Othello Good Vs Evil

In William Shakespeare’s Othello, the characters’ personalities and motivations influence the plot heavily. Iago is driven by his jealousy of Cassio and his desire to exact revenge on Othello. Othello’s trusting nature leads to his undoing in the play. Iago takes advantage of how he’s seen in the eyes of those around him to carry out his plans. Although Othello is the protagonist of the play and Iago is the antagonist, the two characters are not the ultimate portrayals of good and evil. Othello is not a war between good and evil, but instead a demonstration on how destructive jealousy and gullibleness can be. Othello’s downfall is brought about by his exploitable nature and is not a portrayal of evil triumphing over good. Othello places a
Upon revealing his suspicions of Cassio and Desdemona to Othello, Iago warns Othello that he should “beware … of jealousy/ It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock/ The meat it feeds on” (3.3 167-69). Despite Iago’s warning, Othello falls victim to the green-eyed monster and his actions demonstrate that. When Othello is convinced that Desdemona has slept with Cassio, he wishes to hear from Iago that “Within these three days… Cassio’s not alive” (3.3 472-73). Othello’s action here is driven completely by jealousy because rather than killing Cassio and delivering justice with his own hands, he sends Iago to kill him. Othello’s plot to kill Cassio is done for revenge, not for the sake of doing good and upon being informed that the attempt to kill Cassio failed, he states “murder’s out of tune/ And sweet revenge grows harsh” (5.2 116-17). Othello expresses dissatisfaction upon hearing that Cassio lives not because justice has yet to prevail, but because he has not gotten revenge. Othello being ruled over by his envy is also seen when he kills Desdemona. He attempts to justify his reason for murder because “she’ll betray more men” (5.2 6) and is also fully aware of what he’s about to do but after killing her, he begins to regret what he’s done. By murdering his beloved wife, Othello can no longer claim that his actions were done for the sake of good, nor can he deny that he’s been
Iago craves getting revenge and taking what he believes is rightfully his and will do anything he has to in order to achieve those goals. Iago wants to take “revenge/ For that I do suspect the lusty Moor/ Hath leap’d into my seat” (2.2 283-85) not because he wishes to cause chaos. He also seeks to take the lieutenant spot away from Cassio because he’s proven himself to be a strong soldier in battle, but he’s achievements have been “lee’d and calm’d/ By debitor and creditor; this counter-caster” (1.1 30-31). Iago’s poor self-esteem leaves him jealous of Othello’s achievements and Cassio’s looks and status, while also leaving him very doubtful and ungrateful for the things he does have. He suspects that his wife has cheated on him without any actual proof and treats her with an aloof behavior, while Othello and Desdemona have a very happy and loving marriage. In comparison to Cassio, Iago is not seen as very good looking or much of a scholar. Iago performs all of his deeds to satisfy his jealousy and self-esteem because he’s surrounded by people who are far more accomplished than he