapters tionOthelloimitates but not The playis Christian, and moralists. commentators by Renaissance it marshall not does but Christian, sufficiently a morality so; it asserts occultly of this"pure"speciFromexamination theology. in theformofan ambushed trageI conceivethatto makeout Shakespeare's criticism menof "Christian" is thefaceofthestory modifies in anywaythatdrastically diestobe Christian to riskseveredistortion. II thatOthellois damnedrequirestwo kindsof evidence, A demonstration and the theothe dramaturgical whichI shallcall withoutmuchstrictness S. L. Bethell,"Shakespeare'sImagery:The Diabolic Images in Othello",ShakespeareSurvey pp. 62-80. Paul N. Siegel,"The Damnationof Othello",PMLA, LXVIII (I953), so68I078; ShakespeareanTragedyand the ElizabethanCompromise(New York, 1957), pp. 119-141; "The Damnationof Othello: an Addendum",PMLA, LXIX, 279-280; Letterto the editor,SQ, IX (I958), 433-434, answeringEdward Hubler'spunishingarticle"The Damnationof Othello: Some Limitationson the ChristianView of the Play", in the same issue of SQ. My subsequent to theseworkswill be in the text.Pages of Siegel'sarticleare numberedin fourdigits references fromthoseof his book,whichare in three. and so are readilydistinguishable 2 5 (I952), SHAKESPEARE QUARTERLY 336 theplayappealsto Christian appearswherever evidence logical."Theological" by or belief.Suchappealand itsmeaningusuallyhasto be appraised thought thingsin action,language,and conevidence-those meansof dramaturgical For instance, of howtheplayis to be understood. ventionthatareindicative he Hamlet'ssalvation, evidencewhen,asserting "theological" Bethelloffers ofangels...." toHeavenbyflights givesas hisreasonthat"Hamletis attended fromHoratio'sspeechBethelltriesto sustainwithdramaturgiThis inference convendramatic cal evidence:". . . it wouldbe quiteopposedto Elizabethan state. . atthispointaboutthehero'sspiritual tionsforHoratiotobemistaken (p. 78). Bethelland SiegeltakethesuicideofOthelloas a signand causeofan unsealshisfate",damns sincehe is a Christian, "His suicide, stagedconsequence: is,it plainly p. 78; seeSiegelp. I30). Relevantas suchevidence him (Bethell, is not in Shakespeare character The suicideofa Christian cannotstandbyitself. SurelyRomeoand Julietand evenpoor markof damnation. an indisputable thatseemtheological escapehell.Actionandspeeches Opheliamayconceivably at last not only need interpretation evidencenearlyalwaysin Shakespeare oftheplayand theconvenbutoutofthekindand direction outoftheology on Othello's theologically Bethelland Siegel,then,relying tionsofitstheater. fromit: eg., oftheirinference corroboration finddramaturgical sinofsuicide, for thissinbylinesin whichhe takeshisowndamnation thatOthelloprecedes of sins,eachof themsubjectto "theogranted;thatit is lastin a succession andtheirsum condition spiritual aboutOthello's as evidence logical"evaluation aboutthatcondition. evidence dramaturgical total,perhaps, doesnot too,an opinionon generalpractice:"Shakespeare Bethelloffers, (p. 78). heroes" tragic of his destiny eternal the about leaveus in muchdoubt interpretheological for support dramaturgical as intended This is obviously labor andI shallnothenceforth oftenmerge, The twokindsofevidence tation. detail. them in to distinguish theooffers on Othello'sdamnation, Siegel,whomakesthemajorstatement he that analogies some of interpretation first, of two sorts: evidence logical findsbetweenpersonsof thedramaand thoseof Genesis,withOthello'sfall offences, to Adam's;and second,Othello'stemporal mostpressingly paralleled theseareof very Obviously hiseternalpunishment. fromwhichSiegelinfers support. dramaturgical andbothneedstrong different dimensions, withhisopinionthat"FortheElizastarts Siegel'saccountoftheanalogies3 . . . thenoblesoulofOthello,thediabolicalcunningofIago,and the bethans divinegoodnessof Desdemonawouldnot have had a looselymetaphorical of Christ,wouldhave represented meaning.Desdemona. . . is reminiscent antiofSatan,wouldhaverepresented values;Iago ... is reminiscent Christian "to thedevil,and,likeall menwho sucvalues."Othellosuccumbs Christian ofthatofAdam"(p. io68). These cumbto thedevil,hisfallwas reminiscent Thus: a few speeches. by construing dramaturgically viewsSiegelsupports of the analogies.Whetherthisreduction reduceshis statement 8In his book Siegel drastically in the articleor that he thoughtpartsof it means that he no longerstandsbehindeverything concernedwithOthello'sdamnaunsuitableforthe book'schapteron Othello,whichis notentirely concernedwiththe thatis entirely tion,I do not know. I have reliedon the articleas a statement it withthe chapter,whichSiegel saysis an expansionand in some damnation,and supplemented of thearticle. waysa correction unspecified 337 CHRISTANNESS OF OTHELLO "The choicethatOthellohadto makewasbetween Christian loveand forgivenessand Satanichateand vengefulness. Whenhe exclaimed(III. iii.447-449), 'Arise,blackvengeance fromthyhollowcelll/ Yield up,0 love,thycrown and hearted throne / To tyrannous hate,'he was succumbing tothedevil.. (p. io68).Andagain:"'If shebe false,'exclaims Othello(III. iii. 278-279),'... 0, thenheavenmocksitself!'Desdemonais equatedto theeternalverities" (p. io69). And yetoncemore:"LikeAdam,who was madeto questionthe justiceof God'sinjunction, he has beenmadeto questionDesdemona, whois true'(V. ii.135), and likeAdam,he losesan earthly 'heavenly paradise there wasa serpent inhisEden"(p. io69). thatOthelloresembles PlainlySiegel has somegroundsforsuggesting Adam.But is theresemblance detailed, explicit, and consistent enoughto be reallyindispensable to our understanding of theplayand to justify Siegel's intimation thatthefallofAdammustbe paralleled byOthello'sliteraldecline Adamin intohell?The analogyas Siegelsketches it is this:Othelloresembles mistrust beinga blissful innocent ruinedby a tempter inducingunjustified witha consequent penalty. Thisis notan exactor detailedresemblance; many inconsistencies betweenBibleand playmarit.The elements of Adam'sstory aretwoinnocents in bliss,of whomone is tricked bya tempter to violatean so arbitrary divineprohibition and to swayherpartner to thesameviolation thatbothreceivedivinecondemnation. Of theseelements Othello'sstoryhas theinnocent blissand thetempter, plusa quiteun-Genesis-like falsemistrust. It doesnothavethedualinnocence in anywaythatcan suittheanalogy;Desdemonacannotbe Eve. Othellois withouta mediator betweenhimand his tempter. Andhe hasno explicit andformal prohibition to violate.He doesfall in a way;butthequestion to be answered is whether thefallis,likeAdam's,a divinecondemnation. The answershouldnotbe assumedas partof theevidence. thanto theGenesis lessto theGenesisstory Siegelis directing us,ofcourse, theserpent as Satan,deathas damnation, and commentary, whichinterprets God as Christ. Oughtnothisanalogy toincludeChrist's atonement,4 whichthe ofthefall?Or ifDesdemonais commentary stresses as a fortunate consequence Christ("reminiscent . . . ofChrist")oughtshenot,as in thecomanalogically to judgethefallen?If sheis analogically mentary, God'sjustice(Othellowas "madetoquestion Desdemona" as "Adam. . . wasmadeto question thejustice ofGod'sinjunction. . ." forbidding himthefruit),oughtnothervirtueto be, likethe"injunction" ofGenesis, somehow arbitrary andformal? stricter adherence ofplayto BiblethananypracPerhapsI am demanding of analogues willthinkreasonable. discoverer ticedand sympathetic My questionsimply is: howcanwebe surethatwe havea significant analogue?Siegel's statement is notonlytooarbitrary