Melony Galicia Ms. Zongker AP English lll February 20, 2017 Driven by Jealousy In Othello, Shakespeare illustrates the dangers of jealousy through the belligerent actions of the characters. Jealousy can be incited by circumstantial proof, that can ruin lives. Shakespeare uses dramatic techniques to aid him in conveying his message. Being fearful and insecure causes one to become jealous of the evils that follow jealousy. For example , when Iago acknowledges that the lieutenant promotion was passed onto cassio instead of him, he became infuriated and envious, even referring to Cassio as a bookworm .
Jealousy is so powerful it not only destroys others’ lives, but can lead to one’s own self destruction. Iago uses jealousy against each character for his own narcissistic desires. Jealousy is presented at the beginning of the play when Iago begins talking badly about Othello to Roderigo. Iago becomes very envious once he was demoted
The scarlet letter symbolizes Hester’s sin which affects the character developments of Dimmesdale and Chillingworth. Dimmesdale demonstrates his guild when he yells “Had I one friend- or were it my worst enemy!” (Hawthorne 200). Dimmesdale is not satisfied with himself and perceives himself as his worst enemy. Through his words, it portrays his guilt due to the fact that the town perceives him as an angel while he knows that he is a sinner and can not deal with it. Hester Prynne also affects Chillingworth because “That old man’s revenge has been blacker than my sin.” (Hawthorne 203).
Othello is presented as a respectful and honorable prince loved by all, but unexpectedly he grows an enemy, Iago. Iago vows to get vengeance on Othello because Othello made Cassio his lieutenant instead of Iago. Iago then takes control of fate in the play as he diabolically invents a plan to manipulate Othello into believing that Desdeomona was having an affair with Cassio. Furthermore, Othello’s tragic flaw was that he was gullible, therefore eventhough Othello was infatuated with Desdemona he chose to believe in Iago’s lies about Desdemona’s “affair”. For example, throughout the entire play, Othello committed irrational actions voluntarily because he was overtaken by jealousy that Iago developed with lies.
To Othello, Iago is more reputable now causing Iago is, at this point, reputable, meaning Othello will to believe anything that Iago says even if it is a lie. Iago’s psychopathic manipulations of Cassio then ultimately cause his downfall once Othello discovers that Iago has been dishonest, his punishment of torture and imprisonment at the end of the play is his downfall. Iago’s Throughout the play, since Iago is trustworthy to Othello, Iago plants seeds of jealousy in Othello’s mind. In Act Five, scene two, Othello shows the audience how he believes that Iago is “most honest” (Shakespeare 1302). After he kills Desdemona, Othello explains his reasoning to Iago’s wife, Emilia, justifying that “Cassio did top her, ask thy husband else” (Shakespeare 1360), meaning that he killed his wife because according to Iago, Cassio and
What theme/issue does it engage and how? This scene is important to the play because it demonstrates one common theme throughout the play; demonization of jews. In these scene, Lancelot want to quit his employment with Sherlock because he is the devil’s reincarnation. This theme also engages the issue of unhealthy relationships. Throughout the play, we see that people betray and lie to each other.
He repeatedly shows himself to not be above discriminating as he is discriminated against, saying of Antonio that he hates him for he is a Christian (Shakespeare, Act 1 Sc. 3, 363), and hoping to exact revenge by way of murder on Antonio. Furthermore, even in acts of genuine emotion, there is the fact that his character is depicted with the tinge of apathetic money-mindedness about him. Even in his grief on being abandoned by his daughter, he is more concerned that she has fled with his money and precious stones (Shakespeare, Act 2 Sc. 8, 1085-1095).
In my opinion, it is Iago’s hatred towards Othello that strongly motivate him, and this hatred comes from a variety of causes. Before we analyze the causes of hatred, there is one thing of certainty: Iago does hate Othello. He uses the word “hate” to describe his feeling to Othello without hesitation at the beginning of play 1, scene 1: “Though I do hate him as I do hell pains, Yet, for necessity of present life, I must show out a flag and sign of love— Which is indeed but sign. (Shakespeare 1.1.171)”. At the same time, he starts to think about revenge: “I have told thee often, and I re-tell thee again and again, I hate the Moor: my cause is hearted; thine hath no less reason.
Cassius is the co-hero of the play. Cassius, in fact, is a lot of flaming jealousy consuming him to destroy Caesar. The reason for his hatred is simply jealousy. Brutus is also disturbed by Caesar's growing ambition and is ready for Cassius's hints. (O’Dair,1993:6).
In William Shakespeare’s Othello, the play is a tragedy constructed by the antagonist Iago; also known as a two-sided character. Throughout Act I, Iago is more of a complex character, who is racist, manipulative, jealous and two-faced. He continuously complains he hates Othello, all because Othello didn’t appoint him as an officer. Iago plans to take Roderigo’s money, and convince Othello that Desdemona had an affair with Cassio. Iago’s two-sided character served the purpose of strengthening the plot and character development throughout the play.