(http://talesoffaerie.blogspot.com/2013/02/solomon-jinn-and-arabian-nights.html)

In a previous post, I analyzed an image that had clear Orientalist undertones in its depiction of Othello. That was fitting for the period it was painted in, during the height of Orientalism, in the 19th century by a Frenchman; France being a European epicenter for “enlightened” Orientalist thought and theory. In this post, I’ll explore the in-text references to Orientalism, as well as draw connections to The Arabian Nights, a text that introduced us to Orientalist theory. First, what is Orientalism? According to Edward Said, via Wikipedia, it “is the source of the inaccurate, cultural representations that are the foundations of Western thought and perception of the Eastern world, specifically about the region of the Middle East. The principal characteristic of Orientalism is a “subtle and persistent Eurocentric prejudice against Arab–Islamic peoples and their culture…”(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orientalism_%28book%29). Shakespeare wrote in England, and Othello was produced in approximately 1603. Exploration to the “East” had been long underway, and there was an understanding of Oriental life amongst Europeans since way before that, simple and misguided as it may have been. Some of the earliest European translations of The Arabian Nights had come into widespread circulation in the early 1700s.

There are interesting similarities and differences between the portrayal of Oriental peoples and culture between Othello and The Arabian Nights. The similarities have to do a lot with mysticism. The Arabian Nights depicts magic and a lot of the supernatural. Othello reflects that, and the Italians of this play make their first accusations against Othello in this vein. Brabantio accuses Othello of enchanting Desdemona (1, 2, 82). In the same passage, he accuses Othello of things that only the lowliest of men do. He says she is bound in the chains of magic, implying that Othello has bewitched her against her will. He accuses him of having used “drugs or minerals” (93), and generally things of “Moorish” nature. He does not refer to Othello as “Othello”, but as “Moor” in previous passages, implying that this is the very thing he sees him as, and that this nature is foul and loathsome.

In a different light, Shakespeare does something interesting to the character of Othello. In this play, this foreigner is in a position of great power and command. He has renounced his Moorish identity and religion, and looks down on it. Now, this COULD be seen as a subversion of Orientalist thought in Europe by Shakespeare, but it’s not that. Mostly because this isn’t a welcoming and acceptance of Eastern culture, but a depiction of assimilation into European identity and hatred of the foreignness of the East. Othello is instead associated with the supernatural and barbaric elements seen in The Arabian Nights, like the Jinn who steal women and keep them for themselves. This can be seen in the frame story as well as the Story of The Second Dervish. This also keeps in line with Iago calling Othello a “devil”.