butalsotoometaphorical To tobeconvincing. in hisEden"is an aptenoughfigthat"therewas a serpent say,forinstance, Butanyworkthathashappiness a genuineparallel. overthrown ure;itsuggests ofa sortin his bya tempter mayshowas much.RichardFeverelhada serpent ofa sortin L6vborg's Eden,andHedda Gablerwas a serpent Eden; butthey arenotfigures ofAdamand Satan.Certainly to sayof Othellothathe had a Patternsin Shakespearian Tragedy(London, i96i), p. Irving Ribner,forinstance, love forOthellowill be his redemption". thatDesdemona's"unconquerable I13, argues 338 SHAKESPEARE QUARTERLY in hisEdenis moreappropriate serpent thanto saythathe had a Loki in his Asgardora WhiteWhalein hisoceanor a flyin hisointment, butit is notso inevitable a metaphor thatitsliteral meaning organizes theactionforus.It suggestsblisslostto evilmachination, andofcoursenothing is plainerin Othello. ButthatIagois in somesensetoOthelloas SatanwastoAdamdoesnotmean thatexplicitly Christian significations whichcommentators foundin Genesis aresafely transferable to theplay.Adam'scondemnation doesnotbecomeevidencethrough thismetaphor forOthello's. The languageandactionofOthelloaresureto arousethoughts ofdeityand ofsupreme adversary, and iniquity, felicity ofthepolesofrightandwrong, of eternal alliances, andothersimilar andcertainly matters, Christian allusions are foremost amongtheresources Shakespeare usedto evokesuchthoughts. But thesethoughts hereare directconsequence of theplayand taketheshapeit gives,nottheshapeGenesisanditscommentary give.Shakespeare didnotuse Christian allusionto substitute an analogicalplotforthesurface one.Emilia callsDesdemona"heavenly true"in all sincerity, butthatdoesnotmakehera typeof"thejusticeofGod'sinjunction" to Adamand Eve. Othello"hasbeen madeto questionDesdemona", trueenough;butit is a womanhe doubtsand notGod's"justice" or"injunction". murders, Siegelshapeshisownfigures and construes someof Shakespeare's to force Christian intotheplay.Desdemona"represented allegory Christian values". Whyshouldwe thinkso? BecauseOthellosaysthatif she is false"heaven mocksitself!" FromthisspeechSiegelinfers thatsheis "equatedto theeternal verities". whatthecharacters Surelythisgoesbeyond mean,theaudiencemust or Shakespeare understand, intended. WhenOthellosaysthatheavenmocks itselfif Desdemonais false,he is tellingus moreabouthis ownstresses than abouteitherheavenor Desdemona;simply, withheruntruth he loseshiskey to truth. Othellousesthemostextreme comparison he can findto express one anchoroftherackheis on; andthathe shallexpress ittellingly is Shakespeare's object.The audiencegathers anewhowvitalhertruth is toOthelloandfeelsa repeated wrenchas his doubtoncemoreovercomes his faith.KnowingDesdemona's truth, we maycertainly takeheras good-as on God'sside,ifwe like. Butthisis no reasonto insistthatherroleis to represent "Christian values"or "theeternal verities" or anyabstraction. "If shebe false,0 thenheavenmocks itself"helpsto achievetheextreme moraltensionof theplay.To convert it intoan abstract proposition istoloseitsright effect. thetension Certainly is extreme notonlyin beingalmostunbearable butalso inreaching outtowardultimate andsuchreaching mysteries, hasa natural voice in thebiblicalallusionsand otherChristian echoes.But unlesstheseareon a different in theplaytheydo notamountto an endorsebasisfromotherterms mentof the Christian revelation. forinstance, Consider, the use of Desdeforheightening virtues mona'snatural thetension: "O shewillsingthesavagenessoutofa bear"(IV. i. i88). This is hyperbole abouta powerfully innocent womandoubted.Surely"heavenmocksitself"is in thesamespiritof expressiveexaggeration. The dramatic bodyof OthelloShakespeare achievedwithactionand languagetoovarious, toowidelyallusive, and too