The thirty-first book that I’ve finished reading this year is William Shakespeare’s “Othello”. Set in an era where racism and misogyny are widely common, the old Moor Othello weds young ? fair Desdemona out of love, but their seeds of love have yet to burst into full bloom before being severed by a pernicious plot to bring all to doom.

As with all archaic literature, “Othello” is not an easy read. My early pages were lined with detailed annotations, full of allusions to Greek and Roman mythology (who would’ve thought that Dian is short for Diana?) and obscure euphemisms (have a guess at what the “beast of two backs” is). However, it is exactly such rich language that adds to the play’s analytical value as the reader unveils the words layer by layer. One prominent theme that I’ve explored is the objectification of women. Taking Desdemona for example, she was considered as an appendix of her father before marriage, then discarded after she chose to marry the Moor. When Othello angered with doubt of her chastity, she was again treated as a toy that no longer fulfils its master’s wishes, her life and death decided by a mere flicker of Othello’s temperament. The fact that Othello chose to believe Iago’s words without confirming his doubts by communicating with Des (not believing her even after she had clarified her innocence) also shows that he values another man’s words higher than his wife’s, highlighting the lack of respect to women as credible entities. However, even as Des lays on her death bed, she still defends her husband and bears all his sins on her own back; the portrayal of such a relenting figure deprives her of her dignity as an independent person.

In contrast, her servant, Emilia, shows considerable boldness to defy her husband. In her famous line “l(fā)et husbands know, their wives have sense like them; they see and smell, and have their palates both for sweet and sour, as husbands have”, she is appealing to the reader to view women as independent entities rather than belongings of men. However, bold as she may be, she still falls into her husband Iago’s snares by fulfilling the most crucial part of his plot to bring her lady and Othello to doom.

Meanwhile, the other overlooked woman, Bianca, embodies a marginalised group of women despised even by fellow women. As Cassio’s lover, she is treated as a lowly toy that Cassio bad-mouths in her absence, merely as a sexual outlet in a time of convenience. Nevertheless, she reciprocates him with sincerity, being one of the first to attend to him in his dire moments. Though her blind infatuation may be considered as a downplay of her independence, she refuses to be coined as a strumpet (whore) and retaliates with “[I am] but of life as honest, as you that thus abuse me”. Such instances of audacity expressed by women like Bianca and Emilia of lower status contrasts with the mindless subservience of higher status Desdemona, hinting at a possible inverse relationship between a woman’s social status and the strength of her attachment to men.

There are many other themes in “Othello” to be explored, ranging from the racism against Othello (“an old back ram is tipping your white ewe”) to the vice of jealousy on oneself and others (stemming from Iago and Othello). The reason why I focused on women in this review can probably be traced to a long response recently written by the ex-wife of a newly divorced Asian idol, where she stated his exploitation of her love and devotion. Perhaps marriage should no longer be considered as the only outcome for modern couples, especially for women; the law has yet to recognise the efforts of housewives in their contributions to their families. When can gender and racial equality be put into full practice? There’s still a long way ahead.