How does Iago use language to assert powers over others?

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How does Iago use language to assert power over others?

 “I am not what I am”. Despite Iago’s confession to Roderigo that he is not what he appears to be, this puppeteer of a character is still enabled to pull the strings of those around him, all the while preserving his reputation as the ‘honest Iago’. This could be attributed to Iago’s use of language as a persuasive, manipulative, emotional and rhetoric device.

When attempting to rile up Brabantio, Iago uses bestial imagery such as ‘a black ram is tupping your white ewe’ and ‘the Moor and your daughter are now making the beast with two backs’. This metaphor reflects the Elizabethan stereotype that a black man is power hungry, uncivilised, savage and a worthless outsider. In the period of time the play is set in, inter-racial marriages between black and white couples were unacceptable and Iago plays on this to enrage Brabantio. This animal references works not only work to craft Othello as an animalistic, violent, sexual being in Brabantio’s eyes, but also to portray his daughter as innocent and pure with the use of the word ‘white’. This causes a contrast between the two lovers, flaring a father’s need to protect his daughter by victimising Desdemona and bestialising Othello.

Similarly, Iago plays on the perception of a ‘father’s role’ in the context of the play by using connotations of robbery to imply that Desdemona, her father’s property, has been stolen from Brabantio personally. Iago repeats the word ‘thieves’ and even asks ‘are your doors locked’ as a way to anger Brabantio and manipulate him into viewing the situation as a theft from himself, as he has not given Desdemona and Othello permission to be wed. He even says ‘your heart is burst, you have lost half you soul’ to further enforce the view that Desdemona is Brabantio’s property and a part of him which riles Brabantio up further as it implies that he has been stolen from. Also within this scene, Iago uses repetition in ‘now, now, very now’ and ‘thieves, thieves, thieves!’ to instil an air of urgency and create immediate chaos. The urgency riles up Brabantio which is what leads him to act so suddenly and rashly.

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Iago manages to manipulate Othello by using language techniques in the third act. He effectively plants the seeds of doubt in Othello’s mind with ‘did Michael Cassio, when you wooed my lady, Know of your love?’ which is a suggestive statement which forces Othello to question Cassio. After this, Iago then withdraws from this line of conversation with remarks such as ‘but for a satisfaction of my thought’ without revealing what his thoughts are. This effectively raises suspicion in Othello’s mind which was Iago’s exact purpose. He uses repetition again but this time by repeating Othello’s words which creates an ...

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