Although the reasoning behind why Iago does the things he does is never fully revealed to the audience it is made known that he was upset over the fact that he was passed over for the lieutenant position Michael Cassio received. This perceived slight causes a deep resentment and anger towards Othello. Though, this is not the true motivation for what he does; rather, it is more due to Iago’s wanting everyone to feel the pain, jealousy, and anger that he does. According to Marcia Macaulay, [Iago] “is consumed by the desire to exact revenge on those whom he feels has wronged him at some point” (#). Verona and Omer expand on the idea with the statement “[Iago] stirs up emotions not to make [Othello] take out from his soul the excessive burden …show more content…
His hate for him is further increased by Othello’s other accolades like becoming a general in the Venetian army. In the mind of Iago, he is inferior to Othello in these two areas, which is why he plans to attack him on these points. Iago then makes plans to both make Othello lose his prestigious General position in the military (I,iii,395), and cause mistrust and grief for Othello and Desdemona, eventually causing a rift in their relationship (I,iii,339). Despite Iago’s ideal encapsulation of the “villain” persona, in which his nature is one of very untrustworthy and extremely manipulative, he manages to control his emotions and jealousy to a great degree. Even to such an extent that Othello calls him nicknames like “Honest Iago” and “Fair Iago”. Due to the secretive nature Iago possesses, his moves are precise and calculated which leads to unexpected and very harsh attacks. One example of the influence Iago’s jealousy had on his plans are shown in Act three, in which the character Cassio found a random handkerchief on the bed in his room. This exemplifies the deceitfulness of Iago’s character. The audience can clearly see how finely woven and deceptive Iago’s plan was, from the coincidence of Emilia putting the handkerchief on the bed of Cassio, to Bianca assuming Cassio was leaving her for another …show more content…
The story fabricated by Iago about Cassio and Desdemona’s relationship was created out of convenience. The ultimate goal for Iago is to trigger Othello and cause him to grow incredibly jealous under the premise that his wife was having an affair. Iago being the careful thinker he is, doesn’t let a good opportunity to sow a seed of doubt pass. So when he and Othello see Desdemona and Cassio, he made comments about what their intentions might be. This, though small, made Othello consider that his wife may in fact be cheating; this was important because it sowed a seed of doubt in Othello’s mind. In a few dialogues between Othello and Iago, after Iago talked with Cassio, Iago twists his previous conversation in order to make Othello more and more suspicious. In regards to one such conversation Omer and Verona said “This exchange shows Iago’s knack for seeding these negative ideas through implied communications,” (#). After this interaction, Othello is left with a deep desire to know what was said between the two characters; which leads him to obsess over the thought of his wife’s possible
When Othello asks Iago for proof of Desdemona’s deceit, Iago describes scenes and events in which Othello has a reason to be jealous. In Act III, Scene I Iago is describing to Othello, Desdemona and Cassio’s imagined relationship, “It is impossible you should see this/ were they as prime as goats, as hot as monkeys, as salt as wolves in pride, and fools as gross as ignorance made drunk.” These images planted themselves inside Othello’s mind and haunted him until he did something about it. These images led to Othello believing Desdemona really did love Cassio.
Iago wanted Othello’s position and used others to shame Othello and gain stature. Iago dressed himself up a trustworthy man and worked his way into Othello’s trust with tricks and lies. He wore a very convincing mask; often temporarily defending the person he was trying to ruin to further his honest visage. He says to Othello, “Men should be what they seem…” (3.3.127) through these methods, Iago convinces Othello that Cassio, an officer, was having an affair with Othello’s beautiful wife Desdemona. As a vicious result, Othello is driven mad with anger and sadness and throttles Desdemona in their bed. The death and want left by Iago’s deception is vast hurting everyone involved most frequently on a mortal level. When the truth finally comes out, Othello, in his grief and remorse, ends up stabbing himself with a dagger. In the end, many die due to Iago’s deception, through villainy or despair, and none gain what they truly want because of it. This just goes to show that the mask of deception that a man wears can cause an unbelievable amount of harm, bodily and worse,
Critics such as M. R. Ridley believe that the ability to hurt is the most
In the play Othello, the very evil and conniving character Iago deceives the main characters. He prays mostly on the main character Othello. Othello is a black general who is married to a white woman named Desdemona. In the beginning of the play Othello promotes a man named Cassio to be his right hand man in his army. Iago, thinking that he was going to get the promotion, is furious by this and swears revenge on Othello. In his revenge he uses many people. One of these people is Rodrigo. He is in love with Othello’s wife Desdemona. Iago prays on Rodrigo and causes him to have a battle with Cassio. Iago prays very heavily on Othello towards the middle of the play. He begins to tell him that his wife Desdemona is cheating on him with Cassio. Iago plans this perfectly. Iago tells Othello to keep close watch on his wife Desdemona. At the same time he told Cassio to be very good to Desdemona. Iago tells Cassio that the only way to be back on Othello’s good side was to get close to his love, and that is Desdemona. So while Othello’s suspicious are up, Cassio is being especially nice to Desdemona. Iago chose a very good time to attack Othello’s emotions. At a time when Cassio has wronged Othello, he tells Cassio to get close to Othello’s wife, the love of his life. For a lot of Othello’s rule, Iago has been like Othello’s advise giver. He has been like a best friend to Othello. Iago was not only Othello’s advise giver but to many persons of power. This puts him in a great position already to do his evil bidding. Othello plays right along with Iago’s plan. Othello believes everything that Iago says. In a way, he falls into Iago’s plan a little to well. For Iago, everything happens at exactly the right time. Othello listens to what Iago says because Iago has gained much trust from Othello. He has no reason not to believe what Iago was saying. He played a part in his own downfall because he falls for every lie that Iago throws at him. He needed to have a stronger mind for things like that. Othello needed to think harder about what was being said to him by Iago. At the time that Iago was telling him these lies, it all seemed to make sense.
