Iago's Unhealthy Attitudes Towards Women In Othello

The play Othello, written by Shakespeare, is a tragedy that stems from deception and stereotypical attitudes. Initially, the protagonist Othello is portrayed as a loving husband, who truly endears Desdemona and worships her beauty. However, the villainous Iago manipulates Othello and accuses Desdemona of infidelity. Iago not only looks to replace Cassio as Othello’s lieutenant, but to create disparity and distrust between Othello and Desdemona. In a society where women are forced to be subservient to their husbands or otherwise be accused of infidelity or adultery, women are constantly marginalized throughout the play. By manifesting sexist attitudes towards women, Iago victimizes innocent women and tears apart relationships. The central conflict

When Desdemona attests to loving Othello, Brabantio remarks to Othello “Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see / She has deceived her father, and may thee” (I.iii.333-334). Brabantio suggests to Othello that Desdemona is promiscuous since she desires to be with Othello without his consent. Othello on the other hand, sees this as Desdemona’s loyalty towards him and therefore ignores Brabantio. While Desdemona is completely innocent, Iago is able to convince Othello that Desdemona is having a private affair with Cassio: “She [Desdemona] did deceive her father, marrying you” (III.iii. 238) to which Othello responds “And so she did” (III.iii. 241). Othello reflects back on conversation with Brabantio, in which Brabantio had accused Desdemona of eloping with him. Othello concludes that she is taking advantage of him in order to have an affair with Cassio, and is therefore cheating on him. Despite Iago’s lies of Desdemona’s fidelity, Othello’s vulnerability to believe his lies and quickly accuse Desdemona as a “whore” suggests that Othello is a

When Othello confronts Desdemona, he strikes her and exclaims “O, devil, devil! / If that the earth could teem with woman's tears / Each drop she falls would prove a crocodile!” (IV.i.273-275). Othello abuses Desdemona both physically and emotionally, despite that fact that he has not explicitly told her why he is aggravated nor has he asked Desdemona for her side of the story. Later on in the play, when Emilia asks Desdemona who had harmed her, she blames it on herself: “Nobody; I myself. Farewell” (V.ii.125). This moment conveys how subservient Desdemona is, despite being fully innocent. Desdemona conforms to societal norms at the time, in which women took the blame for any infidelity. Emilia, on the other hand, is a proto-feminist who persuades Desdemona to step up against the status quo: “But I do think it is their husbands' faults / If wives do fall… Let husbands know / Their wives have sense like them” (IV.iii. 97-98, 104- 105). Emilia is advocating for women, since she acknowledges their mistreatment by oppressive husbands. Considering that she is the wife of Iago, it is also a possibility that she faces the same abuse as Desdemona, which allow the two women to empathize with each