Introduction
Human destiny has been one of the central subjects in literature at all times, and this theme can be tracked in literary pieces written in different centuries. The novel “Lives of the Saints” by Nino Ricci and the play “Othello” by William Shakespeare share a recurring idea: the destructive influence of manipulation from outside the family on the characters’ fate. The interference of society into the personal life of the characters has different motives and nature, but in both cases eventually leads to their tragic end.
Main body
In “Lives of the Saints,” Cristina was running away from the cruelty of the villagers, which leads to her death in the end. In “Othello,” a husband kills his innocent wife believing in Iago’s foul lie about her and after learning the truth ends his own life. In the book by Ricci, people from Valle del Sole, a village where Cristina lives, are characterized by superstition, hypocrisy, and narrow-mindedness, but, apparently, they believe they can judge others. They disapprove of the woman’s actions and call the bite of the snake the evil eye, punishment for inappropriate behavior that “can catch you by surprise, by a certain lack of vigilance” (Ricci 51). Their aggression and judgementalism towards Cristina eventually make her leave, even though she always tries to stand up for her own beliefs and values.
Desdemona, in turn, becomes a victim of slander and envy from Iago’s side, who decides to take revenge on Othello. As a result of the accusations, she is suffocated by her jealous husband, who swears that he loves her but has to do justice. If it had not been for the evil tongue, the couple would have had a happier time. Another difference in the tragic ending in the two pieces of writings is the attitude of the main characters towards their own fate. In “Lives of the Saints,” leaving her place, Cristina gives the villagers a defiant speech that represented her independence and self-awareness. In Shakespeare’s play, Desdemona is humbler in her expressions, and her love for Othello is so faithful that in front of Emilia, she takes all the blame off her husband for killing her.
The two behaviors are different, Cristina shouts that the villagers tried to kill her, but she is still alive and will “pray to God that he wipes this town and all its stupidities off the face of the earth” (Ricci 190). She is self-reliant, can stand for herself, and tries to decide her own future; nonetheless, she, unfortunately, dies in childbirth. Desdemona is shocked by her husband’s words and tries to justify her innocence, but Othello’s mind is clouded with rage and jealousy. Desdemona takes death from his hands, dying “a guiltless death” as she tells Emilia (Shakespeare 5.2.144). Despite the injustice, she does not blame Othello and says that she did it to herself. In contrast to Cristina, Desdemona humbly accepts her fate, hoping that heaven will have mercy on her.
One more difference in the ending of these two literary works is the openness for interpretation. The work by Ricci ends with Cristina’s sudden death and the two of her children facing a rather uncertain future. In “Othello” the main characters die tragically as Desdemona is smothered and Othello commits suicide on realizing what he did, the truth came out, there is no space left to reflect on the characters’ motives.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the central theme of both writings is the people’s tragic fate, on which the interference of others had a direct impact in both cases. The ending of “Lives of the Saints” gives the reader a hint that the initial plan of Cristina’s journey was to get together with the blue-eyed man. Vittorio is overwhelmed as it can be seen from the way the author describes the scene: “My knees buckled beneath me, and my mind went black” (Ricci 245). The play by Shakespeare ends depressively, and the only hope is that Iago gets his punishment for the ruined lives, and the state will learn the whole story.
References
Ricci, Nino. Lives of the Saints. McClelland & Stewart, 2015.
Shakespeare, William. Othello. vol. 6, Classic Books Company, 2001.