Iago fools everyone in the play into believing he's honest. No one even suspects him of treachery, until the final act when Roderigo first realizes how badly he's been fooled. In short, Iago proves that evil intentions can be masked behind a facade of honesty. The theme emerges in other characters: Brabantio is deceived by Desdemona's reaction to Othello, assuming she fears him when she truly loves the Moor. Othello suspects that Desdemona is unfaithful, despite her innocent looks. Othello also feels he's being deceived by Cassio, whom he trusts and who appears loyal. Emilia's exterior suggests salty indifference, but she turns against her husband and dies in defense of Desdemona. Even Bianca, who is suspected of dishonesty, is ultimately seen as a sincere and caring woman. And Othello, considered a barbarian by many in the play, is gentle and noble until driven to near-madness by the cruel manipulations of his most trusted "friend."
The inability to judge true from false is a human dilemma that we have all faced. In Othello's case, the dilemma proves fatal. Shakespeare dramatizes the problem by showing the consequences of trusting someone whose mask of honesty is perfect, almost to the very last.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
1. Easily defined ragtime is known as an early mixture of African, African-American, and Eurpoean musical elements. Ragtime has an unending set of variations with added embellishments. Known as the hottest musical rage of late 1890’s to early 1900’s, ragtime brought together established techniques and incorporated them with European march format. This fused syncopation influences from Africans with harmonic ways of African Americans and Europeans. Rhythmic syncopation was brought into American homes through, at first, Minstrel shows, then by ragtime by piano “professors” who were usually black pianist who played for social functions, dances, bars, and ill-repute homes. Another way this was made popular was by cutting contests. These contests would allow “professors” to outplay one another by adding embellishments that were improvised on spot reflecting on what was later made known as jazz. A solo pianist, to this day, still uses this technique in the jazz culture. Scott Joplin is one of the major creators who is given almost sole credit for the then new music but was also overlooked due to his color by biased white scholars limiting him as “only” a ragtime composer. Another popular ragtime composer was John Philip Sousa. Sousa was known for using marches, along with minstrel and ragtime pieces in his bands standard shows. His popularity through his works The Stars and Stripes Forever, played every Fourth of July, The Washington Post, used by American military bands, and The Liberty Bell March, which was the theme song for Monty Python’s Flying Circus, created imitators all over. With musicians reforming already established music by adding their own ideas and improvisations into the works jazz was born.…
- 611 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Iago is a cruel and evil man who uses ways to ruin Othello and Desdemona’s relationship. Othello appointed Cassio, to be his lieutenant. Iago was mad when he heard about it, he believes that he should be the one for the position since he knows more. This started off with his jealousy of Cassio. When Othello and Desdemona got married without letting anyone knowing, Iago begins to plot his plan. He used Roderigo to help him throughout the process of his plan to bring down Cassio. He then told Othello lies to ruin his own relationship. He also use Bianca as his part of the plan. Iago got people into thinking he was a nice honest guy, but he uses other people's jealousy and gullibleness for his own benefit.…
- 749 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Physician assisted suicide is a widely spread controversial ethical issue. This paper is written in an effort to highlight some important points discussing whether assisted suicide should be legalized or not under certain circumstances. Various ethical and social factors that play key role in prohibiting and permitting the legalization of assisted suicide…
- 2855 Words
- 12 Pages
Best Essays -
“Othello, the Moor of Venice”, tells the tragic story of a noble hero that is undone by his own fatal flaw. Othello has a blinding trust in those closest to him, and he leads with his heart, not his mind. This fatal flaw is exploited by a supposedly loyal friend and Othello's trusting nature and inability to separate what is in his heart and what is in his mind dramatically results in tragedy. With a running theme of perception versus reality, Othello's refusal to accept the difference between them foreshadows the tragic ending. The play begins with Othello's Ensign, Iago, hatching a plot to destroy the life of Othello and he has recruited Roderigo to help him carry out his devious plan. Iago has everyone fooled into thinking he is of noble loyalty to Othello further supporting the perception vs. reality theme. The reality is that without this belief, he would have been unable to dupe Othello, with these lines “Were I the Moor, I would not be Iago” and “I am not what I am”(59-60). He hates Othello for not being promoted to Lieutenant, a position he felt he earned. Iago's first act of deceit is an attempt to deny the validity of Othello and Desdemona, who recently eloped and to plant the seeds of doubt by having Roderigo tell Senator Brabantio that his daughter Desdemona has eloped with Othello. The Duke believes that Othello has bewitched Desdemona with magic. Desdemona and Othello deny the claims, and she openly declares her love for Othello. The perception versus reality theme is fully explored here. The perception, instigated by Iago, is that the marriage is a sham since the courtship was brief but the reality is that Othello and Desdemona truly love each other and feel they belong together. The Duke sums up the theme very well with “When remedies are past, the griefs are ended/By seeing the worst, which late on hopes depended”(202-203); if you can't change something, don't cry about it. When you…
