Iago's Manipulation Essay

In Othello by Shakespeare the antagonist, Iago, manipulates people to achieve his own sumptuous desires without regard to anyone else. Iago uses secrets, deception and other people to accomplish his own goals. Throughout the play Iago believes that he deserves to be lieutenant and stabs anyone in the back to get it. Iago uses extravagant fabrications to exploit and ruin the other characters’ lives for his own selfish yearnings, which creates the theme of jealousy and manipulation creating conflict. The effect of Iago’s personal goals on himself, or lack thereof appears strongly throughout the play. Iago is unfazed by the devastating conflicts he is causing the other characters which contradicts Iago’s prestige. Iago has created a reputation as a honest man, a man who has risen to the top of the army because of his admirable achievements and great qualities, a man constantly referred to as “honest Iago”. For all of this to be sincere, Iago must have been a decent man before his age of spiteful exploitation. His own desires …show more content…
His Jealousy and hatred of Othello leads to the murder of four major characters. Othello suffers the most from Iago’s scheme. Iago’s greatest manipulation of the characters is Othello himself. Othello’s insecurities about his race are what Iago uses to convince Othello that Desdemona would never fully love him. In the beginning of the play Othello and Desdemona as completely infatuated with each other. Yet, by the end Iago has vitiated Othello’s mind so much that he is convinced that, “[Desdemona] must die, else she'll betray more men.” Iago’s gentle pushing and fiddling with Othello’s jealousy leads to the meaning of the play as a whole. Jealousy is a dangerous feeling, which leads to people being unable to distinguish reality. Othello is not the only character consumed by jealousy. Roderigo and Iago experience the devastating effects of