Shakespeare’s novel Othello shows the downfall of the great General Othello, due to a flaw that is exploited by a man named Iago. But what is that flaw? The flaw in question is Othello’s raw emotions. Iago uses the emotion of jealousy against Othello all throughout Act 3 and most likely into Act 4.The jealousy comes into play when Iago convinces Othello that his wife, Desdemona, is cheating on him with Cassio. At first, Othello refuses to believe this, but soon doubt and jealousy set in. In Act 3, Iago even mentions that jealousy is a “green-eyed monster”(3.3.196), yet Othello is still overcome with anger that he has never shown before in earlier acts. An example of this angered behavior occurs when Othello exclaims, “She’s gone, I am abused,
Shakespeare often has common themes throughout all of his poems which include love, death, and betrayal. When talking about Othello, all of these major themes are presented. Although, the major theme is jealousy. Throughout the play, jealousy is shown in each character in some way and drives the decisions that they make. The beginning starts with Rodrigo being covetous of Othello for being with Desdemona, and at the end where Othello is envious because he believes Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio. Iago is an important character throughout all of this because he makes up lies and misleads characters into believing things that are untrue. From the beginning, he is envious of Cassio and has hatred towards Othello because Othello
In the play Othello, Iago describes jealousy as a “green-eyed monster. The “Green” representing the color of envy, and “monster” shows how destructive and vicious it can be. Iago has a manipulative mind causing people to believe him and listen what he has to say about a certain situation. When Iago is telling Othello to be aware of jealousy it causes Othello to become weary of his wife Desdemona. Although, Othello believes his wife is loyal to him. He starts to listen to Iago and becomes jealous of Roderigo who he believes is all for Desdemona.
There are many different emotions like sadness, happiness, and joyfulness just to name a few that people can experience. One of the most powerful and sometimes dangerous emotions is Jealousy. Jealousy is a powerful emotion that most people experience at some point in their life. However, not everyone is affected in the same way. Some people are filled with insecurity. While others are filled with fear. Most people experience anger. In William Shakespeare’s Othello the audience learns through the characterization of Othello and Iago, the symbolism of the handkerchief, and through Othello denying that he is jealous we learn that jealousy can make people behave irrationally in certain circumstances.
Jealousy out of all human emotions is the most common to cause detriment. When an individual becomes consumed by its nature it ultimately leads to their worst self. Jealousy is a major theme in Othello and it is what drives Othello to commit his heinous deed of killing his wife. Through Shakespeare’s exploration of how Othello becomes corrupted the underlying question of whether human nature when challenged reveals an inner demon. A monstrous, violent green eyed monster. The corruption of Othello is provoked by Iago, Iago is aware of his insecurities and therefore uses this knowledge to his advantage. As stated “Oh, Beware, My lord of jealousy!/ It is the green eyed monster which doth mocks/ that meat feeds on” this metaphor used by Iago is a warning to Othello of the dangers associated with Jealousy, that it has an appetite for its victims. It is ironic that Iago preaches his own diagnosis. Jealousy is what fuelled his anger and unloyal behaviours towards his colleague. Through the juxtaposition of Othello's gullible nature and Iago's noxious villainy, the picture of envy is genuinely exemplified as an all-expending "green-eyed monster". Othello is not seen as a
Jealousy plays a major role in Othello as it is the driving force which leads to the plays events being carried out. The theme of jealousy is prevalent through characterization and the dishonoring of the values of trust and loyalty. The character if Iago is the main who endures jealousy and dishonours trust and loyalty which in the end he uses as a method to lead Othello to his downfall. Iago dishonours Othello’s trust by stating “My lord, you know I love you” but this contrasts with Iago line “I follow him to serve my turn upon him”.
The concept of jealousy in Othello is a clear indication of how one’s inherent fears and uncertainties can be exploited and manipulated by those who are envious of us. Such individuals can deceive, to turn not only against those whom are loved, but lead them into betraying humanities’ very nature and turn into monsters, overwhelmed by an emotion that feeds off itself. Iago, Othello’s ancient, becomes full of hatred and thoughts of murder and deception after hearing that Cassio is being promoted instead of him and of a rumor saying his wife was sleeping with Othello. Combined with the promotion of Cassio over himself, Iago seeks out revenge against Othello. His immense jealousy and anger toward Othello prevented him from learning
Jealousy is a powerful drug. When someone is jealous, one can only imagine how far someone would go because of it. In the play Othello by William Shakespeare, there were several characters that went through different ways of processing their jealousy. Iago’s jealousy provokes his idea to get back at the people he felt was not deserving enough of the things they had or their happiness. His plans succeeds but by the end, no one wins. Iago’s jealousy forms at the beginning of the play which causes Othello’s jealousy towards the end and because of it, it results in people hurt mentally and physically.
