Most people that read Othello have different opinions on who is to blame for the final outcome of the tragic play; some say Iago is to blame for his deviate manipulation of the characters and execution of his evil plans. Some would argue that Othello is the villain of the play for being played for a fool by Iago and killing his wife without any concrete evidence. Others even point out that if Roderigo would have been smart enough to realize that Iago was using him, it would have prevented all of Iago’s evil plans from happening. So who really is to blame? The fact of the matter is they all are -- every single one of them. All of the characters have some sort of deficit that leads to the tragic outcome of the play, but some have more of a hand in it than others. I believe that the percentage of the blame should be split up amongst the characters of Iago (50%), Othello (25%), and Roderigo (25%). The reasons for each character being at fault are as follows:
Iago: Iago talks A LOT. His use of speech and the lines given to him easily outweigh those that are also involved in the scene that he is in and this is for a reason. He dominates the lines and time of speech because that is how he controls and manipulates people into doing what he wants or believing in what he is saying. For instance, Iago gets inside of Othello’s head by the usage of word play when he tells Othello Cassio is laying, “with her -- on her --what you will” (4.1.42) leading Othello to believe Desdemona is cheating on him with Cassio. This was just one instance of Iago’s deviate ways.
Othello: Othello is also at fault when it comes to the end result of the play. Think of a very important man that holds a lot of power and is well respected by the majority of the people...that is what Othello is perceived to be, but later we find out he is not emotionally or mentally strong. Iago is able to tap into Othello's mind, and make him believe that Desdemona is cheating without any evidence whatsoever. After a few mind games, Othello begins to tell Iago to, “Give me a living reason she’s disloyal” (3.3.466) and, “Villain, be sure thou prove my love a whore!” (3.3. Line 411) which clearly shows he is not one hundred percent confident in his marriage and in his wife to stay loyal. Prior to Iago getting in Othello’s head, Desdemona never did anything that would give Othello a reason to doubt her when it comes to being loyal. Othello doesn’t have enough respect for his wife to trust her and believe her when she says she never slept with Cassio even if other people say differently.
Roderigo: Roderigo is a puppet -- let me explain. Roderigo is the catalyst for all things that went wrong; Iago used him for every evil plan that he schemed up, whether it was for financial reasons, trying to manipulate someone, or even to kill Cassio. Iago tells Roderigo that he has to kill Cassio by, “knocking out his brains” (4.2.261) because he led Roderigo to believe that it was the only way to get Desdemona to stay in Cyprus.
Works Cited
Hamshaw, Suzy. Divorce. Digital image. Family Law. N.p., 09 Dec. 2014. Web. 01 Feb. 2016. <http://www.clmlaw.co.uk/familylaw/2014/12/husband-tells-court-his-wife-must-be-mad-to-want-to-divorce-him/>.
Practice Makes Perfect. Digital image. Http://eduoptimists.com. N.p., 2013. Web. <http://eduoptimists.co.uk/2014/10/08/practice-makes-perfect-voted-influential-saying-taught-parents/>.
Shakespeare, William, Barbara A. Mowat, and Paul Werstine. The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. New York: Washington Square, 2004. Print.
Who Is to Blame. Digital image. Http://freeenglishlessonplans.com. N.p., Nov. 2014. Web. <http://freeenglishlessonplans.com/tag/whos-to-blame/>.
Iago: Iago talks A LOT. His use of speech and the lines given to him easily outweigh those that are also involved in the scene that he is in and this is for a reason. He dominates the lines and time of speech because that is how he controls and manipulates people into doing what he wants or believing in what he is saying. For instance, Iago gets inside of Othello’s head by the usage of word play when he tells Othello Cassio is laying, “with her -- on her --what you will” (4.1.42) leading Othello to believe Desdemona is cheating on him with Cassio. This was just one instance of Iago’s deviate ways.
Othello: Othello is also at fault when it comes to the end result of the play. Think of a very important man that holds a lot of power and is well respected by the majority of the people...that is what Othello is perceived to be, but later we find out he is not emotionally or mentally strong. Iago is able to tap into Othello's mind, and make him believe that Desdemona is cheating without any evidence whatsoever. After a few mind games, Othello begins to tell Iago to, “Give me a living reason she’s disloyal” (3.3.466) and, “Villain, be sure thou prove my love a whore!” (3.3. Line 411) which clearly shows he is not one hundred percent confident in his marriage and in his wife to stay loyal. Prior to Iago getting in Othello’s head, Desdemona never did anything that would give Othello a reason to doubt her when it comes to being loyal. Othello doesn’t have enough respect for his wife to trust her and believe her when she says she never slept with Cassio even if other people say differently.
Roderigo: Roderigo is a puppet -- let me explain. Roderigo is the catalyst for all things that went wrong; Iago used him for every evil plan that he schemed up, whether it was for financial reasons, trying to manipulate someone, or even to kill Cassio. Iago tells Roderigo that he has to kill Cassio by, “knocking out his brains” (4.2.261) because he led Roderigo to believe that it was the only way to get Desdemona to stay in Cyprus.
Works Cited
Hamshaw, Suzy. Divorce. Digital image. Family Law. N.p., 09 Dec. 2014. Web. 01 Feb. 2016. <http://www.clmlaw.co.uk/familylaw/2014/12/husband-tells-court-his-wife-must-be-mad-to-want-to-divorce-him/>.
Practice Makes Perfect. Digital image. Http://eduoptimists.com. N.p., 2013. Web. <http://eduoptimists.co.uk/2014/10/08/practice-makes-perfect-voted-influential-saying-taught-parents/>.
Shakespeare, William, Barbara A. Mowat, and Paul Werstine. The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. New York: Washington Square, 2004. Print.
Who Is to Blame. Digital image. Http://freeenglishlessonplans.com. N.p., Nov. 2014. Web. <http://freeenglishlessonplans.com/tag/whos-to-blame/>.