Implicitly targeting Othello’s doubts about marrying Desdemona and insecurities about her actions with infidelity, Iago eventually impacts Othello enough that the General himself confides in Iago about his own wife. Earlier in the play, ‘honest Iago’ needs to first gain Othello’s confidence and he does so by expressing his loyalty to Cassio, “I had rather have this tongue cut from my mouth/ Than it should do offence to Michael Cassio”, while Othello is present in a conflict (2.3. 203-204). Then, later in the play Iago baits Othello by suggesting that Desdemona and Cassio are having an affair. Immediately, Othello wants more information; however, Iago nervously responds with, “…vicious in my guess-/ As I confess…” and tries to calm Othello by saying, “My noble lord-” (3.3 46-47, 93). When voicing his devotion to Cassio, Iago immediately begins to play on his false reputation as ‘honest Iago’. He enables Othello, and his fellow characters, to think highly of him and to respect that even when his partner, Cassio, has not been following orders, Iago would even endure physical pain and have his “tongue cut from [his] mouth” and proves his locality (2.3. 203). This leads to when Iago responds to Othello’s queries, about
He is also convinced that Desdemona is secretly in love with Cassio, and thus the wicked manipulations are prompted by genuine sexual jealousy. Shakespeare removes this motive, mentions Othello 's promotion of Cassio over Iago, and leaves only a few passing references to possible sexual jealousy. Iago alludes twice to his suspicions that both Othello and Cassio may have slept with his wife: "I do suspect the lusty Moor / Hath leaped into my seat" (2.1.295-6); and only parenthetically, "(For I fear Cassio with my nightcap too)" (2.1.307). When Iago first refers to the rumor about Othello and his wife, however, he adds oddly, "I know not if it be true, / But I, for mere suspicion in that kind, / Will do, as if for surety" (1.3.379-381). In an article titled "Psychoanalysis after September 11" (2002), Jonathan Lear refers to Iago as a representation of such motiveless maliciousness. Iago embodies, Lear argued, a hatred that cannot be rationalized, an evil not based on reasons. Lear drew a distinction between jealousy and envy; while the jealous Othello attacks because he believes he has lost the good object or been betrayed by it, the envy that Iago represents "attacks the good because it is good." In these two different events, Iago expresses his suspicion of Othello’s honesty when previously he loathes Othello because of his honesty. Iago seems to come to the conclusion that is impossible for Othello to cheat him because
As early as the first scene of the play Iago shows us strong motives for his actions. In this first scene we see Othello, a general of Venice, has made Cassio his new lieutant. Iago feels he truly deserves his promotion as he says "I know my price, I am worth more no worse a place."(l.i.12) Iago over here is confused why Othello has made such a stupid decision. Iago is a man with a tremendous ego who knows, sometimes overestimates, his worth. Roderigo, a Venetian gentleman, understands Iago when Iago said that he is "affined to love the Moor."(l.i.41-42) What Iago really means is "I follow him to serve my term upon him."(l.i.45) Iago wants to use Othello for his personal goals. We also must put ourselves into Iago's shoes. He is a man whose self-esteem and professional carrier have just been torn apart. Iago makes his actions of revenge toward Othello almost immediately by informing Brabantio, a Venetian senator and father of Desdemona, that "an old black ram (Othello) is tupping (his) white ewe (Desdemona)."(l.i.97)
Shakespearian tales always leave us with a plethora to ponder about the Elizabethan age and Shakespeare himself. “Othello” is no break in this mold, leaving us to ponder the roll of Iago within the harsh tale of love and murder. Iago is the one to tell Othello of his wife’s betrayal with Cassio, hence making up a story that will work to his favor yet betray those around him. Iago betrays his wife, Emilia, but not only her as he drags Othello, Desdemona, and Cassio into the mix of lies and the hatred he is spreading to improve his rank with Othello. But were Iago’s acts unjust and done for the sake of it? Is he a heartless man who’s only happiness is to bring sorrow upon others? No, Iago has a just reason for what he does, even though he causes the deaths of Cassio, Emilia, and Desdemona in his search for revenge; Iago is not a heartless fiend, just a man wronged.
