Who Was Responsible For Othello's Downfall

In William Shakespeare’s Othello, Othello is initially a rational character; however, by the end of act three, scene three, he is an insane and vengeful man. Othello’s sudden shift in character occurs because society disapproves of his movement up the social and employment ladder and, thus, treat him as the “other”. Othello is responsible for his own self- destruction as he is racially insecure, is unable to fit into society, and is corrupted by the “green-eyed” monster, jealousy.
Othello’s racial insecurities make him vulnerable to Iago’s plan to destroy him. After everything Othello has achieved and worked hard for, his actions have done little to remove prejudices instilled in the white characters. For example, Iago says: “(…)when she …show more content…
The white characters, solely view him as a “Moor” and as a result, Othello is constantly reminded that he is not a part of society. For example, Brabantio questions his relationship with Desdemona by saying: “To fall in love with what she feared to look on” (1.3.116). This quotation demonstrates the systemic racism inherent in Venetian society because Brabantio questions Desdemona’s love for Othello due to his racialized appearance. Since Othello is constantly treated as an “other” and never respected for his achievements his state of mind shifts from rational to insane because everyone views him as someone who is lower in social ranking. A senator also questions Desdemona’s love for Othello by asking him: “Subdue and poison this young maid’s affection” (1.3.283). This quotation implies that Desdemona’s love for Othello is unnatural. The Venetian society believes that because Othello is black, he must have used “poison” to gain Desdemona’s love. Othello is never respected for his position as a general and the white characters believe that he must have tricked Desdemona into loving him and this plays a role in Othello’s shift to insanity because he is never accepted for who he