Appearance versus Reality in Shakespeare's Othello
Appearance and reality are two very different things and nothing illustrates this point more vividly than William Shakespeare's evil character, Iago, from his play Othello. Iago is a master at presenting false illusions and he single-handedly creates one of the biggest false illusions in the history of drama. He does this by first creating false illusions within other chracters' minds. He uses Roderigo and Cassio's current situations and emotions against them and creates a false friendship with Othello. He is completely aware of what he is doing presents heavenly shows of affection and concerns to cover up his blackest sins. Iago is a master of manipulation and his well thought out plan illustrates how successful one person can be when he or she is serious about it. Appearance does not mean reality in Othello; in fact, it means anything but reality and Iago does everything he can to keep it that way.Iago is an excellent character study because he never wavers from his original plan or from his nature. He reveals his blackest heart to Roderigo early in the play when he tells him:Who, trimmed in form and visages of duty,Keep yet their hearts attending on themselves,
Roderigo is nothing but a fool as far as Iago is concerned. 46-53)Here we see that iago knows what he wants and begins to set his plan into motion. That scene becomes pivotal in the play because it supports the greatest illusion of all - that Desdemona is cheating on Othello. In addition, he also uses his jealousy against him. Iago knows Othello's nature is to trust people and Iago takes complete advantage of this. Perhaps the most despicable aspect of Iago's personality is his false friendship with Othello. When he mentions to Othello about the "green-eyed monster, which doth mock/The meat it feeds on" (III. Iago has no problem convincing Roderigo that he hates Othello - this much is truth but his intentions are quiet different from Roderigo's. Iago is a master at false disguises.
Common topics in this essay:
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