Iago in William Shakespear’s play “Othello” offers a precise explanation; Iago is a hateful, havoc seeking manipulator who holds several motives behind destroying several lives. From the beginning of the play, the reader is captivated by Iago’s character of a villain. In the beginning of the play it is revealed to the reader through the conversation between Iago and Rodriguez that Iago loathes Othello because he was not assigned the position of Lieutenant. However, it seems as the story progresses, more factors come into play regarding his hate towards Othello. He reveals another motive in a soliloquy; that he despises Othello because he slept with his wife. Furthermore, Iago 's hate towards Othello could also be attributed to Othello 's African
Iago is one of the most complex characters in William Shakespeare’s Othello. To most of the characters, he is “Honest Iago” (Shakespeare, 5.2.73). however, the audience knows that Iago is the furthest thing from honest. Iago is a devil bent on destroying the lives of everyone around him. At the beginning of the play, the audience learns that Iago is determined to ruin Othello’s marriage to Desdemona. He has appointed a new lieutenant, Michael Cassio. This angers Iago because he feels that he has much more military experience and should be the lieutenant. Iago has also heard rumours that both Othello and Cassio have slept with his wife Emilia. He concocts a malicious plan to ruin the lives of all who have wronged him, and consequently establishing
Iago intends to orchestrate the demise of Cassio and Othello. On the surface, winning a promotion was the catalyst for Iago’s rage but bringing down only Cassio does not satisfy his bloodthirsty rage. Although Iago is cunning and ruthless in his pursuit to ruin Othello, the plot spins out of his control and only gains traction when his wife, Emilia unknowingly helps him. At this point Iago is poised to fail but the possession of Desdemona’s handkerchief provides a key piece of “ocular proof (Shakespeare)” that Othello requires to be convinced of Desdemona’s infidelity. Iago loses control of the situation. His stated purpose is to suppl...
All Iago had to do was hint at Desdemona being unfaithful and Othello’s becomes very bothered it and eventually starts believing it. The author of an essay does an analysis on Iago and says “He slowly poisons people’s thoughts, creating ideas in their heads without implicating himself. Iago even says himself that the advice he gives is free and honest and thus, people rarely stop to consider the possibility that Iago is fooling them.“ (Shakespeare’s Othello – Honest Iago). So Iago would hint at something going between Desdemona and Cassio so that Othello would become bothered and ask him what he means by that, it was like a game that Iago was playing, he would drop a little hint and then expect Othello to pick up on it and start questioning it and become more even suspicious. Brabantio tells Othello “Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see. She has deceived her father, and may thee” (I.ii.286-287), So In this scene Brabantio warns Othello that Desdemona has already fooled him and she might fool him too, so be careful, and it turns out, Othello believed in him after all and that’s part of the reason of why he thinks that Desdemona is being unfaithful to him. It leads him to start questioning Desdemona in a very suspicious way. At one point he even hits her in front of a nobleman and that was very shocking to the nobleman because he believed him to be a very calm and collected gentleman but obviously he was a changed man. The nobleman even expresses his shock by saying that “My lord, this would not be believed in Venice, though I should swear I saw’t. ‘Tis very much make her amends; she weeps” (IV .i.217-219). This negative thinking and insecurity was one of the main reasons to Othello’s change in a negative way. A lot of this was Iago’s doing but it was also Othello’s fault to fall for Iago’s
Throughout the drama, Othello let Iago control him as if he was a puppet under his master’s hands. When Iago first brought up the idea that Desdemona and Cassio might be having an affair, Othello did not believe him, he had faith in his wife. After many lies that Iago planted in Othello’s ears, Othello started to believe him and he dropped most of the faith that he had in Desdemona. Iago told Othello that in his sleep, Cassio said “Sweet Desdemona, let us be wary, let us hide our love”. Cursed fate that gave thee the Moor” (III.iii.416-417).
middle of paper ... ... At first, Iago cites his rage about being passed over for the promotion to lieutenancy as his reasoning for hating Othello. Then, his rage is suddenly the result of suspecting Emilia and Othello of having had an affair, not because of the promotion that he did not receive. Roderigo calls Iago out on his change in motivation.
Iago’s cunning strength lies in his ability to undermine every single character through their weaknesses. Specifically, Othello and Roderigo are the main victims of his lies and deceit. The trait Iago abuses in Roderigo is his naive nature. From the very start of the play, Iago cheats Roderigo of his money and later tricks him into attempting to kill Cassio: “I have no great devotion to the deed, / And yet he hath given me satisfying reasons. / ‘Tis but a man gone. Forth my sword! He dies!” (5.1. 8-10). Evidently, this gullible character is manipulated through the words of Iago as he attempts to kill Cassio for a chance at Desdemona. After his failure in doing so, Iago stabs Roderigo, as he is of no use anymore. In giving his trust to the misleading antagonist, Roderigo leaves himself completely vulnerable. This demonstrates how ruthlessly Iago uses this foolish character, as his longing for Desdemona is the cause of his death. The other victim, Othello, is the main target and falls furthest into this manipulative villain’s layers of lies. Iago is very strategic in his attacks and notices that Othello has a great deal of trust in him which can be easily torn apart. Iago uses this trait to get Othello to believe everything he says and begins by planting the seed of suspicion that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio because of his understanding of