The evolution of the colour of Othello’s skin-tone is a surprisingly accurate cultural barometer of attitudes towards race in the eyes of scholars. A significant portion of the critical literature is focused upon the Moor’s complexion as one of the main variables within the play. Yet the fact that the script has itself become a variable, and not a constant, has been neglected. This text’s transformation can be traced alongside the ratification of racial laws. In Jacobean England, Antebellum American, and Imperial Germany, audiences respectively experienced Othello committing divergent crimes, ranging from murder-suicide, to marriage, to simply existing. These countries’ racial legislation coloured the various audience interpretations of the Moor. While Othello’s actions were always the same, the public projected their own attributed meanings onto the play – a practice analogous to a living Rorschach test. This article explores the concept of using a metaphorical Rorschach test as a tool for the historicization of the many colours of Othello.

中文翻译：

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奥赛罗：摩尔人罗夏测试


奥赛罗肤色的演变是学者眼中对种族态度的非常准确的文化晴雨表。批评文学的很大一部分都集中在摩尔人的肤色上，这是剧中的主要变量之一。然而，剧本本身已经成为一个变量，而不是一个常数，这一事实被忽视了。该文本的转变可以追溯到种族法的批准。在詹姆士时代的英格兰、战前的美国和德意志帝国，观众分别经历了奥赛罗犯下不同的罪行，从谋杀自杀到婚姻，再到简单的存在。这些国家的种族立法为观众对摩尔人的各种解释增添了色彩。虽然奥赛罗的行为总是一样的，但公众将他们自己被赋予的意义投射到戏剧上——这种做法类似于活生生的罗夏测试。本文探讨了使用隐喻的罗夏测试作为工具将奥赛罗的多种颜色历史化的概念。