as "creatures of boundless cruelty, holding no act of violence too extreme" (Papp and Kirkland 53). Among the characteristics ascribed to the Turks in Shakespeare's time were stubbornness, lustfulness, and barbarism.
In Othello, the Turks are the enemy, and they are referred to again and again collectively as "the Turk." Othello says to Desdemona, "Nay, it is true, or else I am a Turk" (II.i.147), implying that the Turk is a liar. The ease with which such attitudes are used simply by raising the word "Turk" shows that these attitudes were prevalent in this time, and in this play, no direct explanations are offered as to why the Turk is not to be trusted and is the enemy. Indeed, the role of the Turk as enemy is merely assumed, so much so that overt denunciation of the Turk is not necessary. The mere that the Turk is the enemy in the war is sufficient, but clearly Shakespeare is us
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