William Shakespeare’s Othello presents the dangers of evil when it’s in the form of jealousy. In the play Othello, Shakespeare uses the characters of Iago, Othello and Roderigo to prove that jealousy is at the root of all evil. Within the play, Shakespeare uses the emotion of jealousy to motivate the destruction of Othello. Iago’s jealousy towards Cassio being Othello’s lieutenant is proof of how jealousy can take the form of evil by causing competition, sexual suspicion and death for the other characters in the play.
Shakespeare’s use of the word monster in Othello the word “monster”may be a key to understanding the play. The etymology of ‘monster’ can be traced to mid 12th century France where connotations of the word included, “ to be skilled,” “genius,” and “mastermind”. By mid 13th century the connotation of the word in France changed to be a disfigured person.In contrast in classical Latin, the meaning of monster was very close to it 21st century meaning in English, i.e., grotesque and hideous. The Oxford English Dictionary describes it as ‘atrocity’, accompanied by acts of wicked things. According to the Oxford English Dictionary a monster is a mythical creature which is part human, or combines element of two or more animal forms. It is usually of a giant size and ferocious appearance. Today a monster is an imaginary creature that is large, ugly and frightening. This definition has been in use since the 1400s. In Othello, the word monster is related to the latin definition. The word “monster” or “monstrous” is used to describe or to be related to the tenets of jealousy because throughout the play jealousy is a recurring factor to the theme of love and hate in Othello.
Othello did not wake up one day and say that he was going to be jealous; he was corrupted and persuaded into it. Iago is the one main character of many characters that persuades Othello into the nasty trait of jealousy. Othello represents how jealousy is one of the most corrupting and destructive of emotions (“Theme”). This destructive emotion eventually leads Othello to do things he does not want to do. Iago is the main character that makes Othello do these things and one of the main characters that lies to Othello to make him jealous of everyone.
In Act “Oh, beware, my lord, of jealousy! /It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock/ The meat it feeds on. That cuckold lives in bliss/Who, certain of his fate, loves not his wronger,/But, oh, what damnèd minutes tells he o'er/Who dotes, yet doubts— suspects, yet soundly loves!” (3.iii.170-175). Through Iago’s witty nature he is able to nonchalantly set his malignant plan into motion by planting a suspicion in the mind of Othello. Iago harnesses in on the envious agony he endures and uses it as a weapon on the man he is envious of, leading to the destruction of him. Iago knows the ability of jealousy, and with this he knows he can manipulate Othello and make him feel the same discomfort he himself feels. This reveals the enormous amount of preparation Iago has put into his plan and the true evil that is brewing beneath the surface. Iago's loss of self respect and his loss of respect for others have led him to be an evil scheming beast with no account for the lives of others.
The play “Othello” by William Shakespeare was written in 1604 during the Elizabeth era. Othello is one of the most extraordinary characters in all of Shakespeare’s dramas. He enjoyed unheralded success in the combat zone, which gave him the reputation as one of Venice’s most competent generals. Even though he has great success in the battlefield, he has a dramatic flaw that causes a downfall in his life. The dramatic flaw that causes his downfall is jealousy. This was brought on by a simple persuasion of Iago, the evil character in the play. Even though Iago used extreme manipulation to get Othello to be jealous, Iago did not really have to try very hard to get Othello in a jealous state of mind. Othello was blinded by his jealousy which
Shakespeare uses a combination of recurring themes and motifs such as betrayal, love, conflict, and jealousy throughout his plays and sonnets. In Shakespeare’s Othello, jealousy is the prominent theme, which causes the destruction and tragic downfall of the play’s main characters. Jealousy is masked through lies, misleading situations and manipulation and interpreted in varied ways by the main characters. From beginning to end, jealousy is rooted in every scene, eventually leading to the death and demise of the main character, Othello.
In the story of Othello, all of the conflict, violence, and harm that occured was a result of jealousy. Iago, one of the victims of jealousy, made a hypocritical statement to Othello where he called jealousy a green-eyed monster. This monster known as jealousy not only consumes the people that it hates, but also consumes the person itself. Jealousy is the culprit for any character that had died in the story. Jealousy fueled each scene to the next in Othello and the more that is added, the more damage it does as seen with its effects on Roderigo, Iago, and Othello.
The play Othello by William Shakespeare was published during the 16th century, it is one of Shakespeare’s popular and controversial plays. Shakespeare depicts Othello’s race as placing him apart in some respects from the predominantly white European society in which he lives. Jealousy is another of the main themes in Othello. Iago is the first character to start the sparks of jealousy in Othello, and in the end, causes the downfall of Othello and Desdemona. In the end, racism and jealousy are the causes of the tragedy in Othello.