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Othello 94908 Views
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Description:
Why did Iago want to destroy Othello? Shmoop amongst yourselves.
Transcript
- 00:04
Othello, a la Shmoop: Sex, Lies and That Pesky Handkerchief.
- 00:12
We all know that jealousy can be a problem . . .
- 00:13
. . . especially when it makes us lose control. And our hero Othello sure knows something
- 00:21
about losing control. When his buddy Iago starts spreading nasty
- 00:26
rumors . . . . . . about Othello's wife, Desdemona . . .
Full Transcript
- 00:28
. . . he goes a little nuts . . . . . . and the poor girl doesn't have a chance.
- 00:32
But why would Iago do such a thing? Why would he go to so much trouble to bring
- 00:36
Othello down? Maybe he's just a racist - angry about a
- 00:39
black man's success. He does refer to him as a "black ram"
- 00:44
and "the devil" when talking to Desdemona's father.
- 00:47
No doubt, a black man in a position of power . . .
- 00:49
. . . would have gotten more than a few people riled up.
- 00:53
Speaking of hatred . . . . . . Iago makes his feelings for Othello
- 00:55
pretty clear from page one. Right from the beginning, Iago complains about
- 01:00
being passed up for a promotion. So was he ticked off enough about Othello
- 01:04
giving his job to Cassio . . . . . . that he would actually destroy poor
- 01:08
Cassio's life? Could be, but some people think Iago's lust
- 01:14
wasn't just job related . . . . . . that he orchestrated Desdemona's death
- 01:18
so he could have Othello for himself. After all, Iago tells Othello in Act 3, and
- 01:23
we quote, "I am your own forever." Sounds like more than a dedicated employee
- 01:28
to us. Could all that tragedy have sprung out of
- 01:31
a simple case of unrequited love? Possibly. But Shakespeare's hints about
- 01:36
Iago's motivation may have left out one other possibility.
- 01:39
Maybe he's just a really, really bad guy . . .
- 01:43
. . . a guy who loves stirring things up more than anything. . .
- 01:46
. . . a complete sociopath . . . . . . who delights in others' misery . . .
- 01:49
. . . and gets pleasure from being the smartest person in the room.
- 01:53
From his comments to the audience, it's clear that Iago enjoys controlling every situation
- 01:57
. . . . . . even if we're never really sure why
- 02:01
he's doing it. So, what was behind Iago's master plan of
- 02:04
destruction? And why did Shakespeare leave it for us to
- 02:07
figure out? Shmoop amongst yourselves.
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