What were some punishments for adultery in Elizabethan times?
River, some of the earlier answers refer to Henry VIII’s court, and his multiple wives. One was executed on a charge of adultery, but it was considered TREASON because she was the wife of the king. During Elizabeth I’s time, similar events took place among her many swains and courtiers – people in the upper ranks of society were NOT their own persons – their decisions about marriages and alliances were literally affairs of state and the Crown had authority over them. So, in the matter of Othello, there is a state interest in Desdemona’s behavior. It is NOT simply that Iago and Othello are rivals (and RACE had NOTHING to do with this issue – race was inconsiderable at that time). While the matter of ego and wounded pride indeed is the central element of the conflict, the death of Desdemona as a matter of public safety and stability is ultimately the basis of her death. “Othello,” by the way, was a pastiche – a play created to really discuss the similar events during elizabeth’s reign, a
