Sweeping statements like this can be difficult to prove. For one, what is the definition of romantic? What characteristics define a Shakespearean hero? Also, one would have to prove that Othello is more romantic than dozens of Shakespearean heroes. We can narrow down the field by looking only at tragedies and examining the different kinds of romance in them.
A number of tragic heroes show little to no romantic inclinations, such as Coriolanus, King Lear,...
Sweeping statements like this can be difficult to prove. For one, what is the definition of romantic? What characteristics define a Shakespearean hero? Also, one would have to prove that Othello is more romantic than dozens of Shakespearean heroes. We can narrow down the field by looking only at tragedies and examining the different kinds of romance in them.
A number of tragic heroes show little to no romantic inclinations, such as Coriolanus, King Lear, and Titus Andronicus. Hamlet writes a passionate love letter to Ophelia:
Doubt thou the stars are fire;
Doubt that the sun doth move;
Doubt truth to be a liar;
But never doubt I love.
However, their relationship quickly deteriorates into accusations, manipulation, and eventually suicide.
Macbeth and Brutus are married men, and they appear to have loving partnerships with their wives. Their relationships are more equal than Hamlet and Ophelia’s. However, Lady Macbeth manipulates and berates her husband, and they drift apart after they murder their friend and king. Brutus begins to hide things from his wife, with whom he’s usually so open. She is so loyal, she ends up committing suicide when things go badly for him, and eventually he does too.
Romeo and Mark Antony are two of Shakespeare’s most passionate lovers. Romeo is the definition of a young and impetuous lover, and Antony’s affair with Cleopatra is fiery but destructive.
Initially, Othello is arguably a mixture of ardent husband and equal partner. He loves Desdemona’s soul and desires “to be free and bounteous to her mind.” He finds it important that she speak for herself. Unfortunately, their romance was not to be, because Othello descends into a jealous rage and murders Desdemona, the one he loves most.
Even though Othello describes himself as “one that loved not wisely but too well,” it is difficult to declare him “by far” the most romantic of Shakespeare’s heroes. Still, there is an argument that his relationship with Desdemona is one of the healthiest in Shakespeare before it becomes one of the unhealthiest.
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