Othello - Iago at the end of Act III

"Damn her, lewd minx! Oh, damn her, damn her!

Come, go with me apart. I will withdraw

To furnish me with some swift means of death

For the fair devil. Now art thou my lieutenant." (III iii 285)

This is the turning point in the play. Iago has just tipped the first domino in his master plan and is watching as they all come crashing down, falling right into place. He has finally been appointed to lieutenant, the job that he has wanted from the beginning of "Othello". I do not like Iago, but I cannot help but to admire the way he manipulated the situation in his favor. In this one act, he got revenge on Cassio, placed doubt and jealousy into Othello's mind, and then got himself the position he always wanted. He is an extremely bright and quick-thinking character. As I was reading the parts of the story that I should dislike Iago for, I couldn't help but smile at his clever, witty ways. I think this is mostly because of the fact that the story is told from his perspective. This would be totally different if it were told from one of the protagonists' point of views.

Othello - theme

Question:

What themes does the play represent?

Answer:

I think a common theme of "Othello" would be the cliche, you can't judge a book by its cover. This is demonstrated very early in the play. Othello is quickly described as being a Moor and therefor less of a person because of the color of his skin. "What a full fortune does the Thick-lips owe

If he can carry’t thus!" (I i 66) However, as the play progresses, Othello is considered a brave warrior of Venice and the Duke looks to him for military guidance and leadership. This shows that Othello is not all that he appears to be. Perhaps the biggest example of the theme would be Iago. This character appears to be a genuine companion, often being called "honest" and "a good friend". This is far from the truth due to the fact that Iago is deceiving every person he is in contact with in order to spin his web of deceit a bit more. For example, he tricks Roderigo into paying him for splitting up Othello and Desdemona, but in reality, Iago needs this to happen anyways.

Othello - characters

Question:

"Identify the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s). Are there any foil characters? What dramatic functions are served by the various minor characters? Do they shed light on the actions or motives of the major characters? Do they advance the plot by eliciting actions by others? Do they embody ideas or feelings that illuminate the major characters or the movement of the plot?"

Answer:

The protagonists in "Othello" are the characters of Othello, Cassio, and Roderigo. Roderigo- even though he is trying to go against Cassio and Othello- would be considered a protagonist because he does those things under the influence of Iago's deception. Which brings me to the antagonist, Iago. He is against pretty much every other character in the play and is solely focused on bringing down others in order for personal gain and revenge.

Roderigo could be considered a foil character to Iago because Roderigo values love the most and Iago manipulates those who are around him to accomplish goals that will only benefit himself. Also, he treats his wife like dirt saying, "Sir, would she give you so much of her lips as her tongue she oft bestows on me, you'll have enough" (II i 109). For this same reason, Cassio is a foil character to Iago as well. Cassio greets Desdemona by saying, "Grettings my lady, and may God always be with you" (II i 90). He then proceeds to embrace and kiss her.

In Act I, the Duke - a minor character- shows Othello's integrity and leadership by calling him to help with the war and believing his statement about his marriage to Desdemona. He says to Barbantio, "Your son-in-law is far more fair than black" (I iii 286). This shows that Othello is an honestly good man. Emilia shows that Iago is not a good husband based on the conversation they had with Desdemona about women in general and the compliments (or lack thereof) that Iago would give them.