The Evil Character of Iago in Shakespeares Othello Essay

Iago is a complex character that takes evil to a whole new level in the 1600’s and plays a key role in this tale. Iago’s main goal is to get Othello and Cassio out of the army, but in the end fails to ruin Cassio’s life, only Othello’s. He uses many characters to his advantage, realizing how trustworthy and oblivious these people are. Iago cannot be relied on and has many masks, behind which he hides. He has many disguises and secrets that he hides from everyone and his acting skills come in handy when he works to destroy the happiness that many people have in this story. Iago is smart. He is also underestimated and ruthless. Iago thinks about himself and doesn’t care about others. We first see his plan unfold early in the story when†¦show more content†¦Instead, all of the gifts that are suppose to go to Desdemona, Iago keeps them for himself. This shows how deceitful Iago is. When Iago inserts his poison, it spreads like wild fire. He has no conscience, and by having no conscience he can hurt and harm anyone he chooses because he does not care. Iago conceals himself very cleverly and fools other people with his false charming personality and what seems to be a thoughtful and warming heart. Instead, Iago is a racist person who refers to Othello as the â€Å"Moor† and uses animals as a resource to his hatred of people. â€Å"Even now, now, very now, an old black ram in tupping your white ewe† (I. i. 97). This is one of the most famous racial statements in the book. This is when Iago is talking to Brabantio about what Desdemona and Othello are doing behind Brabantio’s back and Iago feels the need to inform Brabantio of this to try and get him on his side. Iago feels that he needs revenge on Othello for giving away his position, and uses many people to his advantage. He wants to get back at Othello because he believes that Othello slept with Emilia, and to call it even between them two, Iago must sl eep with Desdemona. Of course, that never happens in the book, so Iago decides that since Othello is not giving up Desdemona, he brain washes Othello into believing every word that comes out of Iago’s wicked mouth. Iago controls Othello from the beginning to the end, and has him so tightly boundShow MoreRelatedOthello: Good vs Evil1525 Words   |  7 PagesGood Or Evil: A Critical Analysis of Othello’s Main Characters William Shakespeare’s Othello is a classic depiction of a struggle between good and evil. In the play,, the characters are faced with the choice to either conquer or succumb to the overpowering force of evil. 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