Iago Essay Example For Students

Iago Essay IAGO: a cold-hearted villain capable of manipulating anyone to get what he wants.William Shakespeare, born: 1564 died: 1616, is considered one of the greatest writers who has ever lived. He had a unique way of putting things into words. All of his plays, sonnets, and poems have gotten great recognition. But when Shakespeare wrote Othello he created one of the most controversial villains of all times; Iago. He is best described as disturbing, ruthless, and amoral. No other character can even come close to his evil (Iago: The 1). Iago, in the play Othello, is a very intriguing villain. Even though he is often referred to as Honest Iago, he lies, cheats, steals, bullies, and even kills just to get what he wants (Iago as 1). Iago starts off being evil when he finds out that Othello gave Cassio the position of lieutenant that he felt he deserved. To take this position from Cassio he must not let his conscience get in his way. This is not a problem with Iago because he has no conscience. I ago is able to manipulate anyone who gets in the way of his goals. He does this over and over during the course of the play. He uses all Carroll 2the characters to destroy Othello. He used the tension that was already existent to bring him down. And he also uses his intense sense of intuition. Iago is an excellent judge of character. He also makes it seem like he posseses characteristics that he really doesnt have. Iago often wonders why someone would pretend to be something they are not, when in fact that is exactly what he represents. He has many fronts that he can put up. Every character in Othello had a relationship with the different sides of his personality. He uses this to his advantage in the case of Roderigo loving Desdemona. By knowing that Roderigo is madly in love with her, he knows he will do anything to be with Desdemona. Iago says about Roderigo, Thus do I ever make a fool of my purse; (1.3.353). By going on what he knows about Roderigo, he is able to get money and jewels from him. He doesnt even think twice before taking things from someone who supposedly considers Iago to be his friend. Iago is also capable of thinking very quickly in any situation. This makes him able to handle himself when something he does not expect happens. He can recognize the advantages of trust and uses it to gain what he wants. He has it in his mind that if he has everyones trust no one will ever expect him to be at the root of all the evil in this play. He can put thoughts Carroll 3into peoples heads without making it look like he is playing mind games with them. He is just a smart individual who knows how to use his surroundings to his advantage. For example, in Act II, Scene III, Line 296-297 he says, And whats he then that says I play the villain,/When this advice is free I give, and honest/. Iago just proves himself to be the master of deception. It also makes it clear that he was in command on all the characters around him. Iago, directly or indirectly, had something to do with the deaths of Othello, Desdemona, Emilia, Cassio and Roderigo. These are the main characters in the play tha t were all innocent victims of Iagos evil ways. All of the problems Iago caused were somehow done by lies, treachery, manipulation, and a great hate for good in general. Most of his hate stems from jealousy and revenge that his wishes to seek against Othello. Every hateful act that he commits contains some type of evil plot that in one way or another will have an effect on Othello. This is ironic because he has Othello so fooled into believing that he is a true friend to him. He is just setting up the main plot in destroying Othello. Iago figures if Othello believes that he is only looking out for the good of him, he will never see anything coming. Carroll 4Iago relies in others actions to be able to