Iago of William Shakespeare's Othello
Who is Iago? Iago poisons people's thoughts, creating ideas in their heads without implicating himself. His first victim is Roderigo. Roderigo remarks, "That thou, Iago, who hast had my purse as if the strings were thine." [Act I, Scene I, Line 2] Throughout the play, Iago leads Roderigo, professing that ". . . I do hate [the Moor] as I do Hell pains." [Act I, Scene I, Line 152] He tells Roderigo to "Put money in thy purse" [Act I, Scene III, Line 328] so that he can win Desdemona with gifts. Iago keeps for himself those gifts that Roderigo intends for Desdemona.
Iago is smart. He is an excellent judge of people and their characters. He knows Roderigo is in love with Desdemona and would do anything to have her as his own. Iago says about Roderigo, "Thus do I ever make my fool my purse." [Act I, Scene III, Line 359] By playing on Roderigo's hopes, Iago is able to swindle money and jewels from him, thus making himself a profit, while using Roderigo to forward his other goals. He observes of Othello "The Moor is of a free and open nature that thinks men honest that but seem to be so" [Act I, Scene III, Line 375]
How does Iago see others? He sees the world and other people as animalistic and ruled by their basest desires. Perhaps Iago knows this because he knows himself so well. Iago warns Brabanzio that "even now an old black ram is tupping your white ewe?you?ll have your daughter covered with a Barbary horse, you?ll have your nephews neigh to you, you?ll have coursers for cousins, and jennets for germans" [Act 1, Scene 1, Line 88 and 110] Iago describes Othello as a man ". . . will tenderly be led by the nose as asses are." [Act I, Scene III, Line 377] Iago tells Roderigo "I never found a man that know how to love himself . . . Virtue! A fig! Tis in ourselves that we are thus or thus. Our bodies are gardens, to which our wills are gardeners . . . If the balance of our lives had not one scale of reason to poise another of sensuality, the blood and baseness of our natures would conduct us to most preposterous conclusions." [Act I, Scene III, Line 308] Iago?s intelligence and knowledge of human nature (others? and his own) allow him to control the other characters with ease.
How does Iago see himself? "Others there are who, trimmed in forms and visages of duty, keep yet their hearts attending on themselves, ...
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...n conflict of the play. Iago plans to ruin Othello and Cassio by carrying out a plan based on lies and deceit. This plan will make Iago the only person that Othello believes he can trust, and Iago will use this trust to manipulate Othello.
Foremost, Iago first plan to ruin Othello is to use Roderigo?s weakness to help him remove Cassio from his lieutenant position, which will in turn lead to both Othello?s and Cassio?s demise. Iago tells Roderigo to "put money in thy purse" (Shakespeare 53). Iago urges Roderigo to earn money now so that he can win Desdemona?s heart. Iago tells Roderigo what he wants to hear in order to enlist his help. Iago states that he would never associate with someone like Roderigo except to gain his own ends. ?Thus do I ever make my fool my purse--/ For I mine own gained knowledge should profane/ If I would time expand with such a snipe/ But for my sport and profit? (Shakespeare 55). Iago feels that Roderigo is a foolish man who exists only for his use. He manipulates Roderigo to his fullest extent then says he does so for his own ?sport and profit.?
Works Cited:
Shakespeare, William. Othello. Ed. Alfred Harbab. Middlesex, England: Penguin, 1970.
Without knowing the difference our actions would not fully represent us and would not be true to what we are trying to accomplish. If we did not know the difference then we could not make simple decisions without knowing which one to make. We are born with a conscience it is something that we should use constantly. You learn what is right and wrong the moment you are baby by observing around you and learning from your parents. Its important for us to know what is morally correct and not just socially acceptable. There is a huge difference between what is actually right and what is actually condoned and normalized by
Iago is a twenty- eight years old Caucasian married man and he is soldier in the Venetian army. Iago is viewed as modest, honest, and a good friend to people in public. People refer to him as “honest Iago” which lead them to trust him. Iago plans to destroy Othello by manipulating him to believe that his wife is being unfaithful to him with his promoted lieutenant Cassio, a position Iago wanted to have. Although the scandal that Iago came up with is a complete lie, Othello ends up believing him. Iago uses his ability to talk to people in order to accomplish his plan of destroying Othello because he wasn’t granted the position of the Venice army. (Sorto 1)
	The first scene of Act I illustrates Iago's use of manipulation. Iago knows that Roderigo is upset about losing Desdemona to Othello. Iago himself is angry at Othello for being passed over for promotion to lieutenant for Michael Cassio. Realizing that by playing on Roderigo's jealousy he can gain an ally to work against Othello. Iago does this in a subtle manner. He explains to Roderigo that he was passed up for promotion by Othello. While doing this he makes Othello look inferior by reinforcing the fact that he is a Moor. By pointing out that Othello is a Moor Iago causes Roderigo to become even more jealous, because of the fact that he lost Desdemona to someone who he feels is of a lesser race. It even seems that Iago is toying with Roderigo when he reveals that he is a fraud when he says, "I am not what I am." (I.i.62) By using these tactics, Iago has almost gained total control of Roderigo.
Roderigo is an emotional and fool-minded Venetian man that is in love with Desdemona. Roderigo’s life is tortured by his unceasing and unreciprocated love for Desdemona. After Iago tells Roderigo of Desdemona’s secret marriage to Othello, Roderigo feels there is no longer a will to live and says, “It is silliness to live when to live is torment.” (Othello. Act 1 Scene 3: 350.). Iago takes advantage of Roderigo’s sadness and assures Roderigo that if he does as Iago tells him, he will get Desdemona’s love. Iago does not in any way help Roderigo attain the love that consu...
