Saturday, September 5, 2015

What role did the clown play in Othello?

The clown is a minor character in "Othello."  He is a jester, or fool.  The clown jokes lewdly with the musicians in Act III scene 1 before dismissing them with Othello's payment.  In Act III scene 4 he briefly jests with Desdemona before carrying a message for her.

As comic relief, the clown does not do much to interrupt the play's increasing tension; he may just serve as a conventional character expected by Shakespeare's audiences and therefore aptly supplied to please the masses.

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