superbly organicto gainfrom an equationofDesdemona withabstractions orfroma fugitive analogyofDes- CHRISTIANNESS OF OTHELLO 339 Siegelis no doubtrightthat withChrist-Adam-Satan. demona-Othello-Iago madeby pious of profanetalessometimes thisis thekindof interpretation derives fromtheir it But surely made it here. they and possibly Elizabethans, to which it is to religionratherthanreallyfromtheplay, routineattention norstructurally neither thematically necessary. In Siegel'swork,theanalogyslidesintothe appraisalof Othello'squite "The lossof hisparadisemakesOthello, effect. literalsinswitha blackening couldfallas likeAdam,thepreyofhispassion.... Thata manofhisnobility . . and of man's subse. ofthefallofAdam reminder he did was a terrifying like was Adam; Othello 107). sin" (p. to soul-destroying quentproneness Adamfell;so Othellois damned.In thesamewaySiegelpassesfrombiblical thatDesdemona'scorrespondence analogyto literalplotwiththeimplication Othellois therefore of her a kind of irreligion; to Christmakesrejection is a belief in Christ, of equivalent symbolic damned.If beliefin heris "the as salvation for Othello's . . ." (p. 134), oughtit notto serve meansofsalvation to thefaith.But wellas forCassio'sandEmilia's?Othellois,afterall,restored assumption, It is analogical evidence. is notsound"theological" suchparalleling gratuitous. it are largely andsuchconclusions from III suito Siegel,murder, sinsinclude,according Othello's"soul-destroying" of Christ. . ." cide,and failureto "call up fromwithinhimtheforgiveness them,thoughwith (p. i28). Thesearebadsins,andno doubtOthellocommits Siegelaccuseshimalsoofsomesins extenuations thatSiegeldoesnotmention. of"theheinoussinof despair.. ." (p. 131) thatperhaps he doesnotcommit: a "pactwiththedevil"(p. 127). andofmaking a devil. . Is Iago "thedevil"?Siegelsaysthathe is "atleastsymbolically (p. i2i). Can a "pact" with a merelysymbolicaldevil damn a characterliterBut it is no ally? Othello'sexchangeof oathswithIago is bad enoughliterally. thatthehumanparty circumstance literalwitch'spact,forit lacksthenecessary withthe Adversaryand so acts not to it know thathe is dealingunreservedly God. In theologicalopinion of the of despite in deliberate just sinfullybut seventeenth centurya real pact witha real devil was the utterlydamningsin againstthe Holy Ghost.5That Othellomade such a pactwithIago, Siegel confirmswith nothingmorecompellingthan anotherfigureof speech:"Iago becomes Othello's Mephistophiles. . ." (p. I27). As "theological"evidenceof But it is notvery Othello'sdamnationthe"pactwiththedevil"failscompletely. important. If the play The "heinoussin of despair",on the otherhand, is important. conveyspast doubt thatOthello kills himselfin the conditionof Judas,that Siegel's claim that Othello's damnationhas a part in certainlystrengthens play. of the effect the proper Crushedby the sightof her lyingpale on thewhitemarriagesheets, to hell at once.His he calls to be transported the symbolof her purity, of whatthe "Homilyof Repentance" calls "Judas wordsare expressive senseof guiltwithoutfaithin the thatis, theoverwhelming repentance," 5 See myInvisibleWorld:A StudyofPneumatology in ElizabethanDrama (Athens,Ga., I1939), PP. 39, I37, I40. 340 SHAKESPEARE QUARTERLY mercyof God whichis theheinoussinof despair.The sightof hisvictim blastsanyhopeof salvation in him (V. ii.273-275). "Whenwe shallmeet at compt/ This lookof thinewillhurlmysoulfromheaven/ And fiends will snatchat it." Whenhe continues "Whip me,ye devils,/ Fromthe possession of thisheavenly sight,"he is notonlyexpressing hisdespairbut is alreadyentering uponthepunishment ofhellin thislife.