"Washing the Ethiopian White"

Geffery Whitney, an English poet, was primarily known for his compilation of poetry in A Choice of Emblemes… It is believed that Shakespeare used this book over the course of his writing to gain knowledge about the foreign emblematists of the 16th century. While the compilation of texts discusses various topics, page 57 (pictured above) specifically describes the idea that you can’t wash out “blackness”. The image shows two white women washing a dark man with sponges and towels, trying to rub the color off of his skin. As the poem describes, no matter how often or how hard you scrub the skin of the individual, the dark skin will remain. 

The author further explains that Nature’s power is too great to be conquered by men, If Nature’s affair with this man was to make him dark complected, then he will be black and always remain black. The skin color of an individual is not a choice. Even without the scientific knowledge about melanin and the evolution of skin color we have today, the author knew that being born black is not a trait we can control. 

Upon reading Fortunes of the Moor by Barbra and Carlton Molette, a sequel to Shakespeare’s Othello, we finally receive a backstory on the main character. The natives from Othello's homeland informs us that he was kidnapped and sold into slavery as a young boy. Even though he gained a noble reputation among the Venetians and could return to his homeland, he remained as a general because of his wealth and fame. His family described his actions as trying to be white. But, as Whitney described in the poem above, and as Othello’s uncle, Hassan pointed out, you can not change where you come from and who you are. Even though Othello gained the reputation of a great general and attempted to assimilate himself into the Venetian culture, he was still African and a “moor” in the eyes of his white brethren.