- 371 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Would you kill the love of your life if someone told you she was cheating on you? In the play, “Othello” that is exactly what happens when a husband is deceived into thinking his wife is cheating on him. The play, “Othello” is set in Cyprus and Venice. In the play, Iago attempts to destroy the marriage of Othello and Desdemona. Iago is a villain, who will not stop until he sees Othello utterly ruined and him in his place. Honesty is one of the major themes of, “Othello”. Although there are a lot of characters in the play that aren’t honest, Iago is by far the most dishonest character in, “Othello”. Due partly to fact that the other characters are so trusting of Iago, he is able to use that to be dishonest and manipulate of other characters to exact revenge upon Othello.…
- 1078 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Iago is constantly using Othello’s insecurities to achieve his wish, in act 3 scene 3. Othello’s soliloquy represents the psychological tipping point of the play. Up until this point Othello is characterized as a sturdy, brave and devoted husband, but from this point on, the audience witness Othello’s murderous intent and his personality disintegrate. The soliloquy opens with the most ironic of statements: “This fellow’s of exceeding honesty” he is talking about Iago’s trustworthiness. The constant use of the word “honest” (a key theme in this scene) and its attachment to Iago, emphasize him as a reliable person in the other characters eyes, but in fact for the audience we are exposed to his true dark, evil nature. It also highlights Othello’s unquestioning nature and a slight sense of naivety. Othello’s appraisal of Iago is correct, as Iago does know “all qualities of human dealings” he uses this knowledge in order to manipulate, rather than help others. Iago identifies every point of each character he can take advantage of, and by doing so is able to…
- 1352 Words
- 4 Pages
Powerful Essays -
In the book “Othello” there are some characters that trust each other and some that don’t trust each other. There are also some that are manipulative so the question us can we ever really know the truth about a person. The way I see it is we cannot really trust a person.…
- 285 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In Shakespeare’s Othello, A play about a group of military men and their families including their wife’s and their friends and family who are all connected to each other and the jealousy one has (Iago) of the Most important character (Othello) to tear Othello and his wife Desdemona apart in the hope to gain power with it .Shakespeare in this play uses trust/honesty to show the fault in humanity to believe in what they are told without proof that it is true. Shakespeare shows this trust and honesty through the interaction and relationships between Othello and Iago, Iago and Cassio, and the interaction between Brabantio and Iago/ Rodriego. This is not only shown as a hidden trust between two characters but also with the use of the word trust and honesty within the text.…
- 1048 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
Othello demonstrates the difficulty in being certain of what we perceive, by observing the actions of others or by introspection. By placing importance of the traits such as trust and honesty, Othello is blinded by Iago’s manipulation of reality. The ease with which Iago manipulates Othello’s perception of reality is accentuated through the use of dramatic irony in “My lord you know I love you.” The use of dramatic irony emphasises that Iago’s appearance as a loving, loyal servant to Othello is nowhere near the reality of his Machiavellian nature. Iago’s blatant abuse of Othello’s values is also illustrated in A3S3 through Iago’s declarative statement “Men should be what they seem, or those that be not, would they might seem none.” The internal rhyme in this statement places emphasis on the juxtaposition of appearance (seem) and reality…
- 1587 Words
- 7 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Othello is easily persuaded and this leads him to put his trust in the wrong people. He unfortunately gets ensnared into Iago’s devious plan. Othello treats Iago as a trust-worthy friend who he has known for a long period of time. When Iago realizes that Othello believes the story about Cassio’s relationship with Desdemona, Iago decides to take the scheme further. Iago places horrid images in Othello’s mind that turn Othello into a rash man. Othello’s tragic flaw ultimately leads to his destruction. Othello’s personality vastly transforms due to the madness. Othello ironically mistrusts his loyal wife Desdemona and good friend Cassio. When Othello places Desdemona on her deathbed, he states, “Be thus when thou are dead, and I will kill thee/And love thee after” (V.ii.20-21). At this moment in the play, Othello’s actions are ironic. Originally, Othello worried that Desdemona would stab him in the back, but he is the one who betrays his beloved wife. Othello is brought to this action because Iago places extreme jealousy within…
