‘Psychopathy: a personality disorder characterized by persistent impulsive, irresponsible, antisocial, and often violent or aggressive behavior, often accompanied by an inability to form normal relationships with others.’
“The psychopath is an interspecies predator”
The tragedy Othello, written by William Shakespeare, is a beautifully written love story with a psychotic twist. The character Iago, is one of Shakespeare's most complex antagonists. Looking at Iago, evil profusion swarms from him but it’s not just his cold-heartedness, his intellect is what intrigues the reader most. To add depth in Shakespeare’s character, he made Iago an amoral character. The callous like character traits start to show in the play when Iago got in the perfect
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The use of deceit and deception to cheat, con, or defraud others for personal gain; distinguished exploitation and callous ruthlessness present, as reflected in a lack of concern for the feelings and suffering of one’s victims is also psychopathic traits. Iago manipulating Othello and the other characters in theme of Desdemona (Othello’s wife) having an affair with another man. Iago His ability to say the right things at the right time is what makes him such a successful manipulator, anyone would listen to him and could be convinced by him. Iago also manages to steal from his own friend without the lightest feeling of guilt. When Roderigo discovers that Iago has been hoarding his money, anger is held for a while, then Iago tells him some fanciful plot in order to capture Desdemona's heart, Roderigo at the end agrees to kill …show more content…
Which thing to do, If this poor trash of Venice, whom I trace For his quick hunting, stand the putting on, I'll have our Michael Cassio on the hip, Abuse him to the Moor in the rank garb For I fear Cassio with my nightcap too, (2.1.313-329)
Iago is completely obsessed with infidelity. Iago says in the play that he suspects Othello has slept with Emilia, he is implying her meaning to him but there doesn’t seem to be much caring at all.
Therefore, Iago is one of, if not, the most complex characters in any of his written pieces, this character plays with your mind as you read through his manipulation. This makes me question if William Shakespeare knew Iago was the perfect psychopath, or was psychopathy even a disorder? He fit into this disorder with his lack of empathy, pathological lying, conning and manipulative, glib and superficial
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
In the light of the various descriptions of an unstable person, Iago is a psychopath with his manipulative choice of words. He tells people things that they want to hear and he says it in a manner that makes him appear exceptional. “ I humbly do beseech you of your pardon, For too much loving you.” (3.3.106) In act three, Iago pretends to be Othello’s confidant, and he wants Othello to suspect his wife is having an affair. Iago has a pseudo relationship with Othello the entire duration of the play.
In the first scene, he expresses his anger toward Othello for not choosing him to the position of lieutenant and instead choosing the much younger and unexperienced Cassio. Jealous and resentful Iago wants everyone else to feel how he does so he plans to manipulate the other characters. He manipulates Othello by using his own fears against him and he also takes advantage of his insecurities. Iago makes groundless accusations toward Othello, for example by saying “It is thought abroad that ’twixt my sheets / He has done my office” (I.iii.369–370). Claiming that Othello slept with his wife, Emilia. Later on in the play Iago mentions that he wants to go after Desdemona because Othello went after his wife, he wants to get even he expresses this by saying “wife for wife”
Psychopathy; being a mental illness characterized by persistent impulsive, irresponsible, antisocial, and often violent or aggressive behavior, often to get what they want regardless of others. This personality disorder has been noted in psychiatric patient records since the nineteenth century. Many characters in; plays, movies, books, television shows; show psychopathic traits. An example of this would be “The Joker” playing in The Dark Knight, Heath Ledger portraying a psychotic feature in his character nearly every scene. Looking at William Shakespeare’s character Iago, evil profusion swarms from him, but it’s not just his cold-heartedness; his intellect is what intrigues the reader most. To add depth in Shakespeare’s character, he made Iago an amoral character. The callous and devious character traits start to show in the play when Iago got in the perfect position to start
Throughout the play he repeatedly manipulates the rest of the cast to fit his plan. He convinces Othello that Desdemona is unfaithful, and he does so not by outright accusing her, but by stringing together seemingly hesitant stories that allow Othello to come to the conclusion on his own. This is perhaps why he is so hellbent in her slaughter: he believes that he was the one who came to this conclusion. Iago is incredibly subtle in his accusations in only a way that a psychopath could be. Even as Othello attempts to refute the claims against Desdemona, Iago finds a way to interject, claiming that she hasn’t always been honest; “She did deceive her father, marrying [Othello],” (3.3.206). Iago is insanely skilled in his methods of manipulation, and the fact that he claims that “what [he has] spoken / Comes from [his] love,” convincing Othello that his goal is pure. This eventually leads to Othello executing his wife; however, his feelings towards the murder are not as you would expect. Iago has twisted and corrupted Othello so much so that he is justifying the slaughter of his wife as a sort of honor killing, imposing his own narrative upon the atrocious act. Iago’s competency at the arts of manipulation is a telltale sign of psychopathy; however, this is not his only psychopathic trait. There are still many more that further exemplify his psychopathic
From the very beginning of Shakespeare’s Othello, Iago is held in very high regard within the community in Venice. He is often called “honest Iago” by many people, including his superior, Othello. There is a large juxtaposition between Iago’s character in the beginning of the play, and the general perception at the end of the play, due to Iago’s many character flaws that cause him to create devious plans and a web of deception and lies, spun by his intense anger and hatred. The exposition of Othello holds many indications of the negative traits Iago possesses, and they escalate quickly as the play progresses. There are many points within the play that present Iago falling prey to his issues and therefore lets them control him. Iago’s anger and hatred kept him from dealing with these character flaws and lead to his descent into moral
Have you ever met a devil who does evil for his own sake? Iago in William Shakespeare's Othello could seem like he has good motives, but I feel that he uses them as his excuses. The first thing that I did was uncovered Iago's motives. Iago is the most controversial character in Othello. He is able to keep his true thoughts and motives from everyone. Are his motives only excuses for his actions? Iago pretends to have so many motives that they seem more like excuses. Iago then uses these excuses to justify his actions, which are pure evil. I also feel that Iago has motives and actions that cause his actions. Does Iago have many different excuses, or does he only have one? This paper will prove that Iago has one clear motive and reason for his madness. Iago is not looking for justification that causes him to act the way he does. There is much more though to Iago. He is not a man of only excuses, he has goals with his motives, which causes him to act the way he does.