(P. I3I) Here Siegel has a footnotefromCalvin on the"repentance" of Cain, Saul, and Judasas "nothingbetterthana kind of thresholdto hell...." Do Siegel'squotationsfromthe play and his "theological"references establish Othello's conditionas one of sinful"despair",the beginningof damnation? The theologyis commonplace.But fromthisgeneralizationthatsinners maydespairofforgiveness and so beginhell'spainsbeforedeath,to theaflirmationthata particularsinneris or will be damnedmustbe a verydifficult calculation theologicallyand surelyimpossiblecriticallywithoutmore guidance than Othelloaffords. Protestants deniedthatany sin was venialby nature,but theyleftmuch room forhope,just the same,even aftera sinnerhad himself abandonedit. Thus the celebratedCalvinistpreacher,William Perkins,says thatdespairis a statefromwhichthe diligentministermay freea sinnerby convincinghim of God's mercy:". . . his sins are pardonable,and thoughin themselves theybe greatand heinous,yetby the mercyof God in Christthey may be remitted.... The promisesof God touchingremissionof sins,and life eternalin respectof believers, are general,and in regardto all and everyman indefinite:thatis, theydo not defineor excludeany person,or any sinner,or any time,onlytheyadmitone exceptionof finalimpenitence." In the abstract, such a murderas thatof Desdemonais pardonable.Whethertheactualmurder of Desdemona is pardonedmust depend theologically on God's judgmentof the sinner'spenitenceand dramaturgically on whetherthe play informsus whatthatjudgmentis. Perkinsthinksrepentance feasibleevento thedespairing.To relievedespair, he says,a spiritualadvisermustappraiserepentance"as much as possiblemay be, by signes"and if necessary bringthesinnerto it. "How long he thatministerethcomfort,must stand upon the possibilitieof pardon? I answer,untill he hathbroughtthe partiedistressed to somemeasureof truerepentance. . ." (p. 42). Even if we grant,therefore, thatOthellois despairingin V. ii.27I-280, he maystillbe repentant at thesametimethathe despairsor maybecomeso beforehe stabshimself.For morethan the possibility, though,I would not contend. The signsof repentance, says Perkins,are protestations of griefat having offendedGod, desireto be reconciled,, purposeto sin no more (p. 43), and, for a murderer, submissionto "terrours of the law" (p. 42). To insistthatOthello shows thesesignswould be to strainthe text; the theologicalgeneralizations hardlyapplyto the particulardramaticcase. Still,put the bestfaceon it: certainlyOthelloprotestsgriefand cannotbe thoughtto shrinkfrom"terrours of the law". He openlydesiresto be reconciledto Cassio and, it would appear,to thebodyof Christiansoulsthatwill hearhis story.May thiscountas a kindof 6 WilliamPerkins,The Whole Treatiseof Cases of Conscience, ch. xi, p. 42, in The Worksof Mr. WilliamPerkins(London, i631), vol. II. The treatisewas firstpublishedundertheabovetitle in i6o6. Subsequentreferences will be in thetext. CHRISTIANNESS OF OTHELLO 341 union of someenduring withGod? He is conscious "desireto be reconciled" he killedand nowkissesagainbefore whomhekissedbefore withDesdemona, he intendsto sin no And certainly renewedin his devotion. he killshimself, Turk.Siegel as onceupontheunbelieving morebuttodo justiceuponhimself, have yetthatsuchreadings thesereadings, countering wouldhaveno trouble thatOthellois Elliott, andRibner7 someforceis plainin theopinionofParker, lethal. neednotbethought hisoffences terms saved.Evenin"theological" in theothatwe cannotstateOthello'scaseveryexactly The factis,though, despair not the theologically-viewed logicalterms.His despairis evidently The dramatic describe. and CalvinandtheHomilyofRepentance thatPerkins statement. theological of Othello'sdespairis not also a definitive statement is sinneraboutwhichPerkinsgeneralizes The agitationof the despairing oftheconscience, ofhellfire:". . . feareandterrours