Theme Of Honesty In Othello

The language must be analyzed so that one may understand the depth of the military hierarchy and the reportage within. The Folger Shakespeare Library version of Othello says the word “honest” is “both an indicator of his supposed truthfulness and a condescending term for a social inferior” (Folger, xxii). Othello contains the word honest over 40 times, each of which must be analyzed via context. One must recognize the arch of the use of honest over the course of the play. For example, much of the play shows Iago referring to himself as honest, and Othello refers to him as honest as well. Readers and viewers are aware of the manipulative and conniving nature of Iago, but Othello must trust Iago. Othello takes his job very seriously, so much
Othello’s love for Desdemona may be the only part of his life he takes more seriously than his job, for Othello’s jealous rage comes from love, not Iago’s disloyalty as a subordinate. However, Othello does threaten Iago’s life if Iago’s claims that Desdemona is unfaithful are not true. One must recognize that this threat comes from Iago leading Othello to believe that Desdemona is unfaithful. Nevertheless, Othello should recognize that Iago has lied to him in his personal life, therefore he has broken the trust barrier which is required in the hierarchy of the military. Honesty is interwoven throughout the play such that readers must observe context and note trivialities in passing information to authority and the relation of honesty and loyalty to military
First, Othello is required to present a man to accompany Desdemona to Cyprus, which Othello says, “A man he is of honesty and trust. / To His conveyance I assign my wife, / With what else needful your good Grace shall think / To be sent after me.” (1.3.320-25). Iago is referred to as a man of “truthfulness, integrity, and honorable behavior”, all of which are brilliant attributes of a man of low military status hoping to move up the ranks (Folger, 48). Given an omniscient perspective of the play, readers are given access to the whereabouts of characters at the necessary time. For example, as the play opens, Iago is gaining the trust of Rodrigo and convincing Rodrigo to wake Desdemona’s father in order to tell him about the wedding between Othello and Desdemona. Shakespeare immediately gives hint to Iago’s disloyalty to his superior, yet creates a setting in which the other characters of the play believe Iago to be truthful and honorable. Once again, in the third scene of act one, Othello professes his trust in Iago to the Duke. If Othello is willing to give his word to his own superior on trusting Iago, then the Duke himself trusts Iago. The entire military hierarchy is one of trust. One is trusted and given responsibility regardless of position, and the man on top, such as the Duke, may trust a man such as Iago. Second, Othello refers directly to Iago as “honest Iago”