Iago is an evil person but that is all he is guilty of being. Othello was a proven warrior and was respected by high ranking officials because of his proven leadership. However, Othello was a bad judge of character and exercised poor judgment throughout the play by blindly and naively believing Iago’s lies. He did not trust the people that truly loved him and were most loyal to him. This character flaw was exploited masterfully by Iago, to the point that Othello became insanely jealous of the perceived affair between Desdemona and Cassio.…
At the beginning of the play, Iago makes it clear that he wanted Cassio’s position as Othello’s lieutenant: “I know my price; I am worth no worse a place” (Othello I.i.10). He feels that the position belongs to him, and he becomes extremely envious when the position is given to Cassio instead. Lancer mentions that envy is a defense mechanism to insecurity and that those who experience envy “might [even] go so far as to sabotage, misappropriate, or defame the envied person.” This is exactly what Iago does; he conjures up a plan to sabotage Othello and defame Cassio in his fit of rage by using something he has mastered: jealousy/envy. In her essay, “Jealousy in Othello,” Jennifer Putnam states that Iago “wants everyone to feel as he does so he engineers the jealousy of other characters” (43). In short, Iago wanted to bring everyone, specifically Othello, down to the same level as him. He wanted those who made him feel insecure to share the same feelings in hopes of destroying…
The only things that human beings need to survive in this world are: food, shelter, and relationships. Humans by nature cannot successfully exist on their own, for that reason they are instinctively inclined to crave relationships with others. Whether a relationship be romantic or strictly platonic, it is crucial that one develop a proper foundation before trusting wholeheartedly. The foundation of a relationship, much like any other type of foundation, protects it from threatening outside forces, such as people with malicious intentions, or simply the trials of life in general. There are a myriad of useful qualities that can make up said foundation, however, several important examples are: knowledge of a partner’s character, open communication…
Iago is a cruel and evil man who uses ways to ruin Othello and Desdemona’s relationship. Othello appointed Cassio, to be his lieutenant. Iago was mad when he heard about it, he believes that he should be the one for the position since he knows more. This started off with his jealousy of Cassio. When Othello and Desdemona got married without letting anyone knowing, Iago begins to plot his plan. He used Roderigo to help him throughout the process of his plan to bring down Cassio. He then told Othello lies to ruin his own relationship. He also use Bianca as his part of the plan. Iago got people into thinking he was a nice honest guy, but he uses other people's jealousy and gullibleness for his own benefit.…
In this play, jealousy is a dangerous, cruel quality. It is the reason for the downfall of Iago, Roderigo and Othello…
In the play ,Iago comes off as a diabolical character who sets everyone's lives on fire .However, his motives are often questioned as they seem relatively vague in the play.Throughout the play he cites various reasons to hate Othello.Firstly, he is upset by the fact that Iago chose Cassio over him and promoted Cassio.He feels that he was the perfect candidate for Cassio's position and feels insulted by Othello's choice.He confesses this to Roderigo in the following lines:…
Iago gets the power that he wants from misleading and taking advantage of them to further his plans. Usually in books, villains are created for the reader to hate, but Shakespeare has found some way to make Iago a villain worth being liked.…
Iago shows himself as a two faced person, he seems loyal and respectful toward Othello; however he is totally opposite person behind Othello’s back. “I hate the Moor.” This quotation given by Iago is short and simple, and straight to the point. Iago has hatred towards Othello due to the fact he had given Cassio the promotion that was rightfully his. Furthermore, Iago is manipulating everyone’s thoughts so he can gain the rank that was ‘taken’ from him.…
Beginning with the character Iago, one can see his jealousy fuel a villainous plot to demonstrate the dangers of the emotion. While explaining his hatred for Cassio to Roderigo, Iago complains, “One Michael Cassio . . . that never set a squadron in the field, nor the division of a battle knows . . . had the election” (Shakespeare 5). The conflict evident in Iago’s words is used by Shakespeare to bring forth the destructive nature of jealousy. From the get go, Shakespeare establishes Iago as the villain and Othello as the victim and in doing so, pushes the audience towards feeling sympathetic towards Othello and feeling hatred towards and rooting against Iago. Additionally, the conflict Shakespeare uses characterizes the character of Iago as jealous, which also contributes to molding the audience’s opinions towards him and a development of jealousy’s notoriety. While Shakespeare first introduces the conflict between Iago and Cassio as one over status and power towards the beginning of Othello, he brings the audience’s attention to Iago’s conflict with the Moor by having Iago exclaim, “I hate the Moor, and it is thought abroad that twixt my sheets he has done my office” (Shakespeare 54). Again, in this quote, Shakespeare uses the conflict between Iago and Othello to paint Iago as overly jealous man. The goal of these portrayals was to shine light on jealousy and the dangers that come with it. By portraying Iago as the jealous villain through conflict and Cassio and Othello as innocent victims, Shakespeare sends the idea that jealousy can destroy the…
