The Code Of Honor Essay Research Paper

The Code Of Honor Essay, Research Paper The Code of Honor Both Othello and The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn deal with the issue of race, especially the notion of race as a .social construct x. Othello is .being taken by the insolent foe and sold to slavery x (Shakespeare 1.3.136-137); Jim is a runaway nigger. Both of them have ever been a slaver respectively, but their stories are totally different: one becomes a general; one becomes a free man at the end. What does make this difference, even though they are ever at the same level? By close reading, we know Shakespeare and Twain suggest that honor is more to people than just their races when evaluating the social value. People who have honor are respected from other people and remain high in their society. What should be

consider as honorable? Service to the country, knowledgeable, or even money, and so on. Othello is a Moor, and he is ever sold to slavery. What does make him to be a noble general? It is the services to the state: .My services which I have done the Signiory shall out-tongue his complaints x (Shakespeare 1.2.18-19). Even the Duke will not look down on Othello, who is an Arab, like the Turks (the enemy of Venice). He believes .Othello, the fortitude of the place is best known to you x (Shakespeare 1.3.219-220) and employs him .against the general enemy Ottoman x (Shakespeare 1.3.47-48). Therefore, race is not an obstacle to Othello s military career. Twain also suggests race is not the only issue to define social construct. For example, .There was a free nigger there, they said he

was a p fessor in a college, and could talk all kinds of language, and knowed everything they said he could vote x (Twain 26; ch.6). This professor is the same race with Jim, but why he even has the right to vote? It is not only because he lives in the North of American, but also because he is knowledgeable. No every nigger in the North has the honor of voting, actually only few does at that time. Therefore, race is not totally determined whether the professor or a nigger has the right to vote or not. Other people respect Othello and the nigger professor for their honor, and the people do not really care about their races. On the other hand, dishonor will make people lose their society position and their reputation. In Othello, Cassio is an honorable lieutenant, .an honest fellow

x (Shakespeare 3.3.4). Othello trusts him, treats him as his friend, and calls him .good Michael x, .Michael x. It is this grand honor that Iago is jealous of. But drunken Cassio loses his reputation since he fights with Montano other than guards the watch. Othello calls him .Cassio x and tells him .never more be officer of mine x (Shakespeare 2.3.248). A lieutenant suddenly becomes an ordinary man due to the dishonorable thing he does. .O, I have lost my reputation! I have lost the immortal part of myself, and what remains is bestial (Shakespeare 2.2.261-263), Cassio confesses. Twain also give us some examples. For instance, pap gains the reputation from the new judge s family because they have sympathy for him, and pap also swears: .It is the hand of a man that s started in on

a new life. x .The judge says it is the holiest time on record and tucks the old man into a beautiful room x (Twain 22; ch. 5). It seems that pap s value is revalidated. But once pap .trades his new coat for a jug of forty-rod (Twain 22; ch. 5) and gets drunken again, pap loses his flick of reputation and becomes old pap again. .The judge reckons a body could reform the ole man with a shot-gun x (Twain 22; ch. 5). Cassio and pap all are white people, who are the majority in their society, but they do not have expected social value because they do something dishonorable. Therefore, the code of honor is different in all these examples, but honor is used to determine the social construct other than simply race. Since honor is so important and valuable, people will do everything to