He is willing to believe his innocent wife has been unfaithful to him even though he is, to all intents and purposes, devoted to her. Iago is incredibly organized, mischievous and will stop at nothing to humiliate Cassio and his general. Othello’s own latent insecurity makes him fall prey to Jealousy. Iago's recognition of Othello's trusting nature, however, allows Iago to project his suspicions onto Othello. How does Othello respond to the threat of violence? Iago then tells Roderigo to kill Cassio, but Roderigo fails, so Iago kills him so nobody will find out about the plan. Iago’s confidence in his ravaging plot comes from his knowledge that Jealousy emerges from within. Iago’s plan works, and Othello is convinced that there is something going on between Cassio and Desdemona. ... How will Iago use Cassio's weakness to further his plot? Iago?s suggestions to Othello will cause him to construe Desdemona?s pleas for Cassio, as pleas for her paramour. (III, iii, 51), ?she shall undo her credit with [Othello]? Iago is malicious and manipulative. This warning is used later in the play by Iago as evidence of Desdemona’s infidelity. Revenge shapes the play Othello, its plot and characters. Iago is suggesting that Desdemona has acted against nature in marrying Othello rather than one of her own kind Iago implies that Desdemona has married Othello because of lust or passion and will eventually realize her error and go back to her own kind Iago manipulating Othello to believe Desdemona isn't really in love with him Othello’s tragic flaw of inherent trust haunts him throughout the play. Her innocent hopes that “let Cassio be received again” (3.4.) He looks at Iago’s last appearance and observes, “The last Speech, the motive-hunting of motiveless Malignity -- how awful! Yet Shakespeare puts into Iago’s mouth several plausible ‘motives’ for wreaking the confusion and chaos that causes Othello’s downfall and Desdemona’s death, and in providing multiple motives, Iago emerges as ‘motiveless’, to use Coleridge’s famous description (Coleridge described Iago as being possessed of ‘motiveless malignity’). Iago plants the idea to Othello that something inappropriate may be happening between Cassio and Desdemona, and encourages Othello to pay attention to whether “your lady strain his entertainment / With any strong or vehement importunity” (3.3.). Brown-Adapted from IB Workshop notes, IB exams & Druce, Elizabeth and Hannah Tyson. For this reason (at least he claims), Iago declares that he hates Othello and will wreak vengeance on both Othello and Cassio. Throughout the play, Iago's soliloquies disclose to the audience what he does not reveal to the other characters as his plans take shape. Analysis. Iago assures him that this marriage will end once Desdemona is corrupted. Othello is easily persuaded and this leads him to put his trust in the wrong people. This makes him a more interesting tragic hero, in some ways, because he isn’t a spotless hero with one major blind spot: his blind spot is, in a sense, everyone else but himself. Iago counters this threat by telling Roderigo that Desdemona will leave for … ... How will Iago use Cassio in his plot to get revenge on Othello? These stories, Othello says, won Desdemona's love. The racial issue is of paramount importance in this play. ” He needed a way to execute his plan in getting his revenge against Othello without being caught, and he used Roderigo’s love for Desdemona and his foolishness to do so. Iago refers to Othello not by his name but as 'the Moor', calling him 'the devil' (2.1.216) and 'defective' (2.1.220), a racist portrayal which makes Desdemona's unfaithfulness more believable to Roderigo. His first plot is to try to prevent Othello’s marriage to Desdemona, the beautiful daughter of Brabantio, by telling Brabantio that Othello and Desdemona have already slept together even though they are not married. After successfully planting the seed of doubt in Othello, he moves on to putting Desdemona’s handkerchief under Cassio’s possession as a confirmation of the affair. Iago’s ambition, Desdemona’s love for Othello, and Emilia’s loyalty in Iago and Desdemona are also tragic flaws. 