Who Is Iago In Othello

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’s Othello explores the destructive nature of Iago’s villainy through his ability to confuse appearance with reality through his deception and trickery. In Shakespeare’s Othello, Iago is a scheming antagonist whose goal is to destroy Othello. Iago uses foreshadowing when he says, “I am not what I am.” Iago tells the audience that his loyalty with Othello is all a scheme to destroy him, and his

Further in Act II we learn more of how manipulating Iago is and how he is willing to do anything to get his way without anyone realizing it. He continues to use his so called "honesty" to his advantage, when he is lying and using others to achieve his desire, per say. After watching the movie in class I was able to get a better see of the way Iago acts through the play. By Iago sharing his thoughts with the audience, I was able to get a more in depth understanding of Iago as opposed to the other characters. When Iago shares his thoughts there's a better understanding of his motives behind whatever he is planning to do, and it helps us understand his purpose and to what extent he will go in order to fulfill his purpose. He is giving his personal

The tragic plot of Othello hinges on the potential of the villain, Iago, to deceive other characters, above all Roderigo and Othello, through encouraging them to misinterpret what they see. Othello is prone to Iago 's ploys seeing that he himself is so sincere and

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

The relationships in Shakespeare’s plays are never simple and even less so when one narrows the field to his tragedies. In the case of Iago and Othello this complicated relationship is made more so by the interwoven theme of appearance verses reality. The idea of Iago, the wolf in sheep’s clothing, fighting both for and against his master that permeates the play. Othello, however, a seasoned warrior being unable to see through the guise is a flaw his companion takes advantage of. Iago’s hatred is the biggest mystery of this play, making the reader wish Shakespeare had written a prequel.

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.

In Shakespeare’s Othello, Iago gains the trust of Roderigo by manipulating him so he can gain wealth out of him. Iago brings back the hope to Roderigo, who already thought of committing suicide, by saying to him that soon enough Desdemona will not find any interest in Othello. All that Roderigo has to do is to keep the income going for Iago if he wants Desdemona to be with him instead of Othello. For that to happen they have to plan on revenge on Othello by making him think that his wife is cheating on him.

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, the Moor of Venice is a play of great manipulation and jealousy. Iago is the antagonist character of the play Othello. Iago becomes irate and filled with jealousy when Othello names Michael Cassio as his lieutenant, because Iago believed he should have been the one promoted not Michael Cassio. By manipulating everyone around him, Iago portrays himself as an honest noble man whom can be trusted. Iago being known for the honest man he earns everyone’s trust and therefore learns their weakness for his ultimate plan of destruction. Iago’s greatest skill is disguising his manipulative schemes of destroying and betraying the ones around him with what he leads people to believe as honesty. Iago uses their

   Who can resist empathizing with the unfortunate protagonist in William Shakespeare’s Othello? He is so noble, and yet so victimized by the cunning Iago.

The most illusive character in all of Shakespeare’s drama, Iago is perhaps the most difficult to explore psychologically for the simple reason that he lacks a personal self. He dons and sheds gender like a closet of clothes, adorning each article as it suits him. Ultimately evolved from the Vice figure of the medieval English morality plays, as Bernard Spivack has convincingly argued, Iago is the Shakespeare’s dramatic and humanistic manifestation of the abstracted evil which governed the dramatic movement of the previous generations of English plays. The self he presents to the world is bound only by circumstance and not by constitution. One key to Iago’s power is his “improvisational ability” (Gutierrez 12). Like the mythical Satan as Prince of Lies, he makes up his fabulous stories as he goes along, playing off of others’ actions and reactions to his ever-spinning web of lies. Iago switches between the facades of emotion easily and fluidly. He admits and affirms his hatred of Othello in the opening lines of the play (I.i.1-9) [All citations are from the Bantam edition.] and reveals his intentions of betraying Othello at his earliest convenience (I.i.44). In the very next scene, not more than 150 lines later, we find Iago in his role as sycophant openly fawning before the

     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.

Bamboozle, trick, swindle, cheat, mislead, inveigle, beguile, dupe, delude, hoodwink, dissemble, double-cross, outwit, con, deceive and villainous. The words above (and many more) help describe the antagonist in the play Othello, Iago. Iago is on a quest of undeserved vengeance on the moor (Othello), and plans to eradicate everything he treasures. Iago utilizes his various skills in deception to assure not only fool and destroy our hero, Othello, but also bring ruin to the lives of those surrounding him. One of the first victims of Iago’s deceit is the rich, gullible man of Venice, Roderigo.

In “Othello,” William Shakespeare creates a devious character, Iago. He is a very educated young man, who lacks ethics enabling his character to deceive those around him, disguising his true colors. With audience perception, and opposing character perceptions, Iago portrays a brilliant, manipulative villain who is concealed with false sympathy, integrity and empathy.