Steven St Clair
Mrs. Livesay
AP English, Period 2
24 October 2014
Iago’s Forked Face Up into the Middle Ages, plays were classified as comedies or tragedies. A comedy lifts up one’s spirits. It is about happiness, growth, and good will. A tragedy, on the other hand is about the fall of man. It is about how people of stature reveal the dark side of being human. Lies and deceits are common today; many individuals cover their true intentions with a layer. The story of Othello by William Shakespeare is a tragedy. It is about a successful general who trusted his ensign, Iago. Othello sincerely believes that he knows how to judge the character of others. He thinks that he has correctly judged the character of Iago. The tragedy unfolds
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Roderigo’s passion and lust for Desdemona extracts him susceptible to Iago’s manipulation. This obsession causes him to unhesitatingly believe anything Iago says in hopes of getting Desdemona. Initially, Iago targets Roderigo for his fortune. He convinces him that the gold and jewels will be given to Desdemona as a proclamation of his love when in actuality; Iago plans to keep it for himself. Iago states: “Thus do I ever make fool my purse” (Shakespeare, I.iii.363). Clearly, Iago took advantage of Roderigo, a pious man. He deceived him and took his money. Likewise, Iago uses Roderigo once more by convincing him to kill Cassio. At first Roderigo was unwilling to assist Iago. He changes his mind and decides to assist Iago and this will help him win Desdemona. Roderigo states: “I have no great devotion to the deed, and yet he hath given me satisfying reasons. ‘Tis but a man gone. Forth, my sword. He dies” (V.i.8-10). It is obvious that Roderigo is innocent and he falls for Iago’s fabrication. Consequently, he attempts to kill Cassio. Iago, on the other hand, chooses to kill Roderigo. He cruelly states: “I have rubbed this young quat almost to the sense, and he grows angry. May unfold me to him. There stand I in much peril. No, he must die. Be ‘t so. I hear him coming” (V.i.11-23). This is how Iago portrays Roderigo. He sees him as a foolish man and takes advantage of him. …show more content…
He convincingly states: “Not to affect many proposed matches of her own clime, complexion, and degree, whereto we see in all things nature tends” (III.iii.230-232). At the same time, Iago portrays Desdemona as an unfaithful woman and portrays a salacious series of rumors about her past. He tells Othello that she is unfaithful. Iago states: “She did deceive her father, marrying you, and when she seemed to shake and fear your looks, she loved them most” (III.iii.207-209). He alludes that Desdemona, having betrayed her father, is very likely to betray Othello. Piece by piece, Iago wears down Othello’s layers and places a heavy mantle of doubt and jealousy on him, much like a deafening cloud over someone’s head. Additionally, Iago plays with Othello’s mind and he torments Othello with false images of his loving wife. Othello comes to believe in Iago and his tale of infidelity. He believes no one but Iago. Iago fills Othello’s mind with a web of lies. He stirs up doubt and jealousy and turns Othello against Desdemona. Othello states: “Oh, damn her, damn her! Come, go with me apart. I will withdraw to furnish me with some swift means of death for the fair devil. Now art thou my lieutenant” (III.iii.477-480). Undoubtedly, Othello comes to believe in these lies and sees them as being true. As a gesture of gratitude, he promotes Iago to his desired position as lieutenant. Ironically, Othello accepts Iago’s lies.
Othello trusts Iago and now Iago is trying to take his wife from him for someone else. Furthermore, “He takes her by the palm...sir in.” (pg. 71). Iago watches Cassio and Emilia because he thinks they had an affair he watches them carefully so he can figure out how to convince Othello that Desdemona and Cassio are having an affair. Another example involves the plan to help Othello kill Desdemona. “Do it not with poison. Strangle her in her bed, even the bed she hath contaminated” (pg. 185). Othello believes that Iago is most honest, thus he believed killing his wife Desdemona was the right thing to do. Iago brainwashed Othello into believing the wrong thing was the right thing. The characterization of Iago is created by the use of dramatic irony. The audience knew how devious Iago is, but the characters fell for his mischievous acts.