- 1585 Words
- 7 Pages
Better Essays -
For the fact that it plays a major role in the outcome of the play. William Shakespeare's Othello is a tragic play about deception, manipulation, and revenge. The main character, Othello, is a powerful black military man who wins the love of a white woman named Desdemona. Their devotion to each other seems ideal, and it appears that Desdemona would do anything for Othello, even if it meant withstanding ridicule. The love between Othello and Desdemona, however, will be horrifyingly hindered, for the immoral Iago has plans to destroy their affection, but especially to destroy Othello himself. Iago's primary goal was to get revenge on Othello for not promoting him to lieutenant. Iago is clever. Iago is evil. In the eyes of others he is ironically perceived as honest and trustworthy, but inside he is a sinister villain. Iago is able to manipulate the minds of people into performing actions that are advantageous to him. "Honest Iago" is like a disguised wolf in the flock of sheep that guilefully pounces on each victim. Iago does not merely seek retribution against Othello in one single step, but rather, he cautiously and cleverly manipulates several people to trap the Moor. Iago uses people as if they were pawns; and he positions each one carefully, making moves that will finally corner Othello. He uses people such as Roderigo, Cassio, and even his own wife…
- 914 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Many of the characters portrayed in Othello are successful in creating a deceitful and two-faced persona to an extent that how they are perceived in the public eye is not how they behave in reality. This is seen through Iago, as he uses public perception that he is in fact an honest and trustworthy man which he uses to deceive and manipulate others for his personal…
- 67 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
Throughout the play Iago displays an ability to identify flaws and weaknesses of others, which allows him to create devastation through subverting others who follow their own agenda, to achieve a web of events. In the quote “Where I the Moor, I would not be Iago. In following him, I follow but myself” – Act I, Scene I, Iago explains to Roderigo, that he follows Othello, not out of love or duty, but because he feels he can exploit Othello’s flaws. Iago identifies Othello’s trusting nature, as seen in the quote “That thinks men honest that but seem to be so” Act I, Scene II and plans to use Othello’s trust in him, which he considers is a flaw, to bring about Othello’s downfall. Shakespeare uses the character Iago to highlight issues relating to trust and betrayal “I follow him, to serve my turn upon him”- Iago, Act I, Scene I. Iago is the ultimate protagonist, his lack of morals, duplicitous nature and ability to manipulate others allows him to make Othello trust in the untrustworthy, Iago, and betray the people loyal to him, Desdemona. The central themes of trust and betrayal in Othello are reliant on the character Iago to create and accentuate. It is this reliance on Iago that suggests that he is a central for the understanding and interpreting of the play…
- 1202 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
Iago has his honor, in his opinion, irreversibly damaged. Thus the antagonist arrives, determined for revenge. Unnaturally paranoid, Iago is assuming that not only has Othello gone against him and not promoted him, but that Othello has probably slept with his wife, Emilia as well. Though it is known he does not have much love for his wife, she is a part of his honor as well. However, Iago has a unique approach to betrayal and revenge. Iago takes his place beside Othello and strengthens his relationship with him, giving him the oppritunity to make bold and inappropriate statements that worsens his initial jealousy. At the same time, Iago would retreat back on his words and act unsure, making him seem more trustworthy and humble. “I do not like the office… and then cry “cursed fate that gave thee to the Moor!”” (418-433.3.3) Many times Iago is ironically described as honorable, honest and trustworthy by Othello and Cassio – the two people he is manipulating the…
- 646 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
In Shakespeare’s play ‘Othello’ the theme of appearance versus reality emerges in the play as Iago who is manipulating appearances works to deceive Othello who has difficulty distinguishing between what seems to be true and what really is true. The tragic plot of Othello hinges on the ability of the villain, Iago, to mislead other characters, particularly Roderigo and Othello by encouraging them to misinterpret what they see. Othello is susceptible to Iagos ploys because he himself is so honest and straight forward. In this play Shakespeare plays with the idea of unreliable reality in a number of ways. They language of the play, which time and again refers to dreams, trances, and vision, constantly highlight the way in which what seems to be real may actually be fake.…
- 1164 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays