Alfred Pennysworth, butler of Batman once said “some men just want to watch the world burn” in reference to Batman’s villain, the Joker. A similarly destructive attitude is festered in the antagonist; Iago of Shakespeare’s play Othello. Iago is motivated by an undeserved hate toward the protagonist, Othello, which leads to chaos and sparks a classic Shakespearean tragedy.
Throughout the play, Iago allows jealous suspicion and anger to fuel a hate for the Othello. From Iago’s perspective, he “hate[s] the Moor. My cause is hearted. Thine hath no less reason” (1.3.312). Iago feels this way for a number of reasons that build up and cause Iago to reveal his vengeful mindset early in the play. For example, Iago is angry with Othello for passing up an opportunity to promote his military rank, and he is filled …show more content…
Also, Iago claims that he in fact “suspect[s] the lusty Moor hath leap’d into [bed with his wife]” (2.1.284-285). Among many others, these instances lead Iago to think irrationally and impulsively, finding empty evidence that is vague and twisting it to justify his anger. Iago uses this built up anger to ignite his main objective: killing Othello. This mindset is presented as early as line six of the play, as Iago opens with a line stating “though I do hate him…” (1.1.6). The line of text regarding Iago’s existing hate for Othello also proves that he has preconceived judgments about Othello. In this time period, most spontaneous onions were formed around race. Since Othello is of Moor descent, Iago uses that against him at the beginning of the play. All through the entirety of the play, Iago refers to Othello as “the Moor” (1.3.373), which would be similar to referring to someone as
Throughout the play, Iago allows jealous suspicion and anger to fuel a hate for the Othello. From Iago’s perspective, he “hate[s] the Moor. My cause is hearted. Thine hath no less reason” (1.3.312). Iago feels this way for a number of reasons that build up and cause Iago to reveal his vengeful mindset early in the play. For example, Iago is angry with Othello for passing up an opportunity to promote his military rank, and he is filled …show more content…
Also, Iago claims that he in fact “suspect[s] the lusty Moor hath leap’d into [bed with his wife]” (2.1.284-285). Among many others, these instances lead Iago to think irrationally and impulsively, finding empty evidence that is vague and twisting it to justify his anger. Iago uses this built up anger to ignite his main objective: killing Othello. This mindset is presented as early as line six of the play, as Iago opens with a line stating “though I do hate him…” (1.1.6). The line of text regarding Iago’s existing hate for Othello also proves that he has preconceived judgments about Othello. In this time period, most spontaneous onions were formed around race. Since Othello is of Moor descent, Iago uses that against him at the beginning of the play. All through the entirety of the play, Iago refers to Othello as “the Moor” (1.3.373), which would be similar to referring to someone as