The Veiled Betrayal
Although Julius Caesar is probably the Shakespearean play with the most obvious betrayal in the form of backstabbing, many of his other plays deal with that same theme. Most notably, a tale that epitomizes the treachery of a so-called friend is Othello. As with any tragedy, one character's double-crossing actions can destroy everything for those around them. In the case of Shakespeare’s Othello (1604), Iago, the supposed friend and trustworthy ensign to the eponymous character, betrayed everyone around him by putting up an honest facade while destroying Othello and Desdemona’s marriage. His deception cements him as one of literature’s most notorious villains. From the get go, the audience sees Iago as a scheming, evil,
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He manipulates Othello into seeing a completely different and false treachery. Due to Iago’s scheming, Othello was beyond convinced that Desdemona was sneaking around with Cassio behind his back. He felt she betrayed their “sacred” matrimony and irrationally thought his only solution was to smother her to death. This fake betrayal exemplifies the themes of jealousy and the fragility of the love between Othello and Desdemona. Iago made sure Othello’s jealousy ran so rampant that his mind was overtaken by anguish. He was certain that Desdemona shattered the love between them, but it was really his fault for falling into Iago’s web of lies in the first place. One seed of doubt ruined everything and showed that no matter how strong a loving connection may be, it can easily snap with some duplicitous meddling. In the beginning Othello spoke to Desdemona with love when he said “It gives me wonder great as content / To see you here before me. Oh, my soul’s joy! / If after every tempest comes such calms / May the winds blow till they have wakened death” (2.1.186-189). However, when Iago convinced him she was unfaithful, Othello quickly changed his tone when speaking to his wife. Scathingly, he declared “O thou weed, / who art so lovely fair and smell’st so sweet / That the sense aches at thee, would thou hadst ne’er been born!” (4.2.70-73). Just like that, he goes from being the happiest man on earth when he sees her to
In Othello, the play by William Shakespeare, the story mainly follows the character of Othello under the influence of Iago’s manipulation tactics, alongside Desdemona’s reactions. Throughout the play, Iago persuades Othello into thinking Desdemona is cheating on him with Cassio. Ultimately, Othello is convinced and he kills Desdemona before he realizes it was all false. In order to get to that point, Iago’s character excellently shows the power of rhetorical language by appealing to pathos, logos, and ethos to manipulate Othello into believing that Desdemona is betraying him.
In chapter 3 scene 3 page 141 Iago accuses Desdemona of cheating on Othello with Cassio. Othello is in distress and in disbelief that she would do such a thing. This ends in Othello believing the lies and murdering his own wife when she was fully loyal to him. Desdemona never did anything wrong and only lied in order to save her own life. Her goal in her marriage was to live happily with her husband but Iago ruined that for his own selfish desires.
Othello, one of the main characters in the play is a very trusting person causing him to be easily manipulated by others. Iago, a flag bearer and a friend to Othello uses his trustworthy persona against him to get revenge on him for not giving him the job as lieutenant. One of his manipulation tactics is to tell Othello that his wife is having an affair with a man named Cassio. In the play, Iago begins to talk to Othello about his proof that his wife is actually cheating on him by telling him, that Desdemona gave a handkerchief to Cassio, in which Othello gave to her that was passed on by his parents. Othello was not happy about that which ultimately lead Othello to be disrespectful towards Desdemona by hitting her, constantly calling her a whore and later killing her for thinking that she was cheating on him with Cassio (Shakespeare 1603).
Iago knows that Othello is insecure, and has been questioning his relationship with Desdemona so Iago tries to plant the first seed in Othello’s head that these ideas may be true. Iago is just trying to start stirring the pot of emotions and feelings inside Othello’s head. He is trying to just have Othello have more questions that wanted to be answered. Iago also knows Othello’s second tragic flaw of being impulsive and quick to jump to conclusions. Iago puts that last idea to turn Othello over, Iago says “I know not that; but such handkerchief-I am sure it was your wife’s-did I today see Cassio wipe his beard with” (Shakespeare 3.3.496-498).