Othello is an easy target in this drama, because Iago already knows that he is a very insecure person. With that stated, it will be easy for Iago to use Othello’s jealousy to trick him into thinking that Desdemona is an unfaithful wife. Iago will manipulate the way Othello sees things in order to convince him that what he sees is innocent acts between Desdemona and Casillo. Iago’s starts to plant the idea in Othello’s head of an affair after Othello sees Casillo rush leaving Desdemona in a manner that looked as though he is guilty (1223). Alone with Othello, Iago begins to make Othello feel threatened by Casillo and Desdemona’s apparent relationship by bringing up the fact that Casillo served as Desdemona’s and Othello’s go-between during the time of their courtship. The conversation ends with Iago asking Othello to watch carefully of Desdemona and Casillo, and Iago exits giving Othello time to question the accusation of Iago (1225-1228).
Starting off, Othello allows Iago to tamper with his mind and does nothing to stop it. Othello puts all of his trust in him, but Iago is just hiding behind a mask and only wishes to torment Othello. Othello is not aware of his surroundings and the people there, making him vulnerable. If he paid more attention to Desdemona and not Iago than he would not have thought to kill his loyal wife. Othello jumps to conclusions too quickly
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.
The first victim of Iago’s manipulation was Roderigo. Iago realises Roderigo will do anything to be with Desdemona, so Iago uses this to his advantage. “Thus do I ever make my fool my purse” (I, iii, 374). Iago plays with Roderigo’s emotions and hopes to swindle his money. Iago makes a fool out of Rodrigo because he is a rich guy who thinks that money will win over Desdemona’s heart. Roderigo buys her gifts and gives it to Iago thinking that he will give it to Desdemona. Instead, Iago keeps it for himself, and making a lot of profit in doing so. Iago does not waste his on knowledge and skills on something he can get someone else to do. “For I mine own gained knowledge should profane” (I, iii, 375). Iago convinces Roderigo that he will make Desdemona fall in love with him by giving her presents with Rodrigo’s money. This shows that he is sly and clever because he knows that Roderigo has a lot of money he can benefit from. Also, Iago gets something useful out of Roderigo that aids in his evil plans. “If I would time expend with such a snipe But for my sport and profit” (I, iii, 376-377). Roderigo is shown to be a very gullible character that believes everything Iago says. Iago keeps Rodrigo uninformed about his plans and continues to profit from him. Rodrigo follows Iago blindly, thinking the whole time that Iago is trying to aid him, but since Iago is driven to become lieutenant, he uses Roderigo for his money and something to rely on. Later Iago sends Roderigo to kill Cassio so Iago would not be suspected as a criminal. Iago’s plans begin to dwindle as Roderigo ends up dying by the hands of the manipulative Iago that supposedly helped Roderigo get with Desdemona.
Roderigo is a co-conspirator with Iago but is not equal in developing a web of lies and jealousy designed to ensnare others. “Thus do I ever make my fool my purse (Shakespeare)”. Iago takes advantage of the desperate former suitor of Desdemona and controls his emotions like a puppeteer pulling strings. With the line, “But for my sport and profit”, it is clear that Iago sees enriching himself off Roderigo’s envy as an amusing task with such an easy mark (Shakespeare 1473). Roderigo is a simple-minded fool who believes that by giving money to a lowly ensign he can win the love of Desdemona, have her marriage to Othello dissolved, and restore her virtue.
