ABSTRACT
The characters in Shakespeare's Othello respond to two distinct powers of the face. To begin with, the face elicits interpretation as a sign or a symbol. The characters of Shakespeare's play encounter interpretive quandaries in attempting to read each others' faces but they also encounter an ethical challenge simply by facing each other. Iago's reference is theatrical, as devils were played in blackface in the mystery plays and interludes. Othello is so thoroughly identified with his race that Iago need not specify which Moor has joined Desdemona to make 'the beast with two backs'. The Duke attempts to reconcile Othello and his reluctant father-in-law by observing, 'If virtue no delighted beauty lack/Your son-in-law is far more fair than black'. The Duke's reading of Othello's face as 'far more fair than black' and the first senator's last line before leaving the stage, addressing Othello as 'brave Moor', are both delivered by men skilled in interpretation.
