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Iago's role in Othello
Iago's character analysis in othello
Iago's character analysis in othello
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The Joker, Sauron, Plankton, Lord Voldemort, Kronos, Shego, and Hades are all very well-known villains in today’s world (at least in the U.S.). But, what makes them villains? A villain is made out of who the person is and what he or she does with his/her life. A villain is a person who is evil, hates people, gets even/gets revenge, is conniving and/or sneaky, a person who is manipulative, and a person who can (and does) keep up a false reputation. The character Iago, the main antagonist of William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice definitely qualifies as a villain under these circumstances because he is manipulative, conniving, and keeps up a false reputation (that he’s honest and trustworthy). Iago is a villain because he is manipulative. This is proven when Iago convinces Othello that Desdemona is cheating on him by just dropping little hints and letting Othello piece it together for himself. Iago would start the jealous trip by saying such simple things like that he “likes not that”, later Othello would return and say that he had “found not Cassio’s kisses on [Desdemona’s] lips” (III.iii.393). This shows that Othello put together pieces from little things that Iago said with a purpose to make Othello jealous and believe he was being cuckolded. Another instance of Iago’s manipulative tendencies is when the reader finds out that all along, Iago has been taking Roderigo’s money to purchase jewels to give “as gifts to Desdemona”, but that Iago ended up keeping and using for his own personal needs without Roderigo’s knowledge (V.i.17-18). Another example of Iago being manipulative in his villainous ways is when Emilia “has a thing for [him]” and ends up giving him Desdemona’s handkerchief from Othello (III.iii... ... middle of paper ... ...his shows that Iago keeps up his reputation because he tells Othello what he wants to tell him, which is a bent up version of the truth and Othello believes him because he is called Honest Iago frequently and therefore, Iago is keeping up his reputation of being honest and he keeps his hands clean in the takedown of Cassio. Iago is a true villain because he is conniving, smart about keeping up a false reputation of innocence and honesty, and because he is manipulative like all of the best, most popular, villains nowadays like the Joker and Sheldon J. Plankton. A villain is a manipulative, lying, being who has a false reputation and is conniving, planning their damages to society or other specific people. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Washington Square, 1993. Print.
In Shakespeare's play Othello, Iago Is shown to be the villain. With the cunning use of his brilliance and manipulation, he is able to orchestrate an entire plot to take his revenge on Othello the center of all his ill tempered aggression. By lying to characters like Roderigo and many others, including his wife, in order to
Iago throughout the book uses manipulative language to convince characters throughout scenes. However he doesn’t fail, from the beginning he has a well thought out plan, he manipulates people and he has complete lack of empathy which gives him the perfect traits for being a villain. A perfect villain in my definition is someone who can plan out a villainous act and act it out without failure. Iago has achieved this and so I consider him a perfect villain. Although Iago has a few flaws acting out his plan he achieves his goal to an extent in an evil and villainous way such as the failure of murdering of Cassio and his being tortured.
Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York; Washington Square Press, 1993.
In Othello, Iago is Shakespeare’s most malicious character and serves as a vehicle to these two themes. Iago despises Othello; he has a strong will to destroy Othello’s life, yet the motive behind his plan goes unexplained. Iago is a great manipulator of the tongue and lies to everyone in order to advance his plan; however, every character in the play considers Iago an honest character, and Othello even associates Iago with light and eyesight. Othello continuously asks Iago to explain or make something clearer. Until the very end, Iago appears to be honest and helpful to the other characters, but underneath this seemingly harmless façade, Iago is a demon with the strongest will; he will stop at nothing until he ruins Othello’s life. Iago uses a positive appearance to enact his
Shakespeare, William. "The Tragedy of Othello the Moor of Venice" The Norton Shakespeare. Ed. Stanley Wells & |Gary Taylor. New York/London, W.W. Norton Company,1997. 2100-2174
In the play, Othello, written by William Shakespeare Iago is one of the most unique and interesting characters. Not only is Iago a main character, but he is also one of the most controversial, causing more drama and quarrels than any other character in the play. Shakespeare does a good job with the character of Iago by creating an atmosphere where Iago can keep the reader's attention on each and every individual scene throughout the entire play, as one tries to figure out Iago's true intentions. When reading the play it is easy for an individual to view Iago as an evil person who gets pleasure from malicious acts he inflicts upon others around him.
