The Fruit Of All Evil: Iago
Young Adult Character Analysis
Written by Sky Enchantress
Of all the characters portrayed in William Shakespeare’s play, Othello, none other is more notorious than Iago.
Iago possesses a great depth of character that is not easily untwined. He is an infamous villain who deceives and manipulates every character in the play for his own advantage. His views on himself, marriage, women, and dirty deeds stem from his insecurities and are what drive him to ruin Othello. To understand Iago’s complexity, one must examine not only what he appears to be on the surface, but also what dwells inside him.
Throughout the play, he is constantly known to everyone as a trusting, honest, and loyal friend and officer, and is often referred to as “honest Iago”. But that could not be any farther from the truth.
He puts on a visage of duty and loyalty and dares not reveal his true self to anyone, but rather, deceives people into thinking the total opposite of what he really is. He is a fearless villain who knows how to manipulate others and feels no shame in doing so.
The audience is given some insight into Iago’s character when a portion of his true nature is revealed early in the play, in Act 1, Scene 1. In this scene, Iago begins to reflect on himself and his ways to Rodrigo; and the audience is introduced to Iago’s twisted heart. In essence, it is the first dose of Iago’s true nature and an admission from the very lips of Iago himself.
He begins by stating to Rodrigo that there are those men who are “trimmed in forms and visages of duty, [yet] [keep] their hearts attending to themselves” (1.1.47-48); these men appear to serve as loyal and dutiful officers, obeying every command without question. However, what is unknown to their commander is that these officers are selfish men who look out for only themselves and no one else.
These types of men are few, but to Iago, they are family, for he declares to Rodrigo, “such a one do I profess myself [to] [be]” (1.1.52). He continues by stating that “in following [the] [Moor], I follow but myself” (1.1.55), a statement which becomes a mere revelation of how Iago views his duty to Othello. He pretends to follow Othello and serve as a loyal officer towards him, but in fact, behind Othello’s back, Iago conspires against him--doing everything in his power to ultimately ruin Othello.
Interestingly enough, he also states that if “he were the Moor, he would not be Iago”(1.1.54), a comment that cannot be taken literally. Rather, it is statement with the underlying meaning that if Iago could measure up to Othello’s stature, he would have no reason whatsoever to stab Othello in the back.
In a sense, it is Iago’s way of justifying his acts towards Othello. His method of reasoning conveys that, had Othello chosen Iago to be his second in command, then Iago would not have had any motive to betray Othello. However, Othello chose Cassio to be his second in command instead. A choice that Iago asserts was made according to personal preference rather than seniority. Thus, this assumption serves as the basis for Iago’s harmful motive and his thirst to rid himself of Othello.
Not only is he jealous of the fact that Othello appointed Cassio as his next right-hand man, but he is also extremely racist. While Iago is conversing with Barbantio about Othello and Desdemona eloping, he depicts Desdemona as being covered by a “Barbary horse” (referring to Othello) who’ll have “coursers for cousins, and gennets for germans” (1.1.108-111).
The audience comes to acknowledge Iago’s ill character and deceitful ways in Act 1. However, that is not all that is revealed to the audience. His views on marriage and women also surface throughout the play on several occasions.
One must keep in mind that Iago fumes with hatred towards Othello not only because he denied higher rank to Iago but also because he is a Moor married to a Venetian woman. In those times, Venetian women were the highest class of women and the fact that a Moor (whom Iago views as a low class individual) is with a Venetian woman, is significant enough to convince him that she will eventually leave him. In Iago’s head, Desdemona will realize the error of her ways in marrying a Moor, and thus, will cause her to go astray and choose the path of lust.
In Act 1, Scene 3, Iago explains to Rodrigo the nature of one’s heart as he views it. He states that it is human nature to give in to lust; “our bodies are our gardens, to which our wills are gardeners” (1.3.315-316). He finds no fault in giving in to the body’s “will”. In fact, he upholds this belief, stating that their “gardens” can either be “sterile with idleness or manured with industry” (1.3.319-320).
Continuing on his theory, he then reasons that Desdemona will eventually give in to her “will” and commit adultery to satisfy the lust that burns inside of her. However, she will not be the only one. Othello will also do the same and, within time, neither will be in need of each other.
Iago is so sure of himself that he begins to tell Rodrigo to “put money in [his] purse” (1.3.355), which is evidence of Iago’s belief that marriage serves no purpose in life. He is convinced that as long as you’re human, one will give in to lust rather than love.
After Rodrigo exits the scene, Iago is the only character left on stage. At that moment, he enters into a soliloquy, where he confirms his intentions to plot against Othello. At this point, Iago has adopted his plot as a form of a game, anticipating its results and also serving as a means of “plume[ing] up [his] will” (1.3.384).
To further understand Iago’s position on marriage, one must also understand Iago’s views on women in particular. In Act 2, Scene 1, the audience observes an interaction between Iago, Emilia (Iago’s wife) and Desdemona. Here, Iago conveys that women only pretend to serve as good housekeepers while, in reality, their actual profession lies in their ability to make love. Women are therefore objects of affection and nothing more. Their daytime job is to keep everything in the house tidy but their worth (if they hold any) lies in bed.
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Later in this scene, Iago declares that he is convinced that Othello has had an affair with his wife, Emilia. This accusation provides evidence to a part of Iago that the audience must interpret for themselves. Though Iago will never admit it (either because he is too proud or does not believe it himself), his lack of trust in Othello (or in anyone else for that matter) stems from his insecurities and low self-esteem.
His insecurities cause him to arouse pleasure from pain, and the only way he knows of boosting his ego is to walk around pretending to be “honest Iago”. While in truth, he is plotting ways to manipulate the next person that crosses his path.
An important note that the audience must also acknowledge is that Othello “is of a free and open nature that thinks men honest that but seem to be so” (1.3.390-391). Because Iago is aware of this, he uses it to his advantage, knowing that as long as Iago is on good terms with Othello, Othello will listen to what Iago has to say without question.
All of these characteristics formulate into a character who seeks pleasure from pain and constantly looks at every which way and method he can to give himself the next ego booster, with little regard for another person’s life.
And that’s what makes him the fruit of all evil.
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