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Othello A* essay
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EXTRACT IN RELATION TO TRAGEDY AS A WHOLE● SIGNIFICANCE OF SETTING
● IAGO’S VILLAINY - MANIPULATION OF RODERIGO AND AUDIENCE
● OTHELLO’S CHARACTERISATION - TRAGIC HERO
In act 1 scene 1, the machiavellian antagonist Iago and Roderigo attempt to rouse Brabantio
from his bed due to his daughter Desedemona’s elopement with the moor of venice, Othello.
This act starts in media res, immediately establishing the role that chaos and conflict play within
this tragedy. Iago is the dramatic catalyst behind this chaos, and his hatred for Othello is made
abundantly clear to the audience from the very beginning. This extract is highly significant to the
tragedy of the play as a whole.
This extract introduces the pivotal character of Iago, and from the very beginning suggests to
the audience that Iago cannot be trusted. For example, in this extract Iago states “I will wear my
heart upon my sleeve / for daws to peck at - I am not what I am.” This quote uses a reversal of
the biblical scripture “I am that I am”, spoken by God. This could be Shakespeare's way of
revealing Iago’s true heretical nature through the inversion of holy words, suggesting that Iago is
demonic and will play a part in the tragedy that unfolds. Furthermore, the violent metaphor of
Iago’s heart being pecked at by daws shows how cold and unfeeling Iago is, but also perhaps
the extent to which he will go in order to get what he wants. The modal verb “will” expresses his
absolute certainty in going to extreme lengths in order to enact his violent wishes onto Othello.
Also, Iago states “We cannot all be masters, nor all masters/ cannot truly be followed” which
also highlights his duplicitous nature in how he uses confusing syntax and repetition to evade
appearing suspicious, but also to appear intelligent to Roderigo. This paradoxical statement
places Roderigo in a linguistically powerless position, and Shakespeare presents this through
Iago’s use of verse but also the iambic pentameter which tells the Elizabethan audience that
Iago will play a crucial role in the downfall of Othello.
This extract also importantly shows the power and influence of Iago, and his expert
manipulation of characters, such as Roderigo, but also the audience. For example, Iago uses a
barrage of imperative verbs such as “call”, “rouse”, “make”, “Proclaim”, “incense”, “poison”, and
“plague” which progressively get more violent, perhaps foreshadowing Iago’s true intentions to
ruin Othello’s life. It is unclear at this stage what Iago hopes to achieve, or perhaps the true
extent of his hatred for Othello. However, what is clear is that Iago holds racial biases against
Othello, and uses these harmful stereotypes in order to paint a false image of Othello as
animalistic, sexually deviant, and sinful. This is shown in quotes such as “Thieves, thieves! /
Look to your house, your daughter, and your bags!” that present the act of Othello marrying
Desdemona as equivalent to theft. This relates to Elizabethan and Jacobean fears of
miscegenation, the fear of mixing races, due to racist beliefs that black people are more devilish
due to the fact that they come from hotter climates. Additionally, Iago describes Othello as a
“knee-crooking knave” and that he dotes on “his own obsequious bondage”, which further adds
to the image of Othello as powerless, pathetic, and ridiculous. Therefore, this greatly relates to
the tragedy of the play because Othello has not been physically on stage yet, and the audience
has this preconceived image of him as devilish. This is significant because by the time that Iago
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