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Critical analysis of othello's character
Aspect of plot and character of othello
Critical analysis of othello's character
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Saint Peter, an evil creature slithers in the dark, damp cold cell, of a Cyprian prison. A snake like, cold blooded, creature that belongs in the depths. of Hell. Saint Peter, my husband Iago is nothing more than a villain, manipulator and murder. He is the snake I speak of. Iago must never be allowed to enter the gates of Heaven and must be condemned to Hell. His unforgivable treachery and betrayal has led to many a death including my own. Iago’s anger corrupted his soul thus transforming the man I once loved into the villainous snake he is now. His vengeful, vindictive ways began when Othello made Cassio Lieutenant over him and it grew after rumours spread of my alleged affair with Othello. He had said to Roderigo
“I hate the Moor, and it is thought abroad, that 'twixt my sheets 'Has done my office. I know not if 't be true, But I, for mere suspicion in that kind, will do as if for surety. (1.3.329-433)” These powerful thoughts of revenge, jealousy and anger ultimately caused the tragic deaths and the cruel
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(3.3.352)” Which I now know was used to trick Othello into believing Cassio had been with Desdemona. And so, the snake struck again, the lies and manipulation in his venom spread like wildfire, destroying those he seeks out. Iago is the snake and he has stuck more people with his venomous poison than the Blunt Nosed Vipers that plague the land.
Saint Peter, Iago said once before “Heaven is my judge. (I.i.60)”, now I leave it up to you to decide what fate this snake should have. The Lord can see that, I have presented you with evidence that would condemn any man to Hell, Iago is a villain, a murder and a powerful manipulator, he killed Roderigo and myself. And the Lord knows himself that he is responsible for the deaths of Desdemona and Othello. Saint Peter, he must never be allowed to pass through those golden gates. May his pernicious soul rot in hell for all
Iago and Othello plan to murder Desdemona and Cassio. Instead, Iago once again betrays his word and sets Othello up for failure and the evil that lurks within this stage devours Othello. The mighty dragon which the hero must slay at the end of the journey proves to be Iago himself all along which kills Othello ending his journey before he can even finish it. Manipulation is Iago’s ultimate power, “he frequently takes the audience or reader into his confidence, manipulates his prey, and watches his deceptions wreak havoc”
Iago understood human characteristics, which allowed him to get to the root of people's problems. In Othello he saw innocence, and love; in Desdemona he saw purity and kindness; and in Cassio he saw a perfectionist. Iago lacked all of these features and so in order to end the happiness of all the characters, he decided to hit them where it hurt the most. In doing so he used Desdemona as a tool, because she was the object of everyone's desire. Iago is a spider-like creature who in order to quench his hunger, entangles all of these characters into his skillfully crafted web that slowly and unknowingly drives them to their doom.
Iago takes on many different persona’s to enact his plan of revenge upon Othello. He plays the friend, a trustworthy and credible source of information for Othello in his feat of drama with his innocent wife, Desdemona. He also plays the wingman for Roderigo who is madly in love with Desdemona, encouraging him to make advances towards her to woo Desdemona away from Othello. Iago even persuades Roderigo to kill Cassio with his lies about Cassio and Desdemona’s affair. “...you may take him at your pleasure: I will be near to second your attempt, and he shall fall between us.” Iago promises to assist Roderigo in the murder of Cassio and he will be rewarded with Desdemona’s love (Navigators.) Iago’s true persona, though, is a heartless, woman-hating villain who would go to great lengths to get revenge against Othello for preferring Cassio over him for the military promotion.
Act iii, scene iii, lines 108-131 of William Shakespeare’s “Othello” unquestionably shows Iago’s trickery and deceptiveness which is masked through his reputation for honesty, reliability and direct speaking. This section not only shows Iago’s slow but powerful act of deception, but also shows the jealousy and insecurities slowly depriving Othello’s inner peace and balance.