The play begins with a conversation between Roderigo and Iago. The opening lines are significant in that they set the tone and initiate the plot. Roderigo’s thematic purpose is portrayed through Iago’s manipulation in the lines, “Tush, never tell me! I take it much unkindly/ That thou, Iago, who hast had my purse/ As if the strings were thine shouldst know of this.” (1.1.1-3). Roderigo learns about the elopement of the Moor and Desdemona. He questions Iago in pursuit of the money he has given him in order to woo Desdemona. These lines show that even before the play begins Iago greatly influences Roderigo. The relationship and trust the two characters have is made apparent through the first lines. Iago takes enjoyment in influencing people, as seen through his first soliloquy:
Characters in the play fail to comprehend Iago’s true nature until it is too late. Those interacting with Iago fall into the belief that Iago is loyal to his superiors, when Iago is actually focused on bringing them (Cassio and Othello) down. Iago constructs a false impression of his loyalty to Othello through ...
The three characters of Iago, Desdemona and Othello are gradually revealed to the audience as Act One unfolds. All three are linked to one another and talk to and about each other. Their characters unfold through their interaction with others and how they behave in isolation. The first impression formed of Iago comes from what Roderigo says. Being gullible, Roderigo has given Iago his purse. A character who accepts an offer like this is likely to be of doubtful reputation. The first words spoken by Iago are a strong oath. Already it is obvious that he has little respect for religion. Iago also sees little point in fighting purely in theory. He despises Cassio, partly because he has never fought physically. It becomes apparent that Iago is the dominant one in his "friendship" with Roderigo. He talks the most and has many opinions. Iago looks down upon those who serve others and explains that he is only serving Othello for his own gain:
Iago is a powerful predator who exploits those around him by infecting their perceptions of truth with carefully chosen fallacy. His skill in finding the proverbial chinks in others' armor allows him to skillfully weave his machinations of destroying Othello into their minds and actions; by manipulating character's perceptions of Desdemona, Iago gains the leverage he needs to exploit each character. No one is impervious to Iago's seething purpose; even Othello falls prey to Iago's suggestions and insinuations about Desdemona. Iago's constant presence as the stager, as well as his ceaseless - but subtle - reinforcement of events through narration, allows him to be the pivotal force that directs Shakespeare's Othello.
Iago is very determined and emotionless. He brings negative outcomes to every character he comes in contact with. Although Iago characterizes himself as noble, the reader can see him for the villain he is. Throughout the play Iago’s every decision is on how
Iago has a sophisticated way of deceiving the characters of the play, making him a very intelligent person. Early in the play Othello introduces Iago to the Duke of Venice as, “My ancient / A man he is of honesty and trust” (!. iii. 284-85). This is but one of the times in the play that Iago is referred to as honest and true. Throughout the play Iago is considered to be honest, but is actuality the villain. In order to maintain this false image one has to have a beguiling character. After Othello and his lieutenant, Michael Cassio, return from the war against the Ottomans, there is a celebration. At this celebration Iago puts his manipulation to work. He knows that Othello and Desdemona’s love for each other is very true, but he tells Rodrigo that Desdemona had love for Cassio: “With as little a web as this will I ensnare as great a fly as Cassio. / Ay, smile upon her, do…” (II. I. 164-65). This quote shows that Iago deceives Roderigo into believing that Desdemona loves Cassio, when in Roderigo’s eyes it is virtually impossible. Iago basically controls Rodrigo because Iago deceives him into believing that he can have Desdemona, by both Cassio and Othello.
In Shakespeare’s Othello, Iago is the antagonist and villain who causes all the trouble and disorder. Othello is the protagonist, and is the main person Iago’s destruction and revenge is aimed towards. Othello is naïve and gives everybody his trust even though he may not know them or they haven’t earned his trust yet. He often refers to Iago has “Honest” Iago, which is a direct showing of irony because Iago is not honest at all (Shakespeare, I, iii. 289). Iago is so angry that Othello didn’t give him the promotion that was given to Cassio that he plans to seek revenge against Othello. He seeks his revenge against Othello by manipulating and lying to all of the people around him including his closest friend Roderigo, Cassio, Othello’s wife Desdemona and even his own wife Emilia. In the end, Iago’s lies and manipulation led to the deaths of Roderigo, Emilia, Othello and Desdemona. This isn’t the first time many of these individual characteristics have shown up in one of Shakespeare’s plays.
Like with many evil personalities in history and literature the question is always asked did he really plan to make this happen or was it just luck and convenient circumstances, was it intentional or just circumstantial. To determine how good Iago really is at plotting and whether it is really his own influence or just lucky circumstances that cause events I will examine his asides, soliloquies and interaction with key characters because they give an extra insight into his character.
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Angry over being passed up for a promotion Iago decided to take matters into his own hands. In order to become lieutenant Iago devised a plan that included breaking up Othello’s marriage and eliminating Cassio as competition. Iago enticed Roderigo to be his partner in crime with the promise of attaining Desdemona’s love. Desdemona had many suitors since she was an attractive young woman, yet she “shunned [t]he wealthy,” (Act 1, Scene 2, Line 66-67), which included Roderigo, who owned multiple plots of land. Roderigo, who was naïve for thinking Iago actually had his best interest in mind, was easily persuaded since he was obsessed with Desdemona. The truth of the matter was that
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