기후, 피부색 그리고 인종차별:『검은 가면극』과 『오셀로』를 중심으로

The logic of climate-body-skin color, which has been deeply rooted in Western history, is well reflected in Renaissance dramas. This is called "geohumoralism" and it has inner contradictions of fixity and variability for human body. It was used as a propaganda to build Englishness and British Empire in the early modern era. This proves that the racial theory and the concept of racism based on the land-body had already been established logically and politically before the modern race theory appeared. Especially, as the first masquerade of the Stuart Dynasty, Ben Jonson’s The Masque of Blackness tries to offset the hybrid image of King James as a foreigner, and also makes the change of skin color as an imperialist propaganda as a theme. In order to step up into the Great Britain Empire, England was at the moment to establish its identity and thus set Africa as ‘the Other’ to establish its own self. However, Shakespeare’s Othello reveals how obscure the propaganda is and investigates deeply the fact that Moors can not be accepted in a white society. Although Shakespeare shows the holy love between Desdemona and Othello, Iago finally makes Othello ever-changing Moor who is defined by white imperialists. In this respect, these two works thoroughly debunk the English double-sided vision on Africa.