causedbythoughts surely on theother of themercieof God . . ." (p. 42). Othello'sconcern, doubting with pityofhisdeed;he showsno realpreoccupation hand,is withtheterrible callingto "be hell.Whenhe cries"Whipme,yedevils. . .", he is notliterally moreexofregret in a frenzy to hellat once."He is justspeaking transported His causesthanof eternalconsequences. to theaudienceof temporal pressive ones:"Whocan control Christian too,thanstrictly showsotherterms, frenzy than wench!"Theseare plainlymoremetaphor his fate?"and "O ill-starr'd and to theaudiencealike.TheyimOthello,to Shakespeare, metaphysics-to of eventsand his despairat theturn partOthello'ssenseof theresistlessness lossbeyond at Desdemona's He despairs in themto whichhe has contributed. judgrecall:"O Desdemona!Desdemona!dead!" and at his own beclouded ment."O fool!fool!fool!"He is notdwellingon a doubtof God's mercy. attention lookwillhurlhimfromheaven, Evenwhenhe saysthatDesdemona's onthelossofhiswifethanonthatofhissoul. is rather evidenceof thisscene,then,towardunion To marshalthedramaturgical do notmatein thesense is ofverylittleuse,fortheysimply withthetheological signof God's judgmentof Othello. theyprovideunequivocal thattogether buttheplaydoesnotquiteappealtoit. histheology, Siegeldoesnotmisread is generaland discurcomestothis:thattheology In theend,thediscussion and and immediate scenefromOthellois particular sivewhereas thepassionate is to forcethe prepositionally To bringthemtogether unexplicit. theologically is evidencefordamnation of the dramaturgical play.Positivemarshalling eviof it into"theological" conversion withoutuncritical all but impossible or salvadamnation ofa particular dence.In drama,unlikelife,theaffirmation iftheactionshowssomesucheventas devilsseizingDr. tionmaybe possible' But a playthatduplicates salvation. Margaret's Faustusor angelsdeclaring decisive willrarely provide on suchsupernatural displays life'snormalreticence ofanysortaboutthismatter. evidence IV about Christian That Othellodoes not providethe kind of certitude thatis plainin Dr. Faustusdoes not meanthatOthellois unmetaphysics ofChristianity as Marlowedoesis not thecontext To makeexplicit Christian. 7 M. D. H. Parker, The Slaveof Life (London,I955), pp. i26-i29; pp. 95-113. N. C., 1953), pp. 230-242; IrvingRibner, (Durham, Minister Flaming G. R. Elliott, 342 SHAKESPEARE QUARTERLY necessarily a displayof faith,8and to remaininconclusiveaboutit is not necessarilyto lack someChristianmeaning.Shakespearetookupon himselfthemysteryof thingsand recreatedit forthistragedyin thegeneralidiomof his time and of what we may assumewas his religion.The play bearsgeneralunderstandingin thelightof thatreligionjust as thereal worlddoes-or would if it to our limitedview as Othello is and spoke were formedand concentrated clearlyto us of humangood and evil.Simplytheplaydoes notrequirenorbear applicationofChristiandogmatics. verywell anycloseand peremptory often We see love and guiltin Othelloand a sortof justice.The characters or to hell; and in a way speakof themin Christianterms,referthemto divinity assertslove like DesThough Iago corrosively the actionsustainsthereference. demona'sto be "merelya lustof theblood and a permissionof the will" (I. iii. 335-336),theactionshowshim wrongaboutit. Cassio and evenRoderigothink betterof such love, and the play justifiesthem. The dramaticdemonstration of Iago's wrongness,thoughit does not ratifyDesdemona'slove as sacramental,is morallyencouraging.As forguilt,Othello is abominablyat fault; he justlysuffers forit, as the audienceis amplynotified:"Nay, lay thee down and roar. . ." (V. ii. i98). From Desdemona'struthwe cannotinferdeity,nor hell fromOthello'sfault;but the truthand the fault,the love and the justice, absolute. arepositiveall