Ruth Vanita is a professor of English at Delhi University who wrote this essay, “Proper” Men and 'Fallen' Women: The Lack of Protection for Wives in 'Othello', as part of her work on the representation of wife murder in Renaissance drama. The article was published in 1994 in the journal Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900. Vanita's thesis is that the deaths of Desdemona and Emilia were a reflection of societal acceptance of violent behavior towards women and particularly in the husband-wife relationship during the Renaissance. The article helped me a lot in enlightening me about the cultural and social norms of the time. the time when Shakespeare wrote the play. Understanding the social environment of the Renaissance helps us better appreciate the thoughts Shakespeare must have had when he designed the plots, the reaction of his actors, and the end result. Although the main theme of the play, which is a "domestic tragedy" (Vanita), involves love, intrigue, betrayal and murder, what makes it interesting is the fact that it includes strong-willed women who are treated abusively and ultimately killed by their husbands. not only made it popular, but it was also very acceptable to the public of the time. Vanita makes two fundamental points. The first is that Renaissance society viewed women as submissive to men and that they, married or not, were also subject to men's violence. The other point is that husbands can subject their wives to brutality because the husband-wife relationship is governed by an ownership mentality. Vanita's claim that the deaths of Desdemona and Emilia are "made possible by the collusion of a number of other people who act under the assumption that husband-wife relationships are governed by norms different…” (Vanita) is...... in the middle of a paper ...... putting together the justification for the central plot of the play. This makes the justification for the murders of two innocent women, while morally unacceptable, at least understandable. Vanita's arguments and explanations are clear and precise and because the concept of violence against women and the treatment of husband-wife relationships with a "hands-off" attitude is so prevalent not only in the society of that era, but even in our own society. helps us identify with his reasoning. Works Cited Vanita, Ruth. “The “proper” men and the “fallen” women: the non-protection of wives in “Othello”. » Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900.34 (1994): 3411-3421Othello. Real. Oliver Parker. Perf. Laurence Fishburne, Kenneth Branagh and Irene Jacob. 1995. DVD. Castle Rock Entertainment, 1995. Shakespeare, William. Kenneth Muir, ed. Othello, Harmondsworth: Books about penguins, 1968