Black and White Imagery in Shakespeare's Othello

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The most obvious contrast is Othello's black skin, set against Desdemona (and most other characters') pale white.

Othello is referred to as black, the colour of damnation, which also leads to some very obvious racism from other characters, such as Roderigo, Iago and Brabantio. However they generally treat his blackness as being a sign of Othello being a lower life form, more base and animalistic, referring to him as "the thick lips" and calling him an "old black ram". Most of this imagery and attitude comes from Iago, who is very good at planting ideas in others' heads.

Brabantio views the union of Desdemona and Othello with loathing, mainly because Othello is black, or so his words imply (while he may have other motivations, he never describes them). Due to the colour of Othello' skin, he is connected to wickedness in Brabantio's mind, and he accuses Othello of (evil) witchcraft to seduce Desdemona, claiming Othello "hast practised on her with foul charms..." and that "for nature so preposterously to err [...] sans witchcraft could not."

For I'll refer me to all things of sense,
If she in chains of magic were not bound,
Whether a maid so tender, fair, and happy,
So opposite to marriage that she shunned
The wealthy, curled darlings of our nation,
Would ever have, t'incur a general mock,
Run from her guardage to the sooty bosom
Of such a thing as thou-to fear, not to delight.
(1.2.63-70)

It is also significant that Brabantio only takes against Othello openly, and makes an issue of his skin colour, after Othello has (secretly) married Desdemona. This is also after Iago had roused Brabantio's passions and suggested various unsavoury images to him (such as "Barbary horse", "old black ram", "Lusty moor" and "beast with two backs".

In fact, Othello had previously been an honoured guest in Brabantio's home. Reason had dictated that Othello was to be respected, and his colour was not an issue. After Othello trespassed against him and dares touch his daughter, it became personal. Not only had his daughter been taken from him, but she was taken by a 'lowly and animalistic black'. Brabantio's emotions took over, and his racism affected his actions and his speech.

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The connotations, of darkness and fairness as good and bad are continued in Iago's soliloquy "so shall I turn her virtue into [black] pitch". Black pitch here stands for corruption of her pure 'white' virtue, and wickedness, as it does again when Othello cries later "My name, that was as fresh as Dian's visage is now begrimed and black as mine own face!"

There is more subtle light versus dark imagery aimed at the audience. For instance, most of the scenes in which Iago 'furthers his evil plan' are set at night, as are other scenes of turmoil and sources of disaster. For example, the actual elopement of Othello and Desdemona; Iago's meetings with Roderigo (save one); all the actions carried out by Roderigo to further Iago's plans (rousing Brabantio, getting Cassio drunk and into a fight, his attempted murder of Cassio), and of course Desdemona's murder.

Indeed, Othello seems well aware of the suitability of darkness to his actions. He speaks of killing her in the darkness, "Put out the light, and then put out the light [of life]", then bringing the light back afterwards when 'justice' had been done. He also describes how easy it is to physically 'put out the light' and "thy former light restore" compared to the impossible task of "reluming" Desdemona's light and life. Iago is also aware of the "fittingness" of darkness to his deeds