thesame-dramatically The certaintyof Desdemona's goodness,Iago's evil, and Othello's error does mean something,then,about eternalalliancesin the world of the play, forthroughthemit seemsto indicatetruepoles of human goodnessand bada morality heavenand hell,but it does affirm no transcendent ness. It affirms love and faithsave,vengeanceis wicked,pridedanagreeableto Christianity: gerous,malicehideous,and jealousyruinous.These Christiantruismsthe play and theyreachout by readyimplicagives,thoughnot as lifelessgeneralities, of man,rewardand puntion towardthe fatherhood of God, thebrotherhood ishmentto come,and muchelse in the systemthatsustainsChristianmorality. Othelloat themostinYet themetaphysical and historicalbasesof thissystem, ground; it does not even timates,not gives. It does not asserta supernatural deriveits eventsfromthebeginningin Eden of humanhistoryor symbolically Day. It uses some doctrinaltermsbut does not certify pointthemto Judgment for its world the doctrinesconcerned.What it does do thatis Christianis to make the sortof appeal to the transcendental thatcan come fromlivingfaith that the universeis God's.9 Othello is Christian-or Christian-like-insuch not quietist;intentionas well as act thingsas these:its values are affirmative, counts,as it did not,perhaps,to theGreeks;everyman has his worth,is a soul, but subordinate. if you like; and evil is tremendous, fearful,and mysterious, More explicitlyChristianthanthis,Othelloas a whole is not.With an undeniable Christiantenor,it is stillno arbitrary ofChristiandogma. justification 8 See D. G. James,The Dream of Learning(Oxford,i95i), p. go; and Clifford Leech,Shakespeare'sTragedies(New York, i950), p. ii. 9 See JohnF. Danby, "Correspondence on King Lear", CriticalQuarterly, III (Spring i96i), 70: ". . . religionis not what you believe(an 'ultimatehypothesis')but what you believewith (a 'verypresenthelp in timeof trouble').So in callingKing Lear a Christianplay . . . I certainly did not wish to be understoodas sayingit was propagandafor a set of propositions about the of choicesonly a Christianin a Christianworld universe:ratherthat it was the presentation regardedas real." The moral choicesof Othelloand his fellowsare real only if love, guilt,and justiceexist;the play saysthatin its worldtheydo exist. CHRISTIANNESS OF OTHELLO 343 thatOthellois damneddoesnot,then, ofSiegel'sdemonstration The failure one wayas the is as inconclusive evidence thatOthellois saved.The confirm no is eternal destiny simply partoftheplay. ofOthello's The realization other.10 Othelloto havean in thewayofourfeeling though, The playputsno obstacle, soul.A whiff an immortal we maytakeit,ifwe like,thathe is destiny; eternal Butforthis action. the to flavor suitable a gives too,and ofhellsmokeis there, immortality Othello's to proclaim theplaydoesnotneedauthoritatively flavor no more effect requires The fulldramatic ofhisfaults. outcome or theeternal himself was who a of protagonist withitsnaturaltensions, thanthespectacle, dreadto act timeand placedeceivedand provoked in a Christian Christian that are events in it to die sinand fullyin despiteofa purelove.To commit smoke. ofhell happenin theworld,knownto many,andtheydo havea whiff Buttogo tohellis nota thingthathappensin theworldnora thingin theexofanyoneliving. perience a closedand be conceived No morein dramathanin lifeneedChristianity aboundin it and goodand evilunpredictand terror Mystery system. charted of exemplum To makeOthelloa stampedand certified able and unlabeled. is to takehalfoftheartoutofit and muchof sinand punishment Christian andmostofthemystery. thehonesty of Georgia University 10 This is verymuch the conclusionof Harold S. Wilson, On the Design of Shakespearian Tragedy(Toronto,1957), pp. 66, 67.