Essay on the Protagonist in 'Othello'

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Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragic play written around 1603 by way of William Shakespeare, which addresses the encounters of Othello, the protagonist. Othello is a Venetian army commonplace who falls prey to Iago’s devious schemes, which are precipitated by means of jealousy, deceit, and quest for power (Hundley 4).

Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragic play written by William Shakespeare around 1603 that follows the adventures of Othello, the protagonist. Othello is a typical Venetian army soldier who falls victim to Iago's nefarious schemes, which are fueled by envy, deception, and a desire for power (Hu

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His most necessary function is to accomplish the tragedy of Othello, which brings out the subject matters of hatred, envy, and vengeance. In addition, he distinguishes Othello’s persona and that of Desdemona to expose dramatic irony for the target audience to be occupied (Kolin 8).

Is Iago only evil? Yes. His inherent evilness is seen when Iago makes his buddies hate each different by way of taking advantage of their belief in him. To attain his mission, he uses their concerns and anxieties to “make the net that shall enmesh them all'' (Shakespeare II. iii. 321-2). His evil motives are commonly a soliloquy that is by no means attained and will become forgotten entirely. His scheme is initiated when he wishes for Cassio’s position of lieutenancy, which he desired to be his.

He is green with envy of him and claims that he deserves and will fit into that position. Therefore, he plots a scheme to deceive, rob, and in the end kill Cassio to be healthy in his lieutenant position. He aspires to exchange Cassio’s work as a lieutenant by taking advantage of Desdemona’s naivety. He dishonors Cassio by inciting him to finish Roderigo and free him from the lieutenant position when he states that “Cassio, I love thee, But nevermore be an officer of mine” (Shakespeare II.iii.242-244). As a result, Cassio once emerged as unaware of the outcome.

Iago’s devious plans persist when he tactfully makes Othello agree that his wife, Desdemona, is cheating on him with Cassio even besides any evidence to show for it. Iago accomplishes this mission by ensuring that Othello’s thoughts concentrate on the fact that he is being cheated on, an issue that leads to his tragedy. Othello rather falls into his scheme and his furry makes him hate his spouse whom she doesn’t believe. Significantly, Iago awards Othello with the evil idea that he could kill his spouse Desdemona, which will accomplish Iago’s vengeance mission (Hankey 5).

His devious format is manifested when he claims that Iago had had an affair with Emilia, Iago’s life. To verify this fact, Othello points out that “And it is concept abroad that twixt my sheets/ He’s carried out my office” I know now not if’t be true/ But I, for mere suspicion in that kind; / Will do as if for surety”(Shakespeare I.iii.381-385). Iago’s paranoia is excellent to an extent that his insanity is portrayed when he deludes Othello to kill his very own wife.

As if that is now not enough, Iago robs his friend Roderigo. He uses the cash awarded to him by means of Roderigo to entice Desdemona. On noticing that Iago stored the cash for himself, Roderigo makes threats to Iago and will become livid about his actions. Unexpectedly, when Roderigo is knowledgeable of the scheme to entice Desdemona, his idea is eroded to forget about the cash and instead, kill Cassio, whom Iago is resentful of and is supposedly having an affair with Desdemona (Hankey 8).

These instances show that Iago has no awareness and is consequently amoral, as depicted via his actions. He is misleading his wife and friends, which emphasizes his evilness. He is tactful in carrying out his schemes, which then again portrays his diabolical capability allowing him to erode his friend's and his fife’s thoughts.

His mental ability is outstanding to the reader in view that he achieves and gets away with his devious schemes. He is capable of winning over others’ thoughts by targeting their desires via twisting, enjoying, and eventually brainwashing their psychological power. These cases certainly paint Iago as having no moral sense therefore, in basic terms evil (Hundley 5).

Is Othello incredibly gullible? Yes. Othello on the other hand is a gullible persona unlike Iago, who falls into the lure of Iago and falls prey to his evil tactics. Othello’s personality is dynamic having been a villain in the establishing.

