The Imperfection Of Human Nature In Shakespeare's Othello

Human as the main body stream of the society, their spiritual world is extremely complex and rich, these varieties of human nature shape us unique and distinct from each other. Real human nature has both human creativity and limitations, the imperfections in a person’s characteristics sometimes will perform negatively but in some cases, it won’t harm the whole character’s image. The Shakespearean play Othello reflects the profound social contradictions of the Renaissance, and William Shakespeare develops the idea of one’s ruling passion would falsely leading to the tragic path and creating misunderstandings between loved ones which will act as a double-edged sword that not only harms other but later on will harm oneself. This idea is showing through three main characters of the play, Othello, Iago, and Desdemona; Othello’s ruling passion leading to his jealousy which blinds his logic and gentle nature, Iago’s cruelty in order accomplishes his intelligence which gives him a weapon of language to manipulate people with his ruling passion, Desdemona and her sweet kindness motivates her ruling passion for helping Cassio without noticing her husband's transformation which later caused her own death.

To begin, one factor that causes Othello’s downfall is that he is characterized by gullibility. Firstly, Othello is tricked by Iago, who leads him to believe that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio. After Iago tells Othello about Cassio’s dream, Othello says, “Oh, monstrous! Monstrous!" (Shakespeare. 3. 3. 427). Othello trusts and relies on Iago too much; he believes Desdemona is truly having an affair with Cassio. His gullibility makes him become very vulnerable in Iago’s revenge scheme and gradually becomes increasingly jealous. When jealousy takes over Othello, his mind and judgment are disturbed. Furthermore, when Emilia tells Othello about the death of Desdemona, Othello admits to murdering his honest wife Desdemona but says that he killed her because she is untrue to him. After Emilia tells Othello that his thought is untrue, Othello replies: “Ay, ’twas he that told me first./ An honest man he is, and hates the slime/ That

Shakespeare’s play ‘Othello’, set in early Venice, focuses on the key relationship between titular character Othello and his wife Desdemona, to comment on the human condition through the text. The relationship between the married couple allows us to understand Shakespeare’s commentary on human nature, particularly how humans are inherently selfish, prone to falling victim to jealousy, and are made both stronger and weaker by their emotions.

There are many opposing views to the way that Othello is defined within Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Othello. Some suggest that Othello is a savage "Moor," and at no point is he the noble "Venetian" he attempts to portray himself as. Others suggest that Othello is the noble "Venetian" he portrays himself as, and his ultimate demise stems directly from Iago being a savage. Yet some agree that Othello is both the noble "Venetian" and the savage "Moor," unable to fully interpolate himself into the "Venetian" paradigm, but becoming, rather, a "noble savage."

Firstly, Othello’s fatal flaw begins and ends with people expoliting his own mind, as his jealousy destroyes everyone he loves until it comes full circle and tears him apart. This is demonstrated in the following quote: “If she be false, oh then Heaven mocks itself; the feeling, O Iago, the pity of it, Iago, the feeling. But there where I have garner'd up my heart, where either I must live, or bear no life,” (Shakespeare ) This is mainly Othello explaining that if Desdemona were to be lying to him, he would be consumed by it and feel so much pain that he feels he could not bear to live with it (foreshadowing). There are also references to Othello’s inner demons, and Iago alludes to how he uses Othello’s jealousy to mock him and twist the people he loves into something they’re not.

Shakespeare’s Othello is a play consistently based on jealously and the way it can destroy lives. One is quick to think this jealously is based on Othello’s lack of belief in Desdemona’s faithfulness to him or his suspensions over Desdemona’s affair with Cassio, Othello’s honorable lieutenant. Upon closer inspection of the jealously that exists throughout the play it becomes clear that his jealously is not the sole start and reason for all of the destruction that occurs. Iago, a good friend of Othello, is not who he appears to be. Iago’s own jealously of those around him pushes him over the edge. He begins to deceive all those who believe he is a true, honorable, and faithful man. Throughout Othello, Iago incites his own jealously in

Shakespeare is known for his use of recurring themes throughout his work, including love, death and betrayal. These themes are present in his work of Othello. However, the most fundamental issue is jealousy. The lives of the characthers in Othello are ruined by jealousy from the beginning to the end of the play. The telling of the story is carried out by passion, jealousy, and death. Shakespeare’s Othello reveals devastating tragic inevitability, stunning psychological depth, and compelling poetic depth; the fragility and mysterious power of love, as well as demons of doubt, and how suspicion can be triggered by manipulative villain (Barthelemy 12).

All humans are united in their imperfection. Everyone is inevitably flawed; this is human nature. How one rectifies their mistakes truly shapes who they are. Shakespeare’s Othello exemplifies the imperfection of human nature, focusing on what happens when each character’s fatal flaw takes control over their decisions, and eventually distorts their individual perspectives. Their actions consequently erupt in chaos by the end of the play. This play ultimately serves as a reminder of human nature. Though infinitely diverse and complex, humans are creatures of habit who ultimately share the same villainous tendencies. The evil in the world will always prevail through the manipulation of one’s imperfections, leading to the downfall of the

. He is admired by everyone in the play, even Iago comments on what a good man Othello is. Secondly, a tragic hero can not be perfect. He or she must have a flaw of some kind. In Othello’s case it is that he allows his emotions to take over. Manipulated by Iago’s lies, Othello is forced to confront emotions he obviously can not handle. His wisdom and patience are replaced by anger and hate. The power of these destructive emotions ultimately lead to Desdemona’s death and Othello’s suicide

Dr. David Allen White of the US Naval Academy asserts that "we are all Iago now" (White 2000). The claim may seem outlandish at first. Modern man representative of Shakespeare's greatest arch-villain? How could one even suggest such a thing? White's argument is followed by a series of points, each of which is aimed to help his audience realize that the character they most readily identify with is not Othello (the tragic hero of the drama) but Iago (both the driving comedic force behind the play and the driving antagonist). The reason White is able to make such a claim is that Iago, for all his treachery, is still one of Shakespeare's most human characters: he is brilliantly witty, outrageously funny, a rhetorical genius, possessed of petty jealousies which he insists on acting upon, full of pride, which he will cling to even if it means his own destruction, and most importantly an admitted schizoid "I am not what I am" (1.1.71) and a professed self-serving, self-idolater: "In following him, I follow but myself" (1.1.64). This speech will use the character of Iago as a launching point for a greater discussion on why it is that Shakespeare's Othello has stood the test of time and is still worthy studying today. I make the claim that it has done so and is so because of its incomparable ability to represent what it is to be human a representation very dear to us who live in a world that appears to be in most constant

    Tragedy is an intrinsically human concept; tragic heroes are damned by what they themselves do. Othello is not so much felled by the actions of Iago, but by a quality all people possess-- human frailty. Accordingly, Othello is not a victim of consequences, but an active participant in his downfall. He is not merely a vehicle for the machinations of Iago; he had free agency. Othello's deficiencies are: an insecure grasp of Venetian social values; lack of critical intelligence, self-knowledge, and faith in his wife; and finally, insecurity-- these are the qualities that lead to his own downfall.

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

he is worthy of her love.It is my opinion  that Othello is a man governed by a

In Shakespeare?s play Othello, Othello himself is the tragic hero. He is an individual of high stature who is destroyed by his surroundings, his own actions, and his fate. His destruction is essentially precipitated by his own actions, as well as by the actions of the characters surrounding him. The tragedy of Othello is not a fault of a single person, but is rather the consequence of a wide range of feelings, judgments, misjudgments, and attempts for personal justification revealed by the characters.

Critics have debated the significance of Othello’s race in terms of portraying his identity for a long time. The negative connotations of “blackness” have led to the creation of many racial constructs associated with the “Moor”; this denigration has infused the opinions of many critics, such as Albert Gerard, proposing that Othello’s “negroid physiognomy” reaches down to the “deepest levels of personality” and that he is a “barbarian”. However, many other critics like Edward Berry and Martin Orkin believe that colour is merely a “surface indicator” compared to the outward virtue of beneficence, defining identity. Beneficence could be defined by the will to practice good acts, in conjunction with the aversion of practicing evil, and the prevention and removal of evil.