《奧塞羅》(Othello)與《哈姆雷特》(Hamlet)、《李爾王》(King Lear)和《馬克白》(Macbeth)並列爲莎士比亞的四大悲劇。其中《奧塞羅》爲四大悲劇中人物最少、故事衝突最集中的一齣，劇中具名角色共十二人，寶屬規模較小，《奧塞羅》甲主要環繞主題的角色也僅有五位耳；《奧塞羅》中的主人翁奧寨羅(Othello)非皇族出身，憑著爲國在沙場上爭取榮耀，而得到眾人的崇敬，成爲威尼斯將軍。本劇故事描述土耳其軍艦襲擊威尼斯所佔有的塞浦勒斯，奧塞羅奉命出征，但一抵達就傳來土耳其艦隊因風雨而潰散的消息，使故事的危機轉向家庭事件發展，無涉國家興衰。隨後被《奧塞羅》中的反派角色埃古(Iago)，施以陰謀加以陷害，藉奧塞羅對他的信任，日夜洗腦，最終正直的奧塞羅醋性大發不但失了得力的助手，失了名譽，更親手掐死了心愛的人。20世紀人類學家維克多．特納(Victor Turner, 1920-1983)是「社會戲劇」(social drama)理論的立論者其中包含的四個階段，以及「結構」和「反結構」觀念可解釋大至社會社團，小至－衝突事件的歷程。本文即以「社會戲劇」理論，以《奧塞羅》爲例作爲探討，研究其劇中的儀式成分。

Othello, as one of Shakespeare's most tragic plays, includes least characters but most conflicts. Though there are twelve roles, only five main characters are important. Othello, the general of Venice, won his reputation in war and was honored by the people. The plot begins when the Turkish attacked Cyprus, belonging to Venice. Othello was ordered to recapture the lost land. However, a crisis turned into domestic affairs while the Turkish retreated because of the storms. Iago, Othello's trusted adviser, backstabed Othello by making rumors that his lieutenant Cassio had an affairs with his wife, Desdemona. In the end, Othello's jealousy bursts, which not only made him lost his right-hand man but also choke his wife to death in person. Victor Turner develops the theory of social drama, which contains four levels and the concepts of "structure" and "anti-structure" to explain the process of conflicts. This paper is to explain the rituals in Othello based on Turner's theory.