“Deceit and falsehood, whatever conveniences they may for a time promise or produce, are in the sum of life obstacles to happiness. Those who profit by the cheat distrust the deceiver, and the act by which kindness is sought puts an end to confidence”(Johnson218).Iago’s motives for his actions may be jealousy, greed, paranoia , and even the simple fact of seeing if he can get away with it. Iago has built a reputation that yields its own gravity. If Shakespeare’s setting took place in America, Iago would be the American dream. He’s married, he is a sound soldier, has an affinity for people, and is always there to help someone in need. Iago is the typical role model. What society fails to realize is that Iago does noble acts when visible but it remains unknown as to what his true intentions are. Iago’s relationship with Othello is one that gives with the right hand and takes with the left. In the right hand, putting race aside, Iago looks up to Othello as a father: he desires his attention, always wants to be involved in his life, and is someone whose footsteps he’d like to follow. Then we have Iago’s left hand, which takes race into account, cannot stand Othello to the point that his very own existence is to become the poison that fills his lungs and the host of the illusion that clouds his mind. The relationship between them is almost incredulous. Iago literally wants to be everything for Othello, the good and the bad. For this reason I believe it vindicates Iago’s methods towards Cassio.…
Iago has heard rumors that Othello has slept with his wife and that is what drives his hate towards Othello. From what we read Othello is not the character to betray his ancient, Iago. Othello trusts Iago a little too much; Therefore he would not do anything to break that trust. Also, Othello shows he has a great deal of respect towards other people by flattering the dukes before defending himself from Brabantio's claims. He calls them “potent, grave, and reverend” out of respect because he wants to please the Dukes. Othello is portrayed to us thus far as an honorable and courageous man and so he would not do something as low as sleeping with a friends wife. Iago believes this because he feels Othello is trying to ruin him. Othello did not…
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…
In Shakespeare's Othello betrayal is one of the most important motifs. The plot of this play is centered around the idea of Iago’s betrayals. Throughout the story Iago puppets his friends and family in an attempt to gain his desires. In accordance to his plan he betrays his friends and family creating a chain reaction causing them to leave their beliefs. However, Iago’s plan fails and leads to the downfall of many of the characters. As the plot continues to develop, betrayal is one of the key elements contributing towards the plays overall meaning.…
Othello is a man very conscious and in some ways obsessed with reputation. He himself is aware of this, as shown in the preceding lines: "I pray you, in your letters, / When you shall these unlucky deeds relate, / Speak of me as I am". Aware of the importance of opinion, which is inevitably affected by one's reputation, he quickly jumps to tell people of how he would like to be remembered. With this obsession with reputation, it is already clear that Othello has a strong motive to put a positive spin on his actions. Indeed, his preoccupation with his reputation and public image was one of the reasons that he killed Desdemona. Also, it is Iago's reputation as an honest man which allowed him to deceive Othello without Othello once questioning his words. Thus, Othello has a strong motive not to portray himself as he really is, but how he would want us to see him and so it is already possible to see that his account of his behaviour may not necessarily be an accurate one.…
Although Iago is called "honest" by almost everyone in the play, he is treacherous, deceitful, and manipulative. This can be seen when Iago shows the audience his intentions when he states that he has no loyalty to Othello: “I follow him to serve my turn upon him.” (Act 1, Scene 1). This shows that Iago has been plotting Othello’s downfall for quite some time. Iago further reveals his plans to the audience and states that Othello “will as tenderly be led by the nose as asses are” in Act 1, Scene 3, indicating his confidence in his ability to control the Othello. We see how Iago started telling Othello lies about Desdemona and Cassio how he thought they were having an affair. He did this by changing the appearance of things and making them look opposite of the actual reality. For example telling Othello that Desdemona gave her handkerchief to Cassio and how they have already slept together. Othello responds to the handkerchief situation saying “farewell tranquil mind farewell content. Farewell! Othello’s occupation is gone” (Act 3 scene 3). This shows us how Othello immediately believed Iago’s lies and now believes everything for him is ruined. It is these…