Shakespeare, William. Othello, The Moor of Venice. from Literature and the Writing Process. McMahon, Day, Funk. Prentice-Hall Publishers: New Jersey, 1996. 864-947.
Shakespeare, William, and Kim F. Hall. Othello, the Moor of Venice: Texts and Contexts. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2007. Print.
Shakespeare, William. "The Tragedy of Othello the Moor of Venice" The Norton Shakespeare. Ed. Stanley Wells & |Gary Taylor. New York/London, W.W. Norton Company,1997. 2100-2174
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 nave 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 as “Honest” Iago, which is a direct showing of irony because Iago is not honest at all (Shakespeare, I, iii. 289).
Iago character in William Shakespeare’s Othello is truly the definition of the nature of evil. He portrays such a strong character describing this nature of deceit throughout the play taking full capability of characters; Desdemona, Othello, Cassio, and Rodrigo. His ability to master the nature of good first before plotting his schemes, allows Iago to become successful in each of his evil plots. Iago would not be successful if it was not for his mastery in being good. Not only does he achieve his goals in scheming, but he also understands human nature, that allowed him to understand thoroughly of good people and was able to take advantage of the cause. Iago, alone, represented both the nature of good and the nature of evil in Shakespeare’s’ Othello.
How does one create the perfect villain for a story? What qualities are needed in such a character? A good place to start when constructing a villain is to look at William Shakespeare’s villain in Othello, a man called Iago. Iago is wonderfully devious. Throughout the play, he not only poisons Othello’s vision of Desdemona, he does this with no one, excepting Roderigo, the wiser. There are several reasons that make Iago such a terrifying villain. Shakespeare gave certain qualities to his creation that made Iago more than just a evil character. These qualities transform Iago into the truly insidious character seen in the play. From the beginning of Othello to the time that Iago is revealed as the culprit, everyone trusts Iago and looks to him for advice. This gives Iago the means and opportunity to pull off his villainy.
In Othello, Iago presents two different motives behind his hatred of Othello. The first motive that Iago uses is that, he was passed over for a promotion, and that the job he deserves was given to Cassio. Cassio was someone who had never seen the battlefield. To Iago this is a complete slap in the face. Two scenes later Iago presents another reason for his hatred for Othello. Rumors have spread around that Othello and Emilia have slept together. Whether or not this is true, Iago sees this as enough reason to get his revenge. As he sets out to destroy more than Cassio throughout the play, Iago was able to plant seeds of doubt, insecurities, and lies. He put this into action with all the supporting characters around him to cause Othello to believe that his wife was in fact having an affair with Cassio, and that was the furthest thing from the truth. He is a master manipulator because he was able to plant these ideas into the other characters heads, and he was able to have other characters around him carry out the actions that nurtured these lies into perceived...
Iago, the evil villain of Shakespeare's Othello, is more than just a villain. In many ways he is the most intelligent and appealing character in the play. Iago shows superiority over the rest of the characters in the play. He has the ability to manipulate the characters in the play, therefore controlling the play with every sequence of events. His intelligence shines through his ability to deceive, his ability to strategize, and his ability to twist the truth. Iago is appealing to the characters of the pay because he gives them what they want. Iago is appealing to the reader as well. His character is totally unconflicted about being evil, making him known to some authors as the villain of all villains. Iago is, in many ways, the most intelligent and appealing character in the play.
It is also that a hero and a villain are no friends of each other, but rather enemies, and despise each other to the bone. Shakespeare however, took these stereotypes and their attributes, and twisted them to create a play that would provide doubt and confusion within the audience’s mind, making them challenge their ideas of what a villain and a hero should be like. While Othello is portrayed as hero and Iago the villain, what makes Othello the hero and Iago villain, and yet these two are close friends?