Othello A Villainous Tragedy Essay Research Paper

Othello: A Villainous Tragedy Essay, Research Paper

Throughout all of literary history there have been two basic types of characters the

protagonist, or hero, and the antagonist, or villain. Perhaps the greatest villain of all time is most

greatly expressed in Shakespeare s tragedy Othello. The villain, Iago, would hold a place in any

dictionary, next to the word villain better than any antagonist in the history of all written or

spoken word, rivaled only by Satan himself. He expresses evil, deceit, and wickedness in the

purest of forms. These are the qualities that make Iago the total antithesis of heroism.

From the very beginning of the play it is clear that Iago is an evil figure. He clearly states

in the first scene his undying hatred for the hero, Othello. At first glance such hatred seems

unfounded. The only explanation that he gives in the beginning to the rather rubish character

Roderigo, is that he wants revenge for being passed over for a promotion to lieutenant by his

commander, Othello. We later find that he has an underlying, ridiculously unfounded jealousy

that Othello has slept with his wife, Emilia. Those are only superficial reasonings for his hate,

though. The real characteristics that make up his depravity and keep his machination of revenge

alive are as innumerable as they are evil. An entire essay could be written on that subject alone.

The most obvious characteristic keeps him going is his ability to uphold a facade of being honest

and trustworthy. This is done mostly by playing a role as a reluctant truth-teller. Through this,

he gains the blind trust of Othello, Roderigo, and almost every other character in the play. This

makes him very convincing, which is another characteristic that is so vital to the success of his

plot. The ease with which he convinces Roderigo to play along in his scheme is one of the most

essential elements in that scheme. The complete control over almost all of the characters in the

play that he exerts makes the entire play, the title notwithstanding, his own. Another principle

that keeps the corrupt blood flowing through his plot is the element of chaos that is so violently

played out. The total breakdown of civic order that occurs at Cyprus, but was impossible in

Venice, allows his artistically constructed scheme to come into being. Without this chaos, Iago s

cunning, ruthlessness, and total lack of conscience would be suppressed and his evil plan would

be unable to unfurl. He is the total antithesis of the absolute love between Othello and his wife,

Desdemona. What Iago represents is nullity, chaos, and nonbeing. He uses Othello s trust and

Desdemona s purity to not only defeat his victims, but to unmake them. There are also several

instances where Iago happens upon pure, blind luck. In these instances Iago s plot would

certainly crumble if it had not been for his good fortune. In one instance where he is running an

extremely high risk of a meeting between Othello and Cassio, the man who obtained the position

of lieutenant that Iago so desperately desired, Othello just happens to fall faint as Cassio

approaches. A meeting between these two would have surely brought Iago s plot crashing down.

As it can be inferred, Iago is the most essential character in this literary work. This is a

work of purely domestic tragedy centered around three principle characters, of which Iago has

complete control. There are no counterplots against Iago to be spoke of, because no one but he

and the audience is aware of his terrible machination. This brings about an astounding swiftness

in the development of the plot. Because he is the central character, Iago is the character that

brings about the most development of the plot. To get his scheme started, the actions of which

are basically the plot itself, he enlists the help of the melodramatic fool Roderigo. Roderigo

follows Iago s orders with the blind incentive of Desdemona s love that Iago assures him can be

won. This following of orders is what incites the development of the plot. Iago moves the plot

even further along by abusing the trust of Othello and convincing him that his wife is sleeping

with Cassio. Iago s un-self-concious evil is displayed as he invites the audience to witness his

project as if it were, and in a sense, is, a work of art. Iago also uses keen observation of

seemingly ineffectual events to play an important role in his scheme. In the end, it is a gathering

of these presumably insignificant occurrences that makes the entire plot. Who would think that

an item as petty as a handkerchief could drive a man to madness. Iago s observation of the

importance of Othello s gift of a handkerchief to Desdemona played one of the most essential

roles in the play. Noticing this, Iago enlisted his wife and Desdemona s handmaid, Emilia, to

obtain the object. He then uses it to incite an outrageous jealousy in Othello by planting it in

Cassio s room. Othello witnesses Cassio in possession of the hand

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