Iago's Use Of Pessimism In Othello

After losing his beloved daughter to a "savage" and "uncivilized" foreigner, Brabantio cries out in anguish - being deceived and manipulated by his own flesh and blood. Inadvertently via Brabantio, and perhaps purposely via Shakespeare, the Venetian noble's outrage singlehandedly establishes the entire rest of the play - portraying each character's fatal flaw - extending even beyond the written word and into our own lives as well. Affirming Brabantio's warning is a series of tragic missteps, misguidances, and manipulations ultimately set forth by the sociopathic mastermind, Iago, who's motivation to unveil and contort the private lives of each major character lies at the mystery of his very being, and his own significant flaw. Othello is not …show more content…
Iago adheres to this statement by adopting a dual-persona that he uses to continuously deceive his victims throughout the rest of the story, switching between the "honest" flag-bearer and the manipulative mastermind of a questionably motivated scheme. By possessing enough self-awareness and pessimism to see a similar, universal deceitfulness in others, Iago's quest begins as an attempt to tear-down the public persona of his compatriots and reveal the darkest secrets within every person - creating and planting his own where he finds none. This statement, only reiterated by Brabantio's outcry, possesses meaning that lies beyond the world Shakespeare conveys to us, extending into our very own. The construct Iago both employs and searches to destroy is civil dishonesty - hiding one's private life with a carefully-constructed public personality. Regarding himself to be on higher plain of understanding than his counterparts, Iago uses his own abilities to manipulate these two personas - the inner and the outer - in a way that causes an arousal of mistrust, jealousy, and, eventually, death. However, it is this blind confidence and dishonesty that allows for Iago to make his greatest misstep, resulting in his own, unexpected