Othello, a play by William Shakespeare, tells the tragic tale of the black Venetian general, Othello, and how he is manipulated by his ambitious friend, Iago. Iago becomes angry at Othello when he promotes Michael Cassio rather than Iago to the lieutenancy. Iago then schemes a plot to take down Othello. Iago uses Desdemona, Othello’s new wife, to take down the great general. He leads Othello to considering that his wife is cheating on him with Michael Cassio. This causes Othello to become suspicious and eventually drives Othello into killing Desdemona. In the end, Othello learns that his wife was faithful, and Iago had lied to him. This upsets Othello and causes him to also kill himself. Iago’s many motives are never revealed to the audience or the characters as in the last scene he states, “Demand me nothing. What you know, you know. From this time forth I never will speak word.” (Othello. Act 5 Scene 2: 355-356). In the play Othello, Iago is the master manipulator that formulates devious plots against the characters of Roderigo, Cassio, and Othello by using their desires to his advantage to reveal their underlying weaknesses.
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.
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 this tragedy, Othello, Shakespeare, has created a villain who behaves in this manner. Iago’s hatred, method of revenge, and vengeful hatred are the reasons for the lives lost in this play and the reasons that led to Iago’s downfall. Iago’s hatred of Othello and Cassio causes him to seek revenge, and he is able to succeed because his victims are too innocent to suspect him. Iago is a Machiavellian Shakespearean character who cunningly convinces his victims of his full moral support and proves his innocence in a way that his victims do not suspect him. When Cassio finishes his conversation with Desdemona about how he will not have his job back, Iago unfolds his mischievous plan against Desdemona when he says that, “so will I turn her virtue into pitch, And out of her own goodness make the net that shall enmesh them all” (Shakespeare, 49).
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
“I am not what I am,” proclaims one of Shakespeare’s darkest and most enigmatic villains, Iago, in the tragedy Othello. Iago’s journey for revenge enables him to become capable of immoral acts, and whilst his malevolence excites us, we are no more intrigued by his attributes than we are of the play’s tragic hero, Othellos’. Rather, both characters’ confrontation with jealousy and their subsequent moral demise as a result of failing to control such an emotion provides the true excitement for audiences. Iago’s spiteful manipulation of Othello makes him a multifaceted character — whose corrupt attributes make the audience examine their own morality. However, the same can be said of Othello; his failure to withstand Iago’s ‘pouring of pestilence’
Iago has been excellent at saying the what is needed to get to people, he misleads them to get a reaction he wants out of them. He is clever with his words to avoid confrontation that can easily happen. “Othello 's confusion is the human experience of language. In other words, language itself, not the outside world, determines meaning” (Christofides 2). Iago uses his words against Othello to get him to do Iago’s doings. Iago has an eloquence with
Iago's manipulative nature has a profound effect on the decisions made by other characters in Shakespeare's ‘Othello’. Through his relations with those around him Shakespear characterizes him as a man full of malice, vengeance and dishonesty that is wholly inspired by jealousy. Furthermore it would appear that Iago has an exceptional ability to scheme, a talent which he uses to snake his way into the lives of others and exploit them through their weaknesses. Whether he does this for profit or for pleasure is a separate issue.
Iago’s magnificent intelligence and superiority make him a very intriguing character. Iago is not just any villain that comes into a town, with a black cape and knife that scares everyone, he destroys and “kills” by using creative tactics that could only be thought of by someone who is brilliant. He deceives, strategizes, and twists the truth with amazing ease. Iago maintains his on point intelligence by staying completely unconflicted about being evil. Iago is completely committed as he states, “[He will] turn her virtue into pitch, / And… make the net / That shall enmesh them all” (II. Ii. 366-368). Iago is considered a cross between God and the Devil, as shown in the, “Divinity of Hell!” (!!. ii. 356)
Iago is willing to prattle on Othello and Desdemona for animosity. Iago's poisoned language builds up Brabantio's fearness of mixed race marriage and especially his pure daughter. Iago's manipulation of Roderigo and Brabantio sets up the battle between Othello and Brabantio. Later on in the play Iago still seeks help from Roderigo by forcing him to kill Cassio whom is drunk with just a few words. Montano which is the governor of Cyprus stepped in to resolve the problem between Cassio and Roderigo. Unfortunately Cassio stabs Montano since he lost control of himself from Iago's...
Evil masterminds are always successful in their diabolical schemes, but each one does it in their own special way. Some may be highly ranked and powerful, but some may be simple people in a simple community. In the play Othello, the simple ancient, Iago is very successful at his schemes. Iago is able to get the trust of everyone around him, and to appear honest. He is also driven to continue with his schemes and to never quite.