What Is Iago's Motivation For Othello

Iago presents himself to the world as a faithful and honest man. In fact other people speak of him as “honest Iago”. Beneath the surface of his identity that he portrays to the world is his manipulation through lies. He uses his lies to manipulate other people and desperately wants revenge on Othello. He hates Othello so passionately because he gave the position of lieutenant up to another person instead of him. I think it could also be because of jealousy. I think he’s jealous of Cassio and Othello because later on in the story after he finally becomes lieutenant he brings up another reason to seek revenge on Othello, which was rumors of Othello sleeping with his wife. Iago is good at using people’s weaknesses to manipulate people and persuade

Iago had a couple of motives of which he felt important enough to seek revenge. One motive would be Iago not being promoted to lieutenant by Othello, instead the position was given to Cassio. ¨In personal suit to make me his lieutenant, Off-capp'd to him,¨ Iago, not happy about not being made lieutenant, thinking it justified to seek revenge on both Othello and Cassio. Also, Othello had allegedly slept with Iago's wife, Emilia.. ¨Till I am even´d with him, wife for wife,¨ Iago

Iago's need for revenge on Cassio and Othello could originate from the inadequacy he must of felt when Cassio was promoted, and finding out that his wife might be having affairs must have wounded his pride and bruised his ego greatly. All

Iago claims to “hate the Moor” (Act 1, sc 3, line 368) so he wants to

Revenge is the main theme in the play Othello by William Shakespeare and it is portrayed from the character Iago. Through Iago’s soliloquies he reveals his horrible doings. Iago wants to get revenge on Othello and his loved one Desdemona. The reason why he wants to get revenge at Othello is because he promotes Cassio to Lieutenant. Iago takes advantage of his reputation “Honesty Iago” to manipulate other characters in the play to get revenge from Othello. Iago is aware that he can easily manipulate the people around him to get revenge from Othello that he does not stop and think about the harm he is causing. Iago is a brilliant character that he successfully manipulates Cassio, Desdemona, Roderigo and his own wife Emilia to fulfill his

Motivation is the force that drives someone to do something. Being realistically motivated means a person will want something they are sure of they can attain. Now, motivation can stem from positive or negative motives, it truly just depends on what the person’s goal is. Iago is a character and the main antagonist from the play Othello, written by Shakespeare. He wants things to happen to make himself better in some way and for revenge, and throughout the play, he is always planning something. Iago is motivated by this throughout the course of the play; furthermore, he is successful with his motivations. In this case, Iago is a realistically motivated character.

Over the course of the play, Iago offers numerous reasons for him desiring revenge. The first motive is the loss of a promotion to Cassio. “’Tis the curse of service: preferment goes by letter and affection, And not by old gradation,” (I.i.33-35). Iago feels that Cassio was chosen over him because he is more likable instead of earning it like Iago felt he had. Bloom describes this anger in terms of religion. “His religion is war, and his god is Othello, and so his fury when Cassio is preferred to him is the fury of the priest or worshipper who has been found unworthy,” (Bloom). Iago feels that Othello must make amends for his rejection. The next reason he gives is the supposed infidelity of his wife. Iago says “And it is thought abroad that ‘twixt my sheets H’as done my office.” (I.iii.378-379).

Iago is undoubtably the villian in William Shakespeare's 'Othello', however the reason behind his evil deeds are less clear. There are many possibilities as to why Iago betrayed his superior Othello. Was he simply envious of Othello's status or did Iago plot to destroy Othello for his own enjoyment?

Iago’s revenge plan started because he wanted a higher position in the army. The position that Iago wanted was the one that Cassio had. So he knew the only way to get this was through the “easy prey” (spark notes) Othello. Iago saw Othello as an easy target because of his insecurities of marrying Desdemona and his trusting nature. Othello was insecure because he was a man

     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.

Iago’s reasons for wanting Othello to murder Desdemona are never satisfactorily explained. As Iago himself says, "What you know, you know" (5.2.306). He gives various reasons for wanting to destroy Othello, but none ring completely true. He is disgruntled because of Cassio’s promotion over him. He suspects Othello of bedding his wife. But why is he determined to have Othello murder Desdemona? His plot seems based on sport rather than reason. Iago truly hates the Moor, but his hate is not grounded in any firm reason. As the play progresses, Iago’s motive never fully crystallizes, but his determination to dupe Othello into murder, thereby destroying his sense of honor, grows stronger.

After reading William Shakespeare’s critically acclaimed play ‘Othello’, I concluded that Iago’s motive for destroying Othello’s relationship with Desdemona was not due to jealousy but because of his sadistic nature. He succeeded in destroying their relationship through the manipulation of other characters in the play such as Brabantio, Cassio and Othello himself. While analysing the different motives of Iago I found many critical essays supporting my hypothesis but struggled to find any disputing it, although I did succeed in finding a disputing article, this led to me having two critics opinions in a similar time-period and because of the insignificant time gap, I was not able to contrast them in that aspect. The two main critics I focused

He continues suggesting that by now Othello and Desdemona are consuming their marriage: IAGO. I am one, sir, that comes to tell you your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two backs. (I. i. 115-117) Certainly, one of the primary aims of Iago surely is to destroy Othello’s marriage life. Kirsch (1978) claims: “Iago nevertheless prevails with Othello … because Othello eventually internalizes Iago’s maleficent sexual vision and sees himself with Iago’s eyes, rather than Desdemona’s”.

The question of the true motivation for main antagonist Iago in Shakespeare’s Othello, is a question that has caused much controversy amongst critics throughout many different time periods. I have investigated the real motivation for Iago using various critics from different time periods. While researching Iago’s motivation, I have found different critics all of varying opinion. The critics that I used to support my investigation are Colin McGinn, William Maginn, and A.C Bradley. All 3 critics have supporting texts from different time periods and all gave varying views on Iago’s true motivation.

At all points of one’s life, one has desires; what separates and defines a person is determined by how that person goes about dealing with those desires. Some believe in working honestly towards his or her aspirations and others in seizing it at any cost. Iago, the antagonist of the play Othello is one of those people who would do anything in order to get what he wishes. Because Othello names Cassio lieutenant instead of him, he begins to device a plan in vengeance to bring Othello and Cassio down, which ends up tragic for all of the major characters. Iago’s obsessive need for revenge stems from jealousy and ambition, and because he is a master manipulator, the plan goes extremely smooth for the majority of the play.