Symbolism in Othello

Abstract

William Shakespeare uses a strawberry embroidered handkerchief in the play Othello as a multifaceted symbolic item—a symbol of love, a symbol to showcase Desdemona’s role within her marriage, a symbol of Christianity, and a symbol of the loss of Othello’s culture and a return to perceived barbarism.

Full text

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Gregory Lenon
February 24, 2019
Symbolism in Othello
Sometimes objects of very little value to some have monumental value to others.
Wedding rings, for example, hold very little material value, and unless the ring is yours,
they hold no sentimental value. And yet, if you choose to exchange this thin band of
metal with a partner, you place symbolic great value in the rings—to lose one or break
one can be the cause of great emotional turmoil and distress. In much the same
fashion, William Shakespeare uses a strawberry embroidered handkerchief in the play
Othello as a multifaceted symbolic item—a symbol of love, a symbol to showcase
Desdemona’s role within her marriage, a symbol of Christianity, and a symbol of the loss
of Othello’s culture and a return to perceived barbarism.
At first sight, the handkerchief that Othello gives Desdemona in Othello seems
trivial—a simple item that is designed to clean up a mess. However, Othello states that
the handkerchief “‘twas my first gift.” (Othello 3.3.432) This gift, the first sign of a
burgeoning relationship between Othello and Desdemona, holds special significance.
Couples will always remember their firsts: first kiss, first date, and especially the first
gift. However, more than just a first gift, the handkerchief has additional meaning; rather
than just being a present bought with Desdemona in mind, the item has history with
Othello. The handkerchief, according to Othello:
Did an Egyptian to my mother give;
She was a charmer, and could almost read
The thoughts of people: she told her, while
she kept it,
'Twould make her amiable and subdue my father
Entirely to her love, but if she lost it

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Or made gift of it, my father's eye
Should hold her loathed and his spirits should hunt
After new fancies: she, dying, gave it me;
And bid me, when my fate would have me wive,
To give it her. (3.4.54-62)
The handkerchief, rather than being just a purchase, was instead a heirloom to
Othello, and one that held magical properties. When Othello gave Desdemona the
handkerchief, he was also giving her a heritage and a history—a magical charm that
provided an assumed long and happy marriage between Othello’s mother and father.
Othello held great significance in the handkerchief and believed that the gift symbolised
not only his love for Desdemona, but the love his parents shared and the dream of an
equally loving marriage.
Looking past Othello’s intentions and his symbolic view of the handkerchief, one
must also look at the linen itself. According to Jean Howard in Shakespeare: An
Oxford Guide, the linen plays a special role when looking at a feminist criticism of the
play. Howard states, “women were, in this period, expected to spin and weave cloth,
embroider and to do needlework, and tend to the washing and bleaching of all
household linens. When Othello accuses Desdemona of losing the handkerchief, he is
accusing her, in essence, of ceasing to be a good housewife and so of becoming a
sexually and economically improviden whore.” (Shakespeare: An Oxford Guide 425)
Through this symbolic viewpoint, Desdemona has not only lost the love of Othello and
destroyed the memory of his parents’ love, but she has also ceased fulfilling her
perceived role within their marriage. This loss of fulfilling her duties as a housewife
starts to deteriorate her relationship with Othello. Othello is swayed by Iago into

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believing that if Desdemona is unfaithful with one part of the marriage then she is
unfaithful with every part of the marriage.
This perceived role within the marriage is partially bound by Desdemona’s
virginal status on their wedding night. Howard states, “The red design on white linen
can symbolize the blood from the hymen shed when Desdemona and Othello first
consummated their marriage.” (426) During the times of Shakespeare, much store was
placed on the wife being a virgin on the wedding night—if her virginity was not assured,
the marriage could be invalidated. The symbolic nature of the strawberry, showcasing
the consummation of the marriage of Othello and Desdemona is powerful, and the loss
of the handkerchief changes the symbolism of the handkerchief from being one of a
marriage being built to the destruction of the consummation of the wedding night—an
invalidation of the marriage. Again we see the symbolic usage of the handkerchief to
showcase to the audience of the play that the loss of one component of the marriage
causes Othello to doubt every part of the marriage. If the consummation of the
marriage is marred by infidelity, and if Desdemona is not fulfilling her wifely duties, then
in the mind of Othello, Desdemona has not only negated the marriage, but has betrayed
Othello and played him for a fool.
More than just a symbol of a marriage consummation, the strawberries
embroidered on the handkerchief are symbolic of Christianity. “The strawberry, because
its flower is white, its fruit red, its smell and taste sweet, and its foliage ‘like the Trefiole,’
[sic] was an excellent choice for the expression of the fruit of the spirit.” (Ross 233) As
a symbol of Christianity, of righteousness, the handkerchief plays a dual role. First, the
loss of the handkerchief showcases a loss of marriage, a sacred act within Christianity.

