An Analysis of the Principal Characters in Shakespeare’s “Othello”

Othello’s central theme is widely understood to be the tragic flaw of the titular protagonist: that of being too easily susceptible to jealousy. Othello is so skillfully manipulated by Iago that he eventually loses all perspective and reason, prompting him to kill the person he loves most in the whole world. The tragic nature of the outcome is that Othello commits an irreversible murderous deed; he is immediately flooded with remorse, but it is, of course, too late; he then commits suicide.

Othello is an outsider in his society. He is a soldier first and foremost, and an excellent one at that, but this separates him from civilian society both physically (when he is at war) and mentally (his experiences and concerns are at a remove from the rest of society, including his wife, Desdemona). He acknowledges during the Duke’s inquiry that “Rude am I in my speech/ And little bless’d with the soft phrase of peace” (I. iii. 421-2). But this is also a statement that he is an honest, straightforward soul who, being a military man, has not learned the ways of flattery and deception that one finds in, it is implied, the drawing rooms and court chambers of civilian society. Indeed, as the play progresses, we are increasingly alarmed at how credulous Othello is and how easily Iago manipulates him.

Of course, Iago successfully manipulates everybody, including Cassio, Brabantio, and Desdemona, not just Othello. One of the most intriguing aspects of the play is how smooth and sneaky Iago really is: he is a master defeating amateurs in the art of lying. He knows exactly what buttons to push in every situation. He also knows how to deflect blame from himself. For instance, he cuts Cassio’s throat even while protesting how much he hates doing so: “I had rather have this tongue cut from my mouth/ Than it should do offence to Michael Cassio” (II. iii. 1370-1). Othello completely buys into Iago’s line that he is reluctantly providing this information because it is his duty to Othello. We know that Iago professes to hate Othello because he was passed over for promotion. Yet, there is the unmistakable feeling generated that Iago’s rationale is pro forma: that he simply enjoys messing with people. He delights in the chaos he causes and the disintegration of the lives of those around him. This is what makes him so terrifying: there really isn’t any reason for his actions. He is like a hurricane or an earthquake; he just happens.

Othello and Cassio, by contrast, epitomize order. Cassio bemoans the loss of his reputation, which to him is more precious than his own life. Othello is an honorable military man seduced into committing the most dishonorable of deeds: killing the innocent instead of protecting them, as a soldier is supposed to do. Desdemona is caught in the whirlwind created by Iago, and she is largely blameless; if she has a fault, that is naiveté, though certainly that fault is shared by everyone in the play besides Iago. The crisis is that of Othello’s credulousness being pitted against Iago’s malevolence, with the winner not being in doubt; its resolution is that Othello loses his naiveté, though at a horrible price. Iago is punished, of course, but that doesn’t really matter—not even to him.

In looking for real-life parallels to the play’s characters, one could draw a parallel between the seductive, smooth-talking Iago and any one of a number of history’s charismatic villains who have hoodwinked their fellow men into following them over the edge of a cliff: Hitler, Jim Jones and other cult leaders, and in general, any leader who ever talked his followers into following a destructive cause. Othello is easy to generalize, as a racial outsider who is tolerated because of his skills. A possible parallel would be Jackie Robinson, major league baseball’s first black player, who was only accepted, after a prolonged struggle, because he was exceptional at the game. Cassio is any loyal lieutenant who follows an evil leader into disaster in real life, just as Desdemona is the innocent who gets killed when the tyrant’s cities are bombed and his country destroyed. The play’s themes of jealousy and betrayal are universal.

Reference

Shakespeare, William. “Othello.” 1603. Print.