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ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

"Richard Wright's Native Son and Paul Robeson's Othello: Representations of Black Male Physicality in Contemporary Adaptations of Othello."

Glotzer, Anna Nicole
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7424-1227
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1523290957796557

Abstract Details

2018, Master of Arts, University of Akron, English-Literature.
Shakespeare’s Othello, the powerful tragedy of societal distortions of the black male narrative brought to bear on interracial frameworks, has resonated in varying contemporary adaptations. The narrative of Othello inspired both the legendary theatrical performance of Paul Robeson and Richard Wright's literary adaptation in his novel Native Son. This thesis examines both the embrace of Othellophilia and the ways in which it complicates the racial context of the United States by capturing the myth as an allegory suited to the American context. I will evaluate how these ideologies drew black actor and intellectual, Paul Robeson, into its gravitational pull. Robeson’s interpretation of Othello lends itself to comparison of his contemporary, writer Richard Wright and his literary character, Bigger Thomas. The white female liberal's cultural voyeurism and accountability is evaluated through contemporary adaptations of Othello. This thesis concludes with an analysis of a caricature drawing appearing in a London magazine in 1937. Artist Frederick Joss confirms the collective psyche of control and racialism in Britain’s Colonial Empire, reinforcing the Othello myth.
Hillary Nunn, Dr. (Advisor)
83 p.
Literature
American Literature, Native Son, Richard Wright, Shakespeare, Othello, Black Masculinity, Contemporary Adaptations, Interracial Tragedy

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Glotzer, A. N. (2018). "Richard Wright's Native Son and Paul Robeson's Othello: Representations of Black Male Physicality in Contemporary Adaptations of Othello." [Master's thesis, University of Akron]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1523290957796557

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Glotzer, Anna. "Richard Wright's Native Son and Paul Robeson's Othello: Representations of Black Male Physicality in Contemporary Adaptations of Othello.". 2018. University of Akron, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1523290957796557.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Glotzer, Anna. ""Richard Wright's Native Son and Paul Robeson's Othello: Representations of Black Male Physicality in Contemporary Adaptations of Othello."." Master's thesis, University of Akron, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1523290957796557

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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This open access ETD is published by University of Akron and OhioLINK.