Handkerchiefs - Shakespeare's Exploration into the Spurious Nature of Love

I

Love, marriage, and relationships were common themes in Elizabethan England as they are today. William Shakespeare's Othello epitomizes a classic tragic love story based upon the fatal consequences of an interracial marriage. Othello's "blackness" and Desdemona's virginal "white" innocence clash in the play, with devastating consequences. At the heart of this clash lies a square piece of cloth "spotted with strawberries." This simple object-a handkerchief-conjures ideas of broken promises, infidelity, lecherous behavior, and stained bed sheets.

II

Desdemona responds to Othello's demand for "ocular proof" of the missing handkerchief by saying, "I say it is not lost; but what an if it were?" (3.4.81). This naively defiant statement, though on the surface may seem innocuous, ultimately seals Desdemona's fate. Desdemona does not realize Othello's infatuation with the handkerchief, unwittingly subjecting herself to his jealousy and rage by casually dismissing the handkerchief's absence. Shakespeare deliberately makes the handkerchief represent what Lynda Boose calls, a "potent love token" (266). The handkerchief serves as a token of trust and fidelity, a sort of insurance policy Othello maintains by giving Desdemona. The handkerchief's "potency" mars Othello's trust in Desdemona, altering their relationship into one based on ocular proof. Possession of the handkerchief guarantees Othello's control over Desdemona. Possessing it guarantees chastity, fidelity, and trust. Losing it means infidelity, lascivious affairs, and spoiled love. The handkerchief thus symbolizes Desdemona's bondage within her constrained marriage to Othello, demonstrating Shakespeare's conviction that love is spurious.

IV