Outsider, Victim, Reflection of the Male Psyche: The Significance of Bianca in Shakespeare's Othello Rio Tang 12th Grade

Bianca appears sparsely in Othello: a grand total of three times. However, she is subject to lashing from both men and women, and she is a complete outsider to any society. Through Shakespeare's depiction of her, she ultimately becomes a microcosm for how rigid and strict society's expectation of women are.

First, the men's treatment of Bianca shows the tension between men and women in the play. This is portrayed mainly by Cassio, and somewhat through Iago. Dramatically, she first enters the play more than halfway through, in Act 3 Scene 4. This must be noted as it reinforces her outsider status. Cassio, who we associate with male courtly love and language, first, unexpectedly calls her "sweet love" endearlingly. However, once Bianca steps out of line and asks where the handkerchief comes from, Cassio immediately turns vile: "Go to, woman!" By the end of that conversation, Bianca merely submits: "'Tis very good. I must be circumstanced." Such dynamic between men and women is unsurprising: women are expected to remain subservient in the world of Othello, and the fact that even Cassio is capable of such misogyny is evidence of the fact that this is a picture of Venetian society and Venetian men all across the board.

However, what...