The following situation also proves Iago’s ability to effectively use his power over Othello’s intelligence and jealousy. Othello was very gullible and innocent, so Iago took complete advantage of that. He makes Othello believe that Desdemona is unfaithful toward him with Cassio. He does so through a multitude of ways: “If I can fasten but one cup upon him,
Othello is the character with whom most of Iago's methods have success. His weakness as a jealous lover is apparent early on, but only after Iago’s has planted the seeds of doubt within his mind. Such is Othello’s trust for Iago that he uses the misnomer of describing Iago as ‘honest Iago’ and irony considering the action held within the play. The trust is obvious and implicit and thoroughly entrenched within the language. Othello surmises on the aforementioned doubts during the last act of the play when he says;
Iago does this because he not only hates Othello but he is jealous of him. He tells him that his wife is unfaithful to him. Othello is in the early stages of his relationship so he believes Iago. Iago makes it seem as if Desdemona is cheating on Othello with someone else. Othello does not even check to see if these things are true. Iago had pushed him so far that he was past all reason and logic. He rages and kills his wife and the man she is allegedly having an affair with.
Othello’s love for Desdemona was so deep he could not bear the thought of another being with her; “If she be false, O! Then heaven mocks itself. I’ll not believe’t.” Iago uses the characters of Cassio and the obsessive Roderigo as his weapons in his cunning plan. Iago drives the idea into Othello’s mind that Desdemona has been unfaithful, inciting him into a state of jealousy. “Excellent wretch! Perdition catch my soul, but I do love thee; and when I love thee not, chaos is come again.” Othello growing insecurities about his wife’s faithfulness only adds to his psychological suffering which in turn acts as a catalyst towards the suffering of other characters involved in the play.Iago tells these lies with the intention of driving Othello insane as well as establish his dominance and influence the situations of those characters close to Othello. Evidence of this comes in one of Iago’s soliloquies from act two, scene one; “That Cassio loves her, I do well Believe’t: That she loves him, ‘tis apt and of great credit.” This section shows that he is trying to convince himself that his own manipulative lies are true and is trying to reassure his motives by justifying his own actions. By convincing Othello
The relationship of the characters in Othello are shaped by the theme of truth and lies. Othello has trouble believing in his relationship with Desdemona because he considers too many outside opinions. Iago is the center of creating manipulations to alter the truth of the actual information. Therefore, Othello questions his fidelity with Desdemona because Iago plants different information to manipulate Othello’s mind and ultimately disrupt his relationship. According to Samuel Taylor Coleridge, “Othello wishes to excuse himself—to excuse himself by accusing” (151). Othello has others easily influence his decisions, in which he is incapable of trusting himself. Needless to say, Othello finds it easier to accuse Desdemona of her wrongdoings and for being unfaithful; he does not question Iago’s creditability. In addition, the theme of truth and lies arise from Othello’s inability to understand himself, so Othello initially has Iago dictate. For that reason, Iago is able to tell Othello anything, knowing that Othello does not question him. However, Othello does not see that Iago manipulates him, and Iago’s lies are perceived as the truth, as it contradicts what Desdemona says.
Roderigo was used to demote Cassio from his honorary position of lieutenant and in later events to murder him because he was in the way of his prize, Desdemona. He keeps his puppet under control with constant promises that Roderigo’s love will be returned but in reality it was never going to happen. By the time Roderigo begins to suspect that Iago is actually evil, it was already too late. When the two are attacking Cassio, his beloved friend had turned on him by stabbing him and making Roderigo look like the
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
This quote by Iago puts into Othello's mind that Desdemona may be cheating on him with Cassio. Othello then begins to question whether he was right to marry or not and although without proof, he believes in Iago's words. This is shown in his statement, “why did I marry? This honest creature doubtless sees and knows more, much more, than he unfolds”(Shakespeare 1324), indicates that he quickly turns to doubting his love Desdemona and takes Iago as being credible and true. It also causes him to become jealous and angered with only a simple touch of trickery by Iago. This marks his first sign to a down hill plunge in moral.
This is a man who first claims that he is a reputable upstanding citizen and then goes on to perpetrate great untruths upon seemingly innocent people. Iago views others as beneath his intelligence and he sees other as merely fools in his eyes. Iago demonstrates throughout the story that he has an endless lack of motivation for his behaviors. In the first act he is angry at Othello for not promoting him to the rank of Lieutenant of the army, and we can see that he immediately begins