"Othello" is a play by William Shakespeare. It is about a tragic hero, Othello, and the lies and deceits surrounding him. Othello is a noble, honest character and has the rugged qualities of a great soldier. He is truly one of the greatest characters in all literature. He has such outstanding characteristics, which makes this tragic end so painful. But it is a tragic play, and in the end, Othello loses some of his outstanding qualities. At the beginning of the play, Othello has it all. He is about to become the General and has the love of the fair Desdemona and they are getting married. Othello is manipulated by Iago just like everyone else in the play, and he is brought down to Iago's level.
             The downfall of Othello starts with the words of Desdemona's father Brabantio: "Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see: She has deceived her father and may thee." This sets in the back of Othello's mind the thought of Desdemona cheating on him. Iago will use that, later on, to help convince Othello that what he is saying is true. Othello acts as if he never heard it, but the reality will haunt him to the end of the play.
             The next step in Iago's plan and Othello's downfall is the scene where Cassio gets in a fight with Montano. Iago sets up Cassio so that Othello will see Cassio drunk and might take away the title of lieutenant from Cassio. This begins the actual plan of Iago. From this point on, Iago is the first person Othello will turn to for advice since Othello's once best friend and most trusted officer is disrespectful. Othello's biggest weakness is his trust in everyone. He can not see the evil in people, which is the opposite of Iago. Iago starts to abuse this weakness and manipulates Othello to his liking. This is where we see another side of Othello; he was pushed over the edge of reason and we see a more rash and harsh Othello. "Now, By heaven, my blood begins my safer guides to rule; and passion, having my best judgment...