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Theme Of Cruelty In Othello

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A Cruel Game Unknown to Othello, Iago was motivated by a cruelty that demanded the utter destruction of Othello’s public and private life. In the play Othello, by William Shakespeare, Iago is the main antagonist to the protagonist of the story. Iago is motivated by cruelty; his final goal is see all of his adversaries suffer. Cruelty is an especially crucial theme to any story, for it reveals the ugly truth about a character who is primarily motivated by cruelty. The social and political gains of Iago’s cruelty display how the theme functions in a work of literature and what it reveals about both the perpetrator and victim. In the case of Shakespeare’s Othello, cruelty serves as the main source of motivation in Iago’s wicked plan. To illustrate, Iago begins the story by complaining to …show more content…

If this, alone, was the motivation for his plan, the book would have ended as soon as Cassio falls from lieutenancy and Iago takes his place. However, his real goal was to watch Othello suffer, since he had dared to let Cassio outrank him in the first place, and because of the

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Cassio is the one Iago wanted dead or out of position. However, at the end of the play, Cassio didn’t die and Othello advocated him a higher position. Again, most things Iago says are lies and ironic. He states, “O, beware, my lord, of jealousy…... ”(3.3.195)

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William Shakespeare’s “Othello” was a great example to showcase sacrifices made by characters to accomplish revenge or obtain power. Shakespeare told the story of Othello, a tragic hero, who was manipulated by Iago, which motivated him to kill his own wife. From this story, Shakespeare’s main goal was to portray characters making sacrifices for their ambitions. From this play, Shakespeare puts forth the idea of sacrifice through pointing out the importance of reputation and how sacrifices must be made to silence the truth.

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Rhetoric is an incredibly powerful tool capable of seducing even the most obdurate of people. As one of the most illustrious playwrights ever, Shakespeare was no stranger to the power of rhetoric. Rhetoric served as the fountainhead of Shakespearian allure. We watch the dramatic works of Shakespeare because we enjoy having our emotions manipulated; we enjoy the catharsis and self-reflection that accompanies a trip to the theater. Shakespeare truly was a master manipulator, but his manipulation was generally beneficial.

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Othello’s confidence for a loyal man to maintain honesty and morals are contradicted through Iago’s actions: “in a man that’s just / They are close dilations, working from the heart, / That passion cannot rule” (3.3.123). Iago, due to the understatement to his name, is not perceivable as hateful. Othello’s willingness to sense Iago’s distress, and to believe his accusations, is because of the lack of awareness Othello has for his vengeance. Iago is of such little power and relevance within societal ranking that if he were to have intentions to sabotage anyone, which he does, are not considered, thus making him easily trustworthy to those of greater dominance. Society’s view of an individual determines how others consider and surmise their persona, though these conclusions may be false.

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The opening scene of Othello presents Iago’s character as duplicitous, manipulative and nature. With his shady nature he strategically uses people as pawns to plot evil plans against Othello. His scheme against “the Moor” is highlighted in “I follow him to serve my turn upon him/we cannot all be masters nor all masters/cannot be truly followed”. His analogy outlines his duplicitous nature as a mask for his evil plans. He foreshadows that his deception will be his main force for his plot of Othello’s downfall.

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In Shakespeare’s Othello, Iago is often portrayed as one of the most atrocious characters in a literary work. His plan for revenge unfolds gradually and surreptitiously, as he keeps his victims under his belt. On pages 126-128, he executes his plan for the first time in Cyprus and gets Cassio drunk. This example gives insight to the rhetoric Iago uses in order to manipulate his ‘victims.’

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The Cruelty of Othello It is easy to see in most texts, a conflict that involves some form of injustice or cruelty. But, in certain cases this cruelty become the entire plot of the story, as can be seen in Othello by William Shakespeare. In Othello, a story with lies, affairs, and murders the factor of cruelty is quite prevalent in almost every aspect of the story and is instrumental in the theme, trust your true friends and don't trust those that could hurt you.

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Natalie Harvey Mrs. Hudson Comp II 14 February 2023 A Tragedy of Othello: The Psychology of an Evil Person Shakespeare's Othello concentrates not only on the story of the titular character, but also the antagonist, Iago. Through Iago and events in the story, the playwright shows that people who lack empathy for others tend to be prideful, manipulative, and evil.

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Discuss Shakespeare 's Use of Imagery in Othello to Reveal Character A lack of empathy makes for a true villain. In Shakespeare’s tragic play Othello, the nature of Iago’s character is revealed through the use of animal, plant, and devil imagery. Iago is revealed to view others as less than him, manipulating them with a lack of conscience, and having a desire for the destruction of others.

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In the play Othello, William Shakespeare creates an elaborate tragedy with various in depth characters, enhancing the story with powerful characterization. Iago, the main antagonist of Othello, exemplifies Shakespeare’s use of characterization to create in depth and complex characters. Using his manipulative nature, intellectual mind, egotistical attitude, and dishonesty, Iago controls the other characters in order to achieve his goal, leading Othello to succumb to an overwhelming jealousy causing his downfall. In order for Iago to gain control of the characters in the play, he manipulates Othello, Roderigo, Cassio, and more to believe false information and turn on one another.

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Emotions take control over our actions. In the play, Othello, by William Shakespeare, emotions have an overcoming power over the characters ' behaviours. Set in Cyprus, the tragedy Othello is revolved around Iago, a character who is determined to achieve power through the use of manipulation and deception, targeting powerful figures such as the protagonist, Othello, his lieutenant, Cassio, and a rich soldier, Roderigo. Throughout the play, the actions committed by characters consumed by self-loathing are greatly amplified. Othello illustrates how jealousy forces the characters to go to greater lengths than one normally would to satisfy their desire for vengeance.

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If Roderigo exposed Iago when he said he would, a lot of misfortune would not have occurred. Therefore, Roderigo demonstrates the dark side of human nature by being jealous and unintelligent. To conclude, the dark side of human nature is demonstrated by Iago who is selfish, Brabantio who is doubtful, and Roderigo who lacks cleverness. William Shakespeare’s Othello shows how easy it is to let emotions take over one’s mind.

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Iago’s powerfully disruptive insinuations torment Othello to fall precipitously into his intricate trap, believing in the prospect of Cassio and Desdemona’s fictitious affair. Through the use of linguistic techniques such as elliptical speech, subservient vocative choices and a hesitant tone, Iago is able to construct artful innuendoes to deceive and manipulate Othello. Supplementary to linguistic techniques, dramatic techniques such as dramatic irony reinforces Iago’s role as a two-faced villain, who is making a pretence of being Othello’s loyal ensign. Eventually, Iago’s villainy nature sows a seed of doubt in Othello that germinates into the murder of Desdemona. Through the characterisation of Iago as a notorious villain, Shakespeare is able to hold Iago’s actions accountable for the play’s tragic downfall, establishing a sense of powerlessness amongst the

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Jealousy and hatred is in the minds of all men but those who use jealousy and hatred to play with the minds of innocent men have the chance to end up finding success. In the novel ‘Othello’ by William Shakespeare, Othello is a noble and peaceful man who has the reputation for finding success in all his obstacles and jobs, however; once he believes in Iago’s hateful lies, he becomes jealous and vilified. Othello shows how an honest and loving man can become a tragic hero once he comes face to face with the problems of himself and his peers. Ohtello’s mind is polluted by the hideous and jealous language of Iago throughout the play; this influences Othello to conclude his character as a tragic hero. Firstly, Iago uses manipulation to control

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