Iago's envy of Cassio's position and his hatred of Othello lead him to betray those closest to him and ultimately destroy their lives. Similarly, Othello's jealousy of Desdemona leads him to betray her trust and ultimately kill her, resulting in his own downfall. Through these actions, the play suggests that jealousy and envy can lead people to betray those they love and ultimately destroy
Throughout the play Othello’s blind trust in Iago led him to a perplexed state in which he was vulnerable to flaws that he did not usually struggle with. In a perplexed state Othello “becomes jealous and eventually a murderer” (Kliger 222). Without Othello’s blind trust in Iago Othello would never have become perplexed and would not have led to flaws that resulted in the murder of Desdemona. Othello recognized his growing problem as he said “There is no more but this: Away at once with love or jealousy” and yet Othello was still unable to shake his jealousy as Iago kept feeding him lies (Shakespeare III.iii.222-223). Othello became so jealous that he began to think he would be “happy if the general camp, pioneers and all, had tasted her sweet body, so [he] had nothing known” (Shakespeare III.iii.397-400).
He is madly in love with Desdemona but realizes that she has eyes only for Othello. Roderigo believes that he has been wronged; he feels that Desdemona has cheated on him by choosing Othello instead of him (Wyman). Iago manipulates Roderigo into believing that if they take down Cassio and make it look like he slept with Desdemona, then Othello will be jealous enough to kill Cassio himself, leaving Desdemona available for Roderigo. The Destructive Power of Jealousy Jealousy distorts perception, making people believe what they want to hear or see rather than what is true (Bartels).
And out of her own goodness make the net” (Act 2 Scene 3) Othello is given the impression by Iago that Cassio and Desdemona may be engaging in improper behaviour, and he is urged to pay attention to whether “your lady strain his entertainment / With any strong or vehement importunity.” (Act 3 Scene 3) Othello consequently develops intense jealousy and mistrust when Desdemona does speak up for Cassio. Through manipulating Desdemona, Iago was able to deceive Castillo and Othello and using Roderigo’s
Iago’s intentions unveil themselves not only through actions, but through his engagement with the audience. “Iago’s self-understanding is well-express when he explains to viewers his plan to put a plague in Othello’s ear that will cause him to misinterpret Desdemona’s advocacy to Cassio.” (The Art) In order to commence suspicion within Othello, Iago utilizes the elopement of Othello and Desdemona. “Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see.
At first, Iago tells Othello that his wife is having an affair. Even though he has no evidence to support these claims, Othello still believes Iago because he is kind of insecure about himself since he was already accused of using witchcraft on her because he is a black man and there is no way Desdemona fell in love with him by her own free will. (2.2.) Iago starts by convincing him with lies that will lead to Othello’s downfall. After an incident happened, Othello removes Micheal Cassio from his position as lieutenant because he was drunk, Desdemona then begins asking Othello to give him his job back and that increases his suspicions that she is in fact having an affair
In the play Othello, William Shakespeare creates an elaborate tragedy with various in depth characters, enhancing the story with powerful characterization. Iago, the main antagonist of Othello, exemplifies Shakespeare’s use of characterization to create in depth and complex characters. Using his manipulative nature, intellectual mind, egotistical attitude, and dishonesty, Iago controls the other characters in order to achieve his goal, leading Othello to succumb to an overwhelming jealousy causing his downfall. In order for Iago to gain control of the characters in the play, he manipulates Othello, Roderigo, Cassio, and more to believe false information and turn on one another.
Through Othello’s impulsive actions as wells as Iago’s malevolent ideas, Shakespeare reveals the horrid effects of jealousy. Othello’s erroneous choices display how jealousy clouds thought processes. Othello hears a rumor from Iago that Cassio is sleeping with Othello’s wife, Desdemona. Othello demands proof of this accusation, but then chooses to act irrationally. Without definitive proof, Othello demands that “ within these three days, let [Othello] hear [Iago] say /
This affects the way he views Desdemona, he takes action towards the end of the story because of these overwhelming feelings of jealousy he is feeling. Othello kills Desdemona out of pure jealousy. “Lay me down by my wife.” What he was feeling was so overwhelming that he had to kill his wife, out of spite and if I can’t have her no one can. At the end he finds out she was pure and Iago had been manipulating him the whole time.
Julius Caesar Essay Betrayal can be defined as breaking the bond of trust in any type of relationship, and deceiving others. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, betrayal can be seen throughout the play, done to and by many of the characters. Many of the reasons why betrayal is shown in the play are all for a similar reasons- Ambition / greed. The theme of Julius Caesar is that people betray others because of ambition and greed.
Iago believed that he could get revenge by ruining Desdemona. He started spreading lies about how she was unfaithful. His plan was to ruin their marriage, which was symbolized by a handkerchief heirloom that Othello gifted to Desdemona. Knowing this, Iago stole the handkerchief and planted it inside of Cassio’s house. This resulted in Othello becoming furious with Desdemona and showing his jealous side to her for the first time.