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Second, in act V, Emilia states that “that handkerchief thou speak’st of / I found by
fortune and did give my husband; / … he begg’d of me to steal it.” (Othello 5.218-223)
From these lines, if the strawberries are symbolic of Christianity, we can see a deeper
meaning from the handkerchief.
Othello, who is oft accused of being a barbarian, has accepted Christianity, and
Iago sought to steal the religion away from Othello, returning him to a barbaric state.
This metaphor is symbolic not only of Othello, but also of Elizabethan England during
Shakespeare’s time period. In this time period, the religion of the rulers, which was
forced upon the populace, was in turmoil—over the course of a lifetime, the population
was either forced into Protestantism or Catholicism, depending on the ruler of the time
period. Both of these denominations would feel either vindicated or prosecuted
depending on which denomination was currently in power. This was mirrored by Othello
and Iago—the stealing away of religion, the loss felt by those who were forced to hide
their faith for fear of death. The act of Othello losing his religion is showcased
throughout the play by the number three—not only does the handkerchief have
strawberries with three leaves on it, but the number three plays a central role.
The number three has a variety of meanings in both the Christian faith as well as
a multitude of other faiths. In Christianity, the number three is viewed many times; but
while the holy Trinity (God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit) is given a positive light, more
often the number three is neutral, being both a number of good as well as evil. In the
book of Matthew, chapter four, Jesus is tempted three times by Satan. Then, in Luke
chapter 22, Peter denies Jesus three times. Jesus is also, in Luke chapter 24,
resurrected on the third day, as well as reaffirming his love in John, chapter 21, three

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times. In Emory Lease’s essay, entitled “The Number Three, Mysterious, Mystic,
Magic,” the reader is shown how the number three “takes us back to a remote antiquity,
into the realms of mythology, religion, mathematics, philosophy, and magic.” (57)
However, though the number three, in the Christian faith is seen as a neutral
number, Shakespeare uses the number three as a symbol of Paganism. In
Shakespeare’s Macbeth, we see the use of the number three used symbolically by the
witches, which number three. In act I scene V, we see them bid Macbeth welcome,
stating:
First Witch - All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis!
Second Witch - All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor!
Third Witch - All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter! (Macbeth 1.3.49-51)
This use of repeating the same greeting in three separate ways can be seen as a
charm, and a paganistic foreshadowing of events. However, immediately preceding this
ritualistic greeting, the witches cast a charm, stating “thrice to thine and thrice to mine /
and thrice again, to make up nine. / Peace! the charm's wound up.” (1.3.36-39) Once
more, in act IV, scene I, the audience sees the witches casting a charm using the
number three, stating, “thrice the brinded cat hath mew’d / thrice and once the hedge-
pig whined. / Harpier cries ‘tis time, ‘tis time.” (4.1.1-3) This use of the number three in
magical spells is used as a means of providing power in paganism. (Lease 62) The
witches in Macbeth repeatedly use the number three, and the repetitions of three, to
showcase paganism, something seen as barbaric in Shakespeare’s time period.
It is by no coincidence, then, that in Othello act III, scene III, Iago tries to
convince Othello that Desdemona has broken their marriage vows. Throughout the
play, we see Iago attempting to prove that Othello is not a Christian, but rather barbaric.

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Shakespeare shows evidence of this barbaric mindset by Othello’s utterance of “o
blood, blood, blood!” (3.3.446) This curse, this repeating a phrase three times,
showcases the start of Othello’s descent—at this point Othello has fallen under the
machinations of Iago and begun to show barbaric behavior. The repetition of three is
repeated again in the next act:
Othello - Fetch me the handkerchief: my mind misgives.
Desdemona - Come, come; You'll never meet a more sufficient man.
Othello - The handkerchief!
Desdemona - I pray, talk me of Cassio.
Othello - The handkerchief!
Desdemona - A man that all his time
Hath founded his good fortunes on your love,
Shared dangers with you,—
Othello - The handkerchief!
Desdemona - In sooth, you are to blame. (3.4.86-91)
When Othello demands the handkerchief three times, he is attempting to
summon the handkerchief just as the witches in Macbeth summon Macbeth by hailing
him three times. Othello states that he is doubting, that he is losing faith when he says,
“my mind misgives.” (3.4.86) While this statement obviously means that Othello is
doubting Desdemona, he is also doubting his civilized, Christian, attitude. The use of
charms and curses is used one more time by Othello, right before he dies, when he
curses himself a fool just prior to killing himself, exclaiming, “o fool! Fool! Fool!”
(5.2.317)
From the usage of the symbolic three, the reader is able to view Othello as a
character losing his religion and returning to purported barbarism. The catalyst of this
change is Iago, who tells the audience in the last monologue what will happen, stating
“Hell and night / must bring this monstrous birth to the world’s light.” (1.3.381-392) The

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symbolic usage of the handkerchief and the continual usage of the triple repetition by
Othello at the end of the play—the attempted summonings, the curses, and the charms
—all show the audience the loss of Othello’s religion and Othello’s paganistic behavior.
In conclusion, the play Othello heavily uses symbolism from the linen, as well as
the strawberries embroidered on the handkerchief, and the symbolic use of the number
three in order to provide meaning for the play. While many of Shakespeare’s plays
derive meaning from symbolism, Othello stands out in that the use of the handkerchief
is central to the play and provides the reader insight on the actions of Othello as well as
the social climate. While the play overtly focuses on the relationship between Othello
and Desdemona (trust in one’s partner, love, and the feelings of betrayal and loss) the
play also showcases more covert aspects of society. The linen cloth serves as a
multitude of different symbolic meanings, including Christianity. Finally, the use of the
number three is a subtle yet poignant manner to show the downfall of Othello.
Shakespeare, in Othello, showcased a litany of social issues from the time period in a
masterful and subtle manner.

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Works Cited
Holy Bible: King James Version. Christian Art Publishers, 2016.
Lease, Emory B. “The Number Three, Mysterious, Mystic, Magic.” Classical Philology,
vol. 14, no. 1, 1919, pp. 56–73. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/263620.Copy
Ross, Lawrence J. “The Meaning of Strawberries in Shakespeare.” Studies in the
Renaissance, vol. 7, 1960, pp. 225–240., www.jstor.org/stable/2857136.
Shakespeare, William, et al. The Norton Shakespeare. 3rd ed., Norton, 2016.
Wells, Stanley, and Lena Cowen Orlin. Shakespeare: an Oxford Guide. Oxford
University Press, 2009.