In Act One, Scene One of Othello, there is one main story and theme that can be easily related to the story that is portrayed in the Sports Movie, "Remember the Titans." Remember the Titans was a movie that came out in the year 2000, and was based on a true story. Even though there were many fictional parts of the story, it is still a viable story to compare because this movie will go down as one of the greatest sports movies of all time, and is somewhat based upon an actual event. Now, while not all of the story was true, it was based upon the integration of the T.C. Williams High School football team, in Alexandria, Virginia in 1971.
In Act One of Othello, Othello is a general and is held in high regards in Venice. Othello hires Michael Cassio as the lieutenant in the army, and this angers Iago, because he wanted the job, and he thought he deserved it, especially considering Cassio had no experience in the job.
Iago was very angry like this, and as we later learn, he is certainly far from a man of character. Iago pretends to be following and respecting Othello, but in reality, he wants Othello to suffer, and does sneaky things to plot for Othello's suffering, and he starts to do this in this chapter.
Othello is planning to marry the amazing Desdemona. Desdemona is the daughter of Brabanzio. Rodrigo also wanted to marry Desdemona, but Brabanzio did not want Rodrigo marrying his daughter. For Iago to get Othello to suffer, he tells Rodrigo to go to Brabanzio, and tell him that Othello and Desdemona are having sex. In doing this, Iago makes Brabanzio very angry at Othello, and accomplishes exactly what he wants to, as Brabanzio begins to dislike Othello and goes to look for his daughter.
Now, how does this relate?
Ok, in the movie "Remember the Titans", Denzel Washington, who plays Coach Herman Boone, is a black coach who was named the Head Coach of the T.C. Williams High School football team. With Boone being hired, it meant that old Head Coach, Bill Yoast (played by Will Patton) would no longer be Head Coach, and was demoted to Assistant Coach, and that made a lot of people in the town angry.
Denzel is related to Othello in this because, for starters they both had bias against them because of their color. Both are black men, and black men were looked upon differently in these societies. The combination of Coach Yoast and the people of the town depict Iago, because a backlash came about due to the hiring of someone that the people didn't want and an issue concerning someone else's job. In this case, the issue with the job would be Yoast no longer being the Head Coach.
Once coach Boone is hired as Head Coach, the people of Alexandria held riots and protests against his hiring. Also, later in the story, we learn that if coach Boone loses any games, that Boone will be fired immediately. This causes for coach Yoast to think of possibly not coaching well, in hopes that the team loses, and Boone is fired, returning him to the Head Coach position. Yoast wanted Boone to suffer and could make it happen by his actions, just as Iago wanted to make Othello suffer, and made it happen through his actions.
The only major difference in these stories, is that in the movie, coach Yoast becomes friends with coach Boone, and they win all their games and its all happily ever after, while in the play, Iago continually tries to ruin Othello's life, and is successful in doing so.
Now, how different would the story have been if coach Yoast had never changed his mind. Instead of an inspiring story of a recently integrated school winning a state championship, and helping to end racial tension, it would of been a story in which the white man wins solely for being white and a backstabber, and the racial tension heightens, and then who knows what would follow. The actions of one man can truly change the course of history, especially at T.C. Williams High School.
Helpful Sources: http://www.chasingthefrog.com/reelfaces/rememberthetitans.php
