Iago, By William Shakespeare

In William Shakespeare’s play Othello, the Iago is the most important character. It is his dreams, hopes and desires that turn him evil, bringing out the worst possible characteristics in order to achieve all the things he wants. Iago’s manipulative traits, deceitful actions and love for Othello eventually cause the death Emilia, Desdemona and Othello himself.

Iago plants ideas in Othello’s head, uses the innocent actions of others as his proof; and Othello, who is not practiced in worldly matters, believes his the misnomer of the “honest Iago”, and eventually is consumed by the lie.

Shakespeare uses dramatic irony and soliloquies to depict the characterisation of Iago and the theme of appearance versus reality. Iago is able to maintain his facade of ‘unwavering’ loyalty towards Othello up until the last act of the play where Othello addresses Iago as “O brave Iago, honest and just”. However, the audience’s awaral of Iago’s malicious intentions is known so dramatic irony. This dramatic irony reinforces how the appearance of Iago is in no way related to his true nature and perception, communicated through Iago’s statement “I am not what I am.” This beguilement leads to the play’s main source of dramatic irony; as Othello will always refer to the villainous Iago as ‘honest’ Iago. Soliloquies provide great insight into a character’s inner thoughts and truths and Shakespeare effectively employs these to further explore appearance versus reality. Shakespeare uses these soliloquies to share Iago’s scheming nature with the audience; and then juxtaposes the notions with scenes where Iago is “throwing but shows of service” in the eyes of his ‘noble lord’ to emphasise Iago’s duplicitous nature and the theme of appearance versus reality. Shakespeare expresses his concern on the values of honesty, honour and trust through Iago who professes that he is “trimm’d in forms and visages of duty” only to further his own

The capacity or ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events, in other words, Power of the People, is irrefutably manifested in Shakespeare Othello. We notice how the characters all perceive Iago, and how Iago exploits their misconceived judgment of his personality. Repetition of the epithet ‘Honest Iago’ asserts that he stands a man with moral integrity in the eyes of the other characters naming him so. This presents dramatic irony, as those he is closest to trust him entirely. Iago openly admits to Roderigo in the first scene “I am not what I Am” which makes clear the deception within the relationships Iago has with the other characters and the paradox remains true throughout the play. Iago constantly masks his real self from others because the way the people see Iago is of great significance; if he were seen as the manipulative, scheming, duplicitous man he really

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 is the antagonist of the play, and one of the most evil Shakespearean villains. Iago is extremely clever in the way he uses unsuspecting power- especially psychological power. He gets into people’s heads in many dishonest ways- by spreading false rumours, telling lies and psychologically tricking people and secretly controlling certain situations. His power to manipulate is a key point in the play, as it results in major consequences and the deaths of some main characters. Iago’s schemes are multi-levelled- he conspires with roderigo, and makes him believe that Desdemona will take him back. On another level, he leads Othello to believe his wife is having an affair with Cassio. He uses his wife Emilia (unknown to her), to bring back the handkerchief he uses to deceive Othello. Iago is an extremely resourceful and talented man, but he uses these resources and talents in detrimental ways. Iago is constantly referred to by numerous characters as ‘honest’. He himself also refers to honesty. Numerous characters believe that they know and trust Iago and that he would not lie, nor deceive them. Iago’s soliloquies also provide invaluable insight into his wicked mind and evil schemes and plans.

Iago is one of the most misunderstood villains in Shakespeare literature. We side with Othello from the start because his name is on the cover of our paperback, we read Othello when learning about heroes, so we expect Iago to be a villain, a ruthless manipulator. We don’t know why, he doesn’t state it plainly or in simple English, so we assume that he’s evil, that he’s just a disgruntled sociopath out to exact his exaggerated revenge on good and noble Othello. Iago’s misunderstood reputation is a result of not truly examining his character, and answering the “why” factor behind his actions. After all, everyone is innocent until proven guilty. His goal in the play was not just to destroy Othello for the fun of it. His objective,

William Shakespeare’s Othello uses different and unique techniques in his language to express the nature of evil throughout the play. Verbal twists and the characters most importantly stress the act of evil. Iago, most of all is portrayed as the “villain” or “protagonist in the play. Shakespeare uses this character to set the basis of evil. Each plot point is spiraled further into tragedy due to the nature of Iago and his manipulative language towards the other main characters.

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

Villains are characters who are devoted to committing evil acts and thus set the plot in motion. They add excitement to works of literature, as they challenge the concept of higher morality, to achieve a certain goal. For the most part, a villain has a motive for their heinous deeds, but a villain whose only motive is the sadistic pleasure they receive from watching their victims suffer, is the most interesting. In Othello, Shakespeare introduces the audience to one of the most malevolent and diabolical of all Shakespearean villains. What makes Iago such an intriguing character, is the intricateness of his personality as well as the inability of viewers to sympathize with him or understand the inner workings of his mind. Ironically, he puts on the face of a confidante, hence the name, “honest Iago”, while playing the role of the devil. He is able to fabricate certain situations that serve his monstrous plot and takes on the role of the puppet master, while abusing his incredible insight into human nature and the personalities of those around him in order to manipulate, exploit and control them. Interestingly, the source of his sinister demeanor seems to originate from a bottomless pit of hate, malice and resentment towards all that is good, innocent and noble, deep within him. Therefore, in William Shakespeare’s Othello, Iago is simply a monstrous, vice-like character due to the

Samantha Raymundo AP English Literature, Period 1 Ms. Gordon 1 October 2017 Othello Essay #1 In William Shakespeare’s tragic play Othello, Iago manipulates Othello’s poor judge of character, insecurity, and jealousy by deceiving the Moor into lies and doubts. Although Iago appears to be an honest and good man, he is very ambiguous as he brings the downfall of Othello.

     Iago, the villain in Shakespeare’s Othello, is a round character of great depth and many dimensions. Iago works towards an aim that is constantly changing and becomes progressively more tragic. Yet, at times, "honest" Iago does actually seem honest. This essay will explore the complex character of "honest Iago.

The critic A.C Bradley suggests that Shakespeare’s portrayal of Iago as a mischievous man is exceptionally good, he states, “Evil has nowhere else been portrayed with such mastery as in the character of Iago.” Bradley believes that pictures of Iago are wrong in two ways, Iago was an ‘average villain’ who enforced only out of revenge, and that like Coleridge’s ‘motiveless evilness, he was an evil human being ‘who hates good simply because it is good,’ and he enjoys evil only for itself.’ I don’t agree with what Bradley has stated as he talks about Iago causing others discomfort as he does multiple times, I believe that it was Iago’s jealousy that drove him to become the worst version of himself, it was his loneliness and hardest times that took made him commit these sinful acts, and it was Iago’s deceived way of achieving power the same power that was deprived away from him when Othello named Cassio as lieutenant instead of

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

Iago is one of the most interesting characters in the tragedy "Othello" by William Shakespeare. Through some carefully thought-out words and actions, Iago is able to manipulate others to do things in a way that benefits him and gets him closer to his goals. He is the driving force in this play, pushing Othello and everyone else towards the tragic ending.