Madness, treachery, and naivete: A comparison of 'Othello', 'The Spanish Tragedy' and 'Tis Pity She's a Whore

This study compares the characters of Othello, The Spanish Tragedy, and 'Tis Pity She's a Whore as a means of asserting Othello's position as a revenge tragedy. This comparison examines the correlation of the revengers, revenge targets, and catalyst characters of the three plays. Othello and Iago are compared to the revengers Hieronimo and Giovanni. Othello and Desdemona are compared to the revenge targets Lorenzo and Annabella. Finally, Iago is compared to the catalyst characters Bel-Imperia and Vasquez. Cultural and historical criticisms are the primary critical approaches used for this thesis, which determines that Othello should be considered a revenge tragedy.