His jealousness is exposed after Iago deceives him to emerge as vengeful and kill his wife. Othello angrily pointed out that “`Damn her, lewd minx! O, damn her, rattling her! Come go with me part. I will withdraw To furnish me with some swift capability of death. For the fair devil. Now are my lieutenant’” (Shakespeare I. iii. 122). This susceptibility and jealousy cause his tragedy. Othello’s weaknesses are uncovered with the aid of the alleged wife’s infidelity which he takes as being unclean and disgusting. This is due to the fact he observes intercourse as a unifying force that bloats his paranoia. Iago’s quest to grow to be powerful is shown as he pursues to damage Othello who is a Venetian navy regularly occurring for the reason that he is green with envy of his status. Iago in disbelief wonders how convenient it is to brainwash Othello and even appreciates how convenient it used to be to do so (Kolin 203).

How does such a sturdy (or gullible) man grow to be trapped in such plotting? To start with, Othello falls quickly of information on brewing power and is consequently doomed to fail. He is in the navy as a regular and consequently, has authority over battles such as the Turkish fleet, a component which should be mirrored in his lifestyle but fails to (Vaughan 35).

Othello’s faults point out that his tragic give-up is justifiable although he no longer deserves it. Being a ‘god of war’ he has to have done better than having his countless flaws dictates his tragic end. By doing this Shakespeare achieves the reader’s sympathy closer to the protagonist.

In addition, Othello lives in his personal world seeing that he has a wonderful race and tradition considering the fact that he is not conversant with traditions in Venetian ladies and even marries Desdemona irrespective of her father’s disapproval. Besides, He takes ladies as being holy or as being filthy primarily based on their degree of fidelity. His naivety is mirrored as he does now not consider his wife since he has witnessed her deceive her father before, a deception that she allegedly transfers to the matrimonial bed.

Moreover, Othello has immature verbal exchange capabilities departing on his own from his expression of non-public thoughts, components that exaggerate his inadequacy. He says to Brabantio and Duke that “Rude am I in my speech and little blessed with the smooth phrase of peace (Shakespeare 1. ll. 81-82)….. And little of this amazing world can I speak, More than pertains to feats of broil and fighting (Shakespeare 1. ll. 86-87).

He uses violence instead of persuasion when addressing girls and murders his wife for a single unproved reason of infidelity. This points out Othello is unable to multitask and has no flexibility of cause as he trusts Iago because he has demonstrated, to be honest, and friendly as well as being loyal to Emilia His wife.

He does not habituate introspection to consider his inner self, however, believes Iago’s incitement and insinuations blindly, will become emotional, which leads to his irrational thinking. His gullibility ignites jealousy which overwhelms him and controls his actions. Eventually, Iago accomplishes his evil scheme of destroying Othello and his spouse who had been deeply in love.

In conclusion, Othello’s imperfections justify his tragic stop, an aspect that Shakespeare implants in the reader to depict that Othello and his like are no longer the best human beings to lead the world due to their inherent imperfections. Although he defends the residents of Venice in war, via his victories and abilities, he emerges a tragic hero seeing that he lacks a sound reason, and falls into Iago’s plot. This guilt haunts him and eventually drives him to commit suicide as he sees it as an ability of sacrifice to pay for the death of his loved wife. Iago’s quest for power, and vengeance is accelerated via jealousy and this does not advantage him in any way. As a result, Intellectual strength is essential to enable one to have a rational and unbiased notion before carrying out an action. Othello’s hindrance awards sympathy to the reader, which seems greater actual than fiction (Vaughan 5). Therefore, Iago is basically evil while Othello is exceedingly gullible seeing that he falls prey to Iago’s devious plot.

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Essay on the Protagonist in ‘Othello’. (2023, April 21). Edubirdie. Retrieved December 22, 2024, from https://edubirdie.com/examples/essay-on-the-protagonist-in-othello/
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