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?
An important reason that makes Iago is such a fascinating character is the fact that there is little known about him. Unlike the other characters in this play, Iago cannot be given any clear description about who he is as a person. Desdemona is the typical pure virgin type, Roderigo is a rich fool in love, and Cassio is a handsome Venetian army Lieutenant. For Iago there is no other apparent about his character other than his snake like personality. The information about him is that he is a general to Othello, and is married to Desdemona’s hand maiden, Emilia. This is all that is known about Iago, the reader is given no background. The main mystery about Iago is why he executes his devious plan. Through the whole play, the reader is looking for reasons or hints as to why Iago has become so evil. By the end of the play there is no clear reason for him going after Othello. When describing why he plans to ruin Othello he gives two reasons; rumors about his wife having an affair with Othello, and a hint about affections for Desdemona. Both of these reasons are said in a vague off-handed type manner, giving the reader no true motive for Iago. Even in the very end of the play, after he’s been caught Iago refuses to give a...
Iago is straight away introduced as a dubious character. Having his fingers in Roderigo's purse show his interest in money. The language that he uses is vulgar and rude and he has no shame in his deceitful actions. In order to get what he wants, Iago will do anything. This includes insulting Desdemona, an innocent young woman who does not intend to harm anyone. Her sorrow at her divided loyalties shows this. Like her husband, Desdemona deals with situations carefully. Othello is the opposite of Iago in that he does not pride himself on killing people. It may be his strong point, but he feels that it should not be bragged about, especially in noble company.
Language and imagination are among the most dangerous weapons Iago has at his disposal in Othello. Jealous and angered by Othello’s - his commanding officer - passing over him for a promotion, Iago develops a fierce, antagonistic perspective the aforementioned character; this sentiment quickly corrupts his volition, and he subsequently concocts a plot bent on destroying Othello. He renders this revenge scheme credible by concealing his true feelings behind a facade of loyalty and trustworthiness, and fabricating a fictitious story concerning the infidelity of Desdemona, Othello’s wife. Until the play concludes, Iago utilizes purposeful rhetoric to drive his agenda, and also a mastery of deception to mislead the minds of his targets.
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.
In William Shakespeare’s Othello Iago is the undeniable orchestrator of all the turmoil in the play. Iago’s malicious ploys cause envy and grief for every character that he encounters. Iago chooses to hurt people by making them envious because Iago himself is plagued by evy. Iago’s ironic struggle with envy is the fuel for all destruction in the book, and without the element of envy each character would have less of a desire to carry out the actions that transpired throughout the play. Iago is envious of Othello’s position of power, and the rumors that Emilia had an affair with Othello. Ultimately, Iago plans to destroy Othello by inciting him with envy, and to get Othello to turn on his wife.Iago’s paramount display of envy for Othello is in his soliloquy and also his conversations with Othello. Othello soon becomes overwhelmed with envy, and it is this envy that drives the play, and Iago’s plans.
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 a perfect example of the egoism. He can do everything for himself no matter the thing is bad or not. He reveals himself as "the honest Iago" before everybody. There's no one who does not trust him. However, Iago says that "I am not what I am" to show his real personality (I, i, 66). He seems good and compliant to Othello, is not for royal or the responsibility, but for his own benefit, which is to let him have more chance to gain more power. In his world, everyone is his tool. In Act 2 Scene 2, in Iago's soliloquy, he says "Abuse him to the Moor in the rank grab-/For I fear Cassio with my night-cap too-/Make the Moor thank me, love me, and reward me," (II, ii, 295-296). Even though Iago may know that Cassio has no sexual connection with his wife, he still wants to use his wife as a part of his conspiracy and lets himself to believe it is the truth to deduce his guilt. That's all for his own