Harlem Duet

In Shakespeare’s Othello, Desdemona receives the gift of a white handkerchief from Othello, whose mother gifted it to him. It is a token of love and affection, and represents fidelity; however, if not properly cared for, the handkerchief will bring about pain and sorrow. This was true in Othello, and the same holds true in Harlem Duet. Each version of her Othello has given his version of Billie a white handkerchief detailed with strawberries, and everyone who encountered it was befallen with tragedy.

There is an inconsistency in Shakespeare’s Othello regarding the origin of the handkerchief. Othello claims in Act III, Scene 4 that the handkerchief was given to his mother by an Egyptian sibyl to protect and retain the love of her husband, Othello’s father. In Act V, Scene 2, however, Othello, claims that the handkerchief was a token gift to his mother from his father. Based on the text of Harlem Duet, Sears incorporates both possibilities, as the handkerchief is described several times as a gift from husband to wife, and that each wife bestowed it to her son, Othello, to give to his future wife. Still, the connection to the Egyptian sibyl also serves as inspiration for the playwright, most notably when Billie’s birth name is revealed to be Sybil.