There are other reasons why Iago acts as he does. However, the statements looked at already show that Iago is a bitter and very jealous person. He is envious of both Othello and Cassio. Iago even admits to being jealous (Act 2.1, Line 292-291). He even says to Othello (Act 3.3, Line 165-168) “O, beware, my lord, of jealousy! It is the green eyed monster, which doth mock The meat it feeds on.” By saying this, Iago is warning Othello against being jealous and also planting the idea that he has something to be jealous about. Iago might also be saying this to cover up his own feeling of envy. It could also be a piece of irony, as Iago is advising Othello about jealousy when he himself is jealous.
Throughout the play, Iago has the one aim of destroying Othello. His plan is to do this by splitting up Othello and Desdemona. Iago achieves this eventually. The key to his success is his ability to manipulate people. He does this by assuming a different façade to everyone he meets. Towards Roderigo, he pretends to be helping him get together with Desdemona and acts as a good friend. He confides with him and plots with him. Throughout the play Roderigo is the only person he talks to about any of his true feelings. He tells Roderigo that he hates Othello and that’s why he wants him and Desdemona to get together. However, Iago only uses Roderigo for his money and to help him destroy Othello. He uses him as a lackey in his plan.
To Desdemona, Iago acts as a kind gentleman. Desdemona sees Iago as friend and ironically, she seeks his advice when Othello is inexplicably angry and unkind towards her. This is another demonstration of Iago’s skill at “worming” his way into peoples trust.
On the other hand, Iago is quite unpleasant to his wife, Emilia. As he does with Roderigo, he uses her to his advantage. He gets her to steal Desdemona’s handkerchief, which is a key incident in the story and prompts Othello’s distrust of Desdemona. Iago involves Emilia in his plottings by doing this. Still no one knows why Emilia did what she did. She might have done it just to impress and gain the respect of her husband. She says “What he will do with it, heaven knows, not I: I nothing, but to please his fantasy.”
The handkerchief is an important symbol. It was a gift given to Desdemona by Othello that was very important to Othello. Its history is that an Egyptian charmer gave it to his mother. His mother in turn gave it to Othello on her deathbed. Othello gave this handkerchief to Desdemona to show his love for her. The handkerchief is a symbol of the blindness caused by the passions of love. It first enters the play when Othello starts to think that Desdemona had been unfaithful. It is also the main evidence used by Iago to prove that Cassio had been seeing Desdemona.
To Cassio, Iago is a friend and a wise advisor. He pretends to be helping him by giving him advice. But Cassio too is being used. Iago gets him drunk on purpose so that he will cause trouble (Act 2.3, Line 60-112) and this eventually gets Cassio dismissed as Othello’s Lieutenant. Iago’s cunning allows him to appear unwilling to betray Cassio to Othello when in fact has engineered the whole dispute by using his knowledge of Cassio’s weakness for alcoholic drinks.
The way Iago acts towards Othello is the most important factor to his success in undermining his confidence. The way Iago behaves towards him is crucial in making Othello trust him. He had obviously achieved that, as there is lot of evidence showing Othello speaking about him as “honest”. Many times in the play Othello calls Iago “honest Iago”. Othello even thinks Iago loves him as his Ancient. (Act2.3, Line 241-242) “Iago, they honesty and love doth mince this matter.” This shows how close Othello thinks he and Iago are. However this false confidence is all part of Iago’s plan. The irony of Othello’s trust in “honest” Iago is recognised and this gullibility leads to Othello’s eventual downfall.
Iago’s multi-faced personality is shown many times in the play. As he portrays different personalities to everyone, he gets away with many things. In Act 1.2, with the help of Roderigo, he tells Brabantio about Othello’s marriage. As he did not show his face or reveal himself to Brabantio, he can tell Othello whom it was who told about his marriage.
The way Iago manipulates all these people demonstrates Iago’s intelligence and skill in using people in his hidden vendetta against Othello. However it is not only this skill that Iago uses. As well as his control over people, he is a very cunning and clever person. Throughout the play, Iago does not actually have a definite plan of action. All he has is the aim of splitting up Othello and Desdemona, which he believed would lead to his downfall. Iago succeeds in his aim because he is a very fast thinker. He seizes opportunities and he uses them to their full. An example of this is his idea of telling Othello about a dream that Cassio is supposed to have had which fuels Othello’s hatred for both Cassio and Desdemona (Act 3.3, Line 407-423). Again, ironically, Othello does not question how or why Iago was lying in bed with Cassio. This is because he is probably astonished and blinded by rage.
Another feature in Iago’s character is that he thrives on other people’s gullibility and good natures. People trust Iago and it seems as though Iago is well known for his honesty. This shows that Iago hasn’t shown his true personality to anyone before apart from Roderigo. It also shows how good Iago must have had to be to gain the identity of “honest Iago”.
Iago has a view towards love which is different to anyone else in the play. To Iago love is only lust. However it is much more than that to Othello. This makes him more prone to Iago’s plottings. Iago also uses the concept of “brotherly love” to his advantage as everyone else apart from him honours this concept. Iago uses the ideal of brotherly love for his own vile ends.
The play indicates that Iago has known Othello for a long time. During this time Iago has probably learnt a lot about Othello’s character and about his weaknesses and his strengths. In Act 1.1, Iago tells Brabantio about Othello’s secret marriage with Desdemona. This is probably something Othello reveals to Iago because he trusts and thinks he is a friend. This shows how strong their relationship must have seemed to be, as Othello had told him a secret that was quite important. During Othello’s time with Iago, Othello had come to the conclusion that Iago was an honest person. This is very important to Iago in achieving his aim.
However, what Iago knows about Othello character is more important as this is what he uses to bring about his downfall. The key piece of information known to Iago is Othello’s weakness, Othello’s love for Desdemona. Iago uses this weakness as the heart of his plan of destroying Othello.
Iago also knows that Othello is an insecure person even though he is a great general. He knows that Othello feels inadequate, as he is a black person in a white world. He uses Othello’s self-confidence and state of mind to his advantages.
The last scene in the play is very important. It is in this scene in which the story concludes and in which Iago completes his task of destroying Othello. Out of his uncontrollable jealousy Othello kills Desdemona due to Iago’s plottings. As Othello hears all of the facts about Iago and the handkerchief, he realises what has happened. He then asks, “Why has thus ensnared my soul and body?” Iago’s reply is “Demand me nothing; what you know, you know: from this time forth I never will speak word.” (Act V.2, Line 299 – 301). His refusal to speak is very peculiar, however he could have his reasons for it. He might not want anyone to know his reasons for destroying Othello. Consequently it could be because he wants no one to understand him. He also doesn’t try to commit suicide, which would save him from the inevitable torturing he would have to endure.
Iago is a very clever person and he uses his intelligence to its full in his plan. However he also has a lot of good luck and he uses his opportunities to their best. He is a very fast thinker and is also a devious actor. It is the way he changes his character towards different people that help him succeed. He also uses his knowledge of Othello to bring about his downfall.