3) Why does Othello care about Desdemona’s handkerchief? From the beginning of the play, Othello, a moor, is considered an ill-suited match for the Venetian, fair and beautiful Desdemona by other characters. Othello, a black man, has gained the love of Desdemona, the daughter of a wealthy citizen. It is not until after Desdemona's murder that Emilia realizes what her husband has done and the role she played in helping him. We see how revenge creates tragedy and destroys relationships. A mere handkerchief, that authenticates their love, is easily misused by Iago to prove Desdemona infidel. He hides the handkerchief in Cassio’s bedchamber and then tells Othello that Cassio has it. But as is so often with a well-known text, we don’t know this one nearly as well as we think we do: Othello has more in it than jealousy, the ‘green-eyed monster’, and (implied) racial hatred. The main action of the play takes place in Venice, as the play’s subtitle, The Moor of Venice, makes clear. Next, in Cyprus on a military campaign, Iago gets Cassio drunk and arranges a brawl, which he makes sure Othello witnesses; Othello has to strip the recently promoted Cassio of his commission. At this point, the reader simply assumes that Iago is jealous of Cassio and angry at Othello for appointing Cassio as lieutenant, which leads to the scene in which Iago and Roderigo are alerting Brabantio that Othello is sleeping with Desdemona. Iago used Roderigo for his dirty work so that he would not betray his front as “Honest Iago. He pretends to like Othello but hates him for being a moor and plots his downfall. Iago essentially uses Desdemona as a pawn in his scheme to ruin Othello. In Shakespeare’s source material for the play, a novella by the Italian author Cinthio, Iago is straightforwardly evil and devilish, intent on destroying Othello’s life, and with a clear motive. Act 4, Scene 1. Here Iago orchestrates even the way in which Desdemona will be killed. Desdemona also expresses her true love for Othello. Iago, having got hold of a handkerchief of Desdemona’s, which she’d lost (a gift from Othello), hatches a plan to make Othello think his wife has been sleeping with Cassio. Othello leaves for the state affairs regarding the attack and Iago is committed to bringing Desdemona to him later on. The next technique that he used was that he knew how to use all his options he could use all the tools in his grasp. Iago here knew that Othello needed to see the ‘ocular’ proof quickly while he was still vulnerable, and Iago’s thinking on his feet led to Othello being even further convinced by his supposed theory. After Cassio falls from Othello’s favor, Iago exploits Desdemona’s eagerness to bring the two men back together : “So will I turn her virtue into pitch / And out of her own goodness make the net” (2.3.). Your beds! Othello admits that he married Desdemona.But he denies using any magic to win her love, and says that Desdemona will support his story. Samuel Taylor Coleridge coined the phrase “motiveless malignity” to describe Iago. Roderigo, who has been courting Desdemona, is upset with the news that she has eloped with Othello, a great Moorish warrior who is now a general in the service of the ruler of Venice. Before we analyse some of these themes, it might be worth recapping the plot of this great tragedy which has inspired everything from opera (Verdi’s Otello) to a rock musical (Catch My Soul, from the 1960s). He tells Iago to kill Cassio, and he publicly strikes Desdemona, accusing her in front of everyone. He is a villain, but a charming two-faced one. Roderigo is talked into angering and fighting Cassio by Iago during Act 2.1. In this way, race plays a small but still significant role in Shakespeare’s play. Iago is able to operate successfully in his plans, as Desdemona dies, Iago has gained his revenge from Othello. Othello is a play about sexual jealousy, and how one man can convince another man, who loves his wife dearly, that she has been unfaithful to him when she hasn’t. Iago convinces Roderigo about Desdemona’s “affair” with Cassio by pointing out that they held hands. Iago tells Othello that Desdemona is Cassio's lover. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. When he didn’t need Roderigo anymore Iago betrayed him by killing him. ... How will Iago involve Emilia in his plot? Honest Iago plays as a Villain who at first wanted to help his friend Rodrigo out by putting in a good word to a women named Desdemona. He is passed over for a promotion and this trigger jealous and envies which he takes out on the lives of his boss Othello and his boss's wife, Desdemona. Iago is ensign or flag-bearer to the great military general, Othello, who is a Moor (i.e. In spite of jealousy, Iago plots his revenge to bring down Othello by making him believe that his wife, Desdemona, is having an affair with Cassio. In this dream, Cassio is meant to have said “Sweet Desdemona / Let us be wary, let us hide our loves.” He then goes on to describe how Cassio began to kiss Iago, and “laid his leg / Over my thigh.” This imagery is so strong because it places Iago in Desdemona’s position, and which somehow makes it more real. He acts as Iago’s lackey and does many things Iago tells him to because … English A1 Course Companion Oxford University Jealousy is also a big part as it fuels the vengeance in characters and creates tension and conflict. We hear someone yelling "help!" Realising he has thrown away the life of an innocent woman he loved dearly, Othello kills himself publicly, Cassio is made governor of Cyprus, and Iago is taken off for punishment. 10) Why does Roderigo agree to kill Cassio. Writers from Dickens to George R. R. Martin have often sorrowfully or gleefully talked of ‘killing off’ their own characters for the amusement of others; Iago wishes to ruin Othello’s marriage for his own amusement or, in Hazlitt’s phrase, ‘stabs men in the dark to prevent ennui’. In that scene, it becomes apparent how Iago is able to use other people’s thoughts and suspicions against themselves. Iago continues his insinuations when speaking to Othello; he provides more "proofs" that are anything but, though Othello has calmed, and seems more troubled and less angry. Ad. A few lines earlier (see above passage), Iago claimed that he suspects Othello has been sleeping with his wife, Emilia. Iago's first plot is to reveal to Desdemona's father the secret elopement of his daughter to Othello. Enter your email address to subscribe to this site and receive notifications of new posts by email. The only characters whose view of Othello is not distorted by racial stereotyping are Desdemona and Cassio. What “proof” does Iago use to convince Roderigo that Cassio and Desdemona are lovers? Iago takes advantage of this by being blunt with Othello about his wife Desdemona. I'll beat the knave into a twiggen bottle" (2.3.147-148). Spoken by the main antagonist Iago, while helping the rich Roderigo in his suit to propose to Desdemona, but finds out… Iago uses Desdemona’s friendliness for his own evil plan. Iago used Roderigo to carry out his plans so he could keep his hands “clean”. When Othello asks Desdemona where her handkerchief is, she confesses that she has lost it; meanwhile, Cassio gives it to Bianca, his mistress, little realising that the handkerchief is part of Iago’s grand plan to implicate him in an imaginary affair. Each time she suggests, ? Spoken by the main antagonist Iago, while helping the rich Roderigo in … Iago takes advantage of other people’s trust, especially the trust Othello assigns him with. Shakespeare uses a number of techniques to express the manipulaton of Iago in this scene. The scene in which this takes place, the "temptation" scene, is driven as much by Othello's view of Iago as it is by Iago's suggestions. Othello describes his true love for Desdemona and how it began. Iago immediately plans on destroying Othello life. Othello is a tragedy by William Shakespeare set in Venice. Iago plans to plant the seeds of jealousy in Othello. Iago replies he can't do it because Cassio is his good friend. Iago’s sneaky mannerism is display when he says to Othello “it were not for your quiet… to let you know my thoughts” Iago is not revealing his thoughts on Cassio and Desdemona, as Iago knows this will make Othello believe that Iago is trying to protect him, and create the appearance that he is on Othello’s side. He looks at Iago’s last appearance and observes, “The last Speech, the motive-hunting of motiveless Malignity -- how awful! The Moor is courageous and smart in the battlefield but after all his race and colour make him feel like being ostracised. Iago does the plotting alone; Roderigo is his dupe and has no more idea how he is being used than Cassio does. Othello: Plot Summary Act I, Scene I The play opens on a warm Venetian night, where a conversation is underway between Roderigo, a gentleman, and Iago, a soldier under Othello's command. Cassio for sleeping with Desdemona demoting his position Cassio behavior is rooted in a deep sense honor. Ok so those were the techniques that Iago used to manipulate others. Iago influences every action that takes place in the plot, because he wants to destroy the people who have betrayed him, by planting false thoughts in their heads, so that they give his speeches faith and draw the wrong conclusions. He warns Othello against the dangers of "the green-eyed monster" (3.3.165-7) of jealousy, while at the same time noting that Desdemona did successfully deceive her father. Blog can not be sure Why he is doing what he is doing Iago. ’ ’ Lago: Lago is the husband of Emilia